Central Lutheran Church - Elk River
Central Lutheran Church - Elk River
Awakened from Shadows {Reflections}
Have you ever wondered if the reality you perceive is just a shadow on the wall? Join us in episode 51 as we unravel the profound analogy of Plato's Cave and its implications on our understanding of reality. This idea, which I first encountered in my Philosophy 101 class at Red Rocks Community College, continues to be a cornerstone of my worldview. We'll explore how Plato's depiction of humans mistaking shadows for reality until freed to see the true world mirrors the awakening experiences, much like in "The Matrix." We delve into the discomfort and resistance that often accompanies the journey towards true awareness, as many prefer the comfort of familiar illusions over the challenging yet rewarding pursuit of an examined life.
In the second chapter, we tackle the heavy burden of consciousness in a world rife with suffering and disillusionment. Once you see the world's realities, there's no going back, and the temptation to retreat into ignorance is strong. Yet, we emphasize the importance of remaining awake and finding solace in community support during tough times. Together, we can bear the weight of awareness and continue to seek and share the light, no matter how challenging the path becomes. Remember, you are not alone on this journey—join us at Central in Elk River or online at clcelkriver.org for continued support and connection. Peace.
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what is up everybody, and welcome to episode number 51 of the podcast. We, we are turning a corner. We did 50 episodes, this is 51. And so we're, yeah, welcome to the back nine. We're going for another 50 more, and today I wanted to talk about this analogy I heard in philosophy class I don't know if it was 15, 18 years ago when I was an undergraduate, the very first class I ever took at Red Rocks Community College in Arvada, colorado.
Speaker 1:I absolutely loved it. It was Philosophy 101, taught by this dude. It was like a week-long, eight hours a day, intensive class of philosophy. It was incredible. But I heard this analogy that I will never forget and now I can't stop seeing it everywhere I go. And you maybe have heard of it, but I wanted to just tell you it in case you haven't. It's called Plato's Cave.
Speaker 1:Plato was this philosopher that existed a long time ago, a few hundred years before Jesus even, and he was like the protege or the student of this philosopher called Socrates. And then, of course, plato had a follower named Aristotle. You maybe have heard of these three kind of giants in sort of philosophy circles, but anyway, socrates one time said famously the unexamined life is not worth living, in other words, like may we be people who go through life with our eyes wide open, as awake and conscious as possible? And I found I don't know about you, but I found in my life the temptation to not be awake is so great, and there are many folks around us who go through life numbed out, checked out or sleeping. It's unbelievable and Socrates, I think, would like lose his mind. But here's why this is the case. Maybe so Plato, socrates' student, had this analogy called the cave, where he said look, most of life is like this.
Speaker 1:Imagine you're in a cave and you're tied to a chair. I know it's weird, but just follow me on this. You're tied to a chair and you're facing the back wall of the cave and let's say you were born in this manner. This is all you know of life. Because you're tied to the chair, you cannot move your head left or right. All you see is the back wall of this cave and you think this is life. I didn't know anything different. That's all I know. Meanwhile, way behind you, there's this brilliant fire, a bright fire that's always being fed and just flames, and it's brilliant. It casts light on the back of this cave. Well, in between the fire and you are all these things people, animals perhaps and they cast a shadow then because they're kind of blocking the light of the fire and they cast the shadow on the back wall. And you're watching this whole thing and you think this is life? Right? It's not, of course. It's just the back wall of the cave and it's just shadows that are being cast on the back wall of this cave. Well, let's say, one day somebody comes and they rescue you and they untie you and they stand you up and they bring you out of the cave and they bring you into the, into the like, into the bright world of real life and sunlight.
Speaker 1:And I could first your eyes. You couldn't see anything. It would be like shocking. You'd be like what is going on? It'd be disillusioning, it'd be like disorienting. All you thought you knew is not true. You're like, oh gosh, there was a fire and those are like shadows and your eyes would eventually begin to adjust and you would see reality for what it really is. And this is like awakening. This is like, hey, be conscious, be awake. It's a call to see the world for the way that it really is.
