Source: The Daily Beast
Out of the trying year that was 2017, there was arguably no greater seismic cultural watershed than the #MeToo movement. Heralded as a long overdue reckoning of the institutionalized misogyny in entertainment, politics, business, academia, and just about every walk of life, it has led to the ouster or repudiation of figures once esteemed in their respective fields, including: Harvey Weinstein, Matt Lauer, Louis C.K., Bill O'Reilly, former Senator Al Franken, Mario Batali, and perhaps most infamously Donald Trump, who now occupies the White House. Response to the visceral revelations of predatory behavior, and the subsequent calling out of the patriarchal attitude which sired it, has gone one of two ways.
Conservative leaning men (and women for that matter) have been violently defensive and suspicious of the aims of the movement, with some viewing it as the latest incarnation of an vast ultra - feminist conspiracy to further advance an all-consuming male hating agenda. Others have followed the lead of President Trump - who has loudly denounced his own accusers as liars with a political ax to grind - and one time Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore, who denied knowing any of the women who accused him of misconduct - in dismissing the veracity of claims put forward by the movement, citing sensationalized examples like the discredited 2014 Rolling Stone UVA rape story and the 2006 Duke University Lacrosse scandal.
Conservative leaning men (and women for that matter) have been violently defensive and suspicious of the aims of the movement, with some viewing it as the latest incarnation of an vast ultra - feminist conspiracy to further advance an all-consuming male hating agenda. Others have followed the lead of President Trump - who has loudly denounced his own accusers as liars with a political ax to grind - and one time Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore, who denied knowing any of the women who accused him of misconduct - in dismissing the veracity of claims put forward by the movement, citing sensationalized examples like the discredited 2014 Rolling Stone UVA rape story and the 2006 Duke University Lacrosse scandal.
Conversely others have gone to the other extreme, becoming ardently gung-ho in denouncing and crusading against such egregious behavior, only to be called onto the carpet for their own misdeeds (as in the case of ex-Senator Franken, who made it his zealous mission to expose "the depravity of Republicans"). Whether born out of paranoid fear of a feminist witch hunt, a sense of self-righteous superiority, or from a guilt driven attempt to overcompensate for past failures, such knee-jerk responses only serve to perpetuate the problem, adding to the noxious din of sound and fury that pollutes all attempts at real resolution, not to mention trivializing the all too real experiences of victims.
This begs the question: Does New Thought and mental metaphysical philosophy offer a mature middle path to thoughtfully navigate, reflect, and respond to this volatile issue, one that doesn't further fan the flames of the partisan fire, along with respecting the experiences of victims? I submit that it does.
"But," some may say, "doesn't New Thought claim that we bring our circumstances on ourselves through our thoughts and feelings? Won't that reinforce an attitude of victim blaming toward accusers?"
A most valid point, and one that any student or practitioner of mind metaphysics must consider. While the central premise of New Thought - which is a syncretic blend of Western and Eastern spiritual/metaphysical philosophies - is that our mental states are causative of individual and collective experience, its primary emphasis is on the up-building and refinement of individual character, rather than the divisive "us vs. them" moral judgmentalism of traditional religion. Though, unfortunately, some New Thought teachers have issued dogmatic statements more in keeping with the latter mode (like the claim of Rhonda Byrne, author of The Secret, that victims found themselves a part of tragedies like the Holocaust "because their dominant thoughts were on the same frequency of such events"), a more nuanced view lies at the heart of the philosophy. As metaphysical historian and author Mitch Horowitz writes:
"Spiritual insight arrives through self-observation—not in analyzing, or justifying, the suffering experienced by others. To judge others is to work without any self-verification, which is the one pragmatic tool of the spiritual search. The private person who can maturely and persuasively claim self-responsibility for his own suffering, or who can endure it as an inner obligation, shines a light for others. The person who justifies someone else’s suffering, in this case through collective fault, only casts a stone."
This ethic of radical, or transcendental, self accountability, stands in stark contrast to the deflecting projection engaged in by the sides mentioned above, who continue to insist that groups of nefarious "others" are orchestrating a modern day Inquisition against men; or that it's only those "conservative hypocrites" and "sexist dinosaurs" who are perpetrating such offenses. Rather than viewing it as an opportunity to take stock of our own attitudes as men toward sex, dating, and gender dynamics - and if said attitudes are contributing either consciously or unconsciously to the larger problem - we: A. Cry "conspiracy!", circle the wagons, and try to paint ourselves as the true victims or B. Insist that we would never engage in such vile sexist behavior.
If I sound like I'm speaking from experience, you'd be right. As a former high school "jock" I absorbed through osmosis the old "boys will be boys" attitude, which viewed forceful come-ons, pick up lines, and the "No really means yes" concept as perfectly natural behavior, reinforced by affirmations of "Atta boy!" and "That's how a real man scores!" This dovetailed into my college years when I made the 180 into conservative Christianity, simmering over how women always picked 'assholes' over 'good' guys like me, who would never treat them like that (all while mentally condemning them as sluts, of course). It was much easier to blame the deceptive 'wiles' of the opposite sex (Eve had tempted Adam after all: and yes, that was a real thought I had) than to look inward and see how my domineering, obnoxious, and close minded attitude was a major turnoff, which I was able to finally do at long last a few years later.
It is this aggressive, primal, and hostile side of the psyche that Carl Jung aptly described as the Shadow. If not addressed and incorporated into conscious awareness by the individual, the ignored or neglected Shadow is projected outward on other individuals and groups who are labeled threats or enemies. And as history has shown, the collective shadow of a nation, race, or religion can be channeled and directed toward the most hideous ends, ending in genocide, religious persecution, war, and other atrocities. Indeed, it has been suggested that the election of President Trump and the subsequent rise of the "Alt-Right" is a direct reflection of the repressed contents of the Shadow of the American psyche.
