Identity
In Moana, an animated movie from 2016, a daring teenager sets out on a quest to save her people. Along the way she finds the one thing she is looking for, her own identity. How many of us can liken this to our own lives?
I have crossed the horizon to find you
I know your name
They have stolen the heart from inside you
But this does not define you
This is not who you are
You know who you are
Moana, 2016
There is no doubt about it, we live in a fast-paced world. Often we barely have time to take a breath between completing one task and beginning another. Our identity is often wrapped up in what we do, not who or whose we are. While what we do has a place in our lives it should not define us. Think about it for a moment. If we meet someone new, one of the first questions we might ask is, “What do you do?”
The world expects us to be noted by what we do, not by who we are. What if we looked at things from a different perspective? What if we asked a different question? Perhaps asking as many Indigenous Australians do, where are you from? Or what are you passionate about? Do these not reveal more about you as a person than what do you do?
Terry Hershey, an American author and minister says, ‘Life isn’t a contest but an invitation: to pause, to pay attention, to be astonished, and to share. Who knows? You just may find a new You. Or, you might rediscover the You who has been buried under the clutter and press of the hectic - the one who is more aware, present, energised, real, and authentic. One who is fully alive.’
Is this not who God created us to be? An aware, present, energised, real, authentic and fully alive person who reflects God’s goodness and beauty.
Bishop Barron put it this way, ‘There is a cacophony of voices calling out to you; there are a thousand influences pulling you this way and that. What’s the one necessary thing? It is to listen to the voice of Jesus as he tells you of his love and as he tells you who you are.’
We invite you this week to pause, take a breath and think about who you really are.