Speaker 1:Now, a couple of decades ago, a couple of Hollywood directors made a movie about this and it's called the Matrix. You probably have heard of this or seen it. But same kind of thing when you're plugged into the Matrix, it's like being tied to the chair in Plato's cave. You think that reality is a certain way, but it's not. It's an illusion or it's, like in this case, maybe a simulation of what is real. Once you're unplugged from the Matrix, though, it's disorienting. Remember when Neo wakes up and he, like, is in that slimy bath, and then he kind of comes to and you begin to realize what reality really is. It's not always pretty either, by the way, but being conscious and being awake is what Plato calls his followers to do and be.
Speaker 1:Now, here's the reality, though, uh, you might then tend to go back into the cave and want to rescue other people who are tied to the chair, and you'd think, oh, they're all going to be like, yeah, of course, like, free me, let me go, let's go. But what Plato says and of course this is he's Socrates' student. And what happened to Socrates is? Socrates tried to do this, and if you remember the story about Socrates, socrates was killed by the state because he was a guy who went around waking people up and they kill him for it. So Plato knows this is true and he says like when you go back into the cave or when you unplug others from the matrix, they really don't want to be unplugged. Remember the scene in the matrix where the guy's like eating the steak? He's back in the matrix, one of the bad guys, and he's like I know the steak isn't real, but I don't care, I want to be in the matrix because here's the reality.
Speaker 1:I think I found in life too. Most people don't want to wake up. They'd rather go through life working their nine to five or whatever, which is not a dishonorable thing in terms of having a job nine to five. But I mean like people like just numb themselves out by pouring themselves into these vain ego projects and they're just really in a lot of ways, ways to like not be awake fully, or they kind of like try to have all these other things going on that numb them out or at the very worst, you know, drugs, alcohol, extramarital affairs, all these things are things that kind of numb us out and sort of dilute life and we're not really fully awake or conscious. But Plato says that when you go back into the cave to wake others up and untie them. You think they'd want to be saved. They really don't. They get upset at the prophet or the one who's come to set them free and they get angry and they want to kill the prophet because he's ruining their illusion. This kind of thing which is like historically, like look, let's be honest, that's what they've done to prophets Like Jesus, is a great example. They kill the one who's come to set them free.
Speaker 1:It's wild, this story, and also, once you see things, though, it's hard to kind of unsee them, and so there are many of us that are hopefully waking up. But the question is, I guess, today is how awake are you and how awake do you want to be? And do we want to be folks who go through life numbed out, checked out and sort of pour ourselves into these things that only keep us asleep, or do we want to be awake and begin to help wake others up? But here's another truth about this being awake. As you see in the Matrix, or as you see in the Jesus stories, jesus says, hey, narrow is the path that leads to life, or that leads to being awake, and wide is the path of destruction.
Speaker 1:Being awake is not easy. It's actually the heavier, the more burdened way of living, Because when you start to see things I mean you can't unsee them the suffering of the world, for example, or the way things really operate and function it begins to be, like I said, disillusioning. The light is bright when you leave the cave. It's not easy, and so we're more and more, I think, each day, tempted to just kind of check out. But here's my encouragement May you be awake today, because the alternative to go back to sleep, to go back into the cave, to go back into the matrix is the great tragedy of our lives.
Speaker 1:So, wake up, don't go back to sleep, don't go back into the matrix. And when times get heavy, when consciousness or having your eyes open becomes a heavy burden and it will lean into others. That's what community is. So that's why it's so important, because we can help bear this burden together and go forward in the state of being awake. All right, peace everybody. Hey, if you enjoy this show, I'd love to have you share it with some friends. And don't forget, you are always welcome to join us in person at Central in Elk River at 830, which is our liturgical gathering, or 10 o'clock our modern gathering, or you can check us out online at clcelkriverorg Peace.
