Illusions and veering away from authenticity

Illusions and veering away from authenticity

We went to the Minor Basilica of Our Lady of Manaoag today. We were able to attend the Holy Mass scheduled on 10:30am.

The homily (I am sorry I cannot recall the name of the priest) was about illusions – how we tend to use tricks and appearances to mask things we don’t want, like being fat, being “ugly” (by normative standards) or other “undesirable” traits.

While listening to this homily, my mind tended towards how a person can gain skills and expertise such that they can manipulate appearances at will. Comedians and artists use this for the sake of artistic expression; however, there have been times in business and politics where illusions and appearances are used to cover vicious cycles or mechanisms of injustices.

My insight is that an ethical professional will encounter a fork in the road the moment they acquire the skill to potentially disentangle appearances with what is actually happening.

And the person who refuses to disentangle what seems to be and what really is can make all the difference.

Matthew 23:13-22. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You lock the Kingdom of heaven before men. You do not enter yourselves, nor do you allow entrance to those trying to enter.

[DAILY GOSPEL INSIGHTS AND REFLECTION FOR MANAGEMENT AND ORGANIZATION 2023-240: AUGUST 28, 2023]