To make any lasting headway politically and socially when it comes to the issue of sexual assault and abuse, the reactive attitude of projection must end. If the mantra of "We, the People" is to evolve past a cheap platitude, we must cease blaming everything and everyone - Feminists, liberals, the Russians, the Illuminati, and the whole roster of bogeymen - and realize that all of us men in some way, shape, or form, have laid the cobblestones of thought and belief that constitute the road of our present course. The following injunction of Jesus has never been more relevant:
"Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye." (Matthew 7:3 - 5)
And as Jung wrote in his "Psychology and Religion":
"If you imagine someone who is brave enough to withdraw all his projections, then you get an individual who is conscious of a pretty thick shadow. Such a man has saddled himself with new problems and conflicts. He has become a serious problem to himself, as he is now unable to say that they do this or that, they are wrong, and they must be fought against… Such a man knows that whatever is wrong in the world is in himself, and if he only learns to deal with his own shadow he has done something real for the world. He has succeeded in shouldering at least an infinitesimal part of the gigantic, unsolved social problems of our day."
This begs the question: Does New Thought and mental metaphysical philosophy offer a mature middle path to thoughtfully navigate, reflect, and respond to this volatile issue, one that doesn't further fan the flames of the partisan fire, along with respecting the experiences of victims? I submit that it does.
"But," some may say, "doesn't New Thought claim that we bring our circumstances on ourselves through our thoughts and feelings? Won't that reinforce an attitude of victim blaming toward accusers?"
A most valid point, and one that any student or practitioner of mind metaphysics must consider. While the central premise of New Thought - which is a syncretic blend of Western and Eastern spiritual/metaphysical philosophies - is that our mental states are causative of individual and collective experience, its primary emphasis is on the up-building and refinement of individual character, rather than the divisive "us vs. them" moral judgmentalism of traditional religion. Though, unfortunately, some New Thought teachers have issued dogmatic statements more in keeping with the latter mode (like the claim of Rhonda Byrne, author of The Secret, that victims found themselves a part of tragedies like the Holocaust "because their dominant thoughts were on the same frequency of such events"), a more nuanced view lies at the heart of the philosophy. As metaphysical historian and author Mitch Horowitz writes:
This ethic of radical, or transcendental, self accountability, stands in stark contrast to the deflecting projection engaged in by the sides mentioned above, who continue to insist that groups of nefarious "others" are orchestrating a modern day Inquisition against men; or that it's only those "conservative hypocrites" and "sexist dinosaurs" who are perpetrating such offenses. Rather than viewing it as an opportunity to take stock of our own attitudes as men toward sex, dating, and gender dynamics - and if said attitudes are contributing either consciously or unconsciously to the larger problem - we: A. Cry "conspiracy!", circle the wagons, and try to paint ourselves as the true victims or B. Insist that we would never engage in such vile sexist behavior.
If I sound like I'm speaking from experience, you'd be right. As a former high school "jock" I absorbed through osmosis the old "boys will be boys" attitude, which viewed forceful come-ons, pick up lines, and the "No really means yes" concept as perfectly natural behavior, reinforced by affirmations of "Atta boy!" and "That's how a real man scores!" This dovetailed into my college years when I made the 180 into conservative Christianity, simmering over how women always picked 'assholes' over 'good' guys like me, who would never treat them like that (all while mentally condemning them as sluts, of course). It was much easier to blame the deceptive 'wiles' of the opposite sex (Eve had tempted Adam after all: and yes, that was a real thought I had) than to look inward and see how my domineering, obnoxious, and close minded attitude was a major turnoff, which I was able to finally do at long last a few years later.
It is this aggressive, primal, and hostile side of the psyche that Carl Jung aptly described as the Shadow. If not addressed and incorporated into conscious awareness by the individual, the ignored or neglected Shadow is projected outward on other individuals and groups who are labeled threats or enemies. And as history has shown, the collective shadow of a nation, race, or religion can be channeled and directed toward the most hideous ends, ending in genocide, religious persecution, war, and other atrocities. Indeed, it has been suggested that the election of President Trump and the subsequent rise of the "Alt-Right" is a direct reflection of the repressed contents of the Shadow of the American psyche.
To make any lasting headway politically and socially when it comes to the issue of sexual assault and abuse, the reactive attitude of projection must end. If the mantra of "We, the People" is to evolve past a cheap platitude, we must cease blaming everything and everyone - Feminists, liberals, the Russians, the Illuminati, and the whole roster of bogeymen - and realize that all of us men in some way, shape, or form, have laid the cobblestones of thought and belief that constitute the road of our present course. The following injunction of Jesus has never been more relevant:
"Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye." (Matthew 7:3 - 5)
And as Jung wrote in his "Psychology and Religion":
"If you imagine someone who is brave enough to withdraw all his projections, then you get an individual who is conscious of a pretty thick shadow. Such a man has saddled himself with new problems and conflicts. He has become a serious problem to himself, as he is now unable to say that they do this or that, they are wrong, and they must be fought against… Such a man knows that whatever is wrong in the world is in himself, and if he only learns to deal with his own shadow he has done something real for the world. He has succeeded in shouldering at least an infinitesimal part of the gigantic, unsolved social problems of our day."
Such a unsparing process of self-inventory and examination may not generate headlines or make for quick soundbites, but it is the time tested Middle Way through which genuine progress is possible.
