There’s a new phenomenon that has invaded our culture. Well, I guess it’s not new, but it has at least manifested itself in a new way. The thing about it is, it’s always been in the world, but maybe not to this degree. What I’m talking about is selfishness.
In our modern culture we seem to exhibit new selfish behaviors. We can see this in the proliferation of ‘selfies’ everywhere. I’ve noticed the speed and degree to which they’ve made their way into our society, our consciousness and our thinking. What did we do before the advent of modern technology? Previous generations must be really jealous. Thanks to our modern society we have ever new ways to manifest our narcissistic behaviors.
Of course, I’m being sarcastic. I do know that new technologies can be used for good or bad purposes. I also know that because we have access to so many means that it just becomes easier for us to send a picture to a friend, or post it on the internet somewhere. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing. I’m just wondering, “When does it get to be too much?” I mean, it’s not just limited to people taking pictures of themselves. Don’t forget Youtube. This is where any one of us can take a video of ourselves doing something crazy and it has the potential to end up on the evening news. Which also makes me wonder, “How did the evening news get wrapped up into this phenomenon”? I thought they were the disseminators of serious journalism and the paragon of good judgment. That’s a whole other story, though.
I think I’m mainly speaking out of frustration here. It could be I just don’t understand, since I’ve never liked taking pictures of myself. Anyway, what prompted this post is an article in Psychology Today that was discussed on the news about why people take ‘selfies’ and what it does for them. The shocking thing to me was they never seemed to want to mention the elephant in the room—that people sometimes take ‘selfies’ because of their fixation on themselves. What’s also striking to me is just how blatant the name is—‘selfie’. I mean, any PR guy would at least try to put a positive spin on that name. Calling it a ‘selfie’ would be like coming out with a new car called the ‘Ford Envy’, the Chevy ‘Greed’, or possibly the Dodge ‘blasphemy’. Now on that last one—to be fair, many a Dodge vehicles have caused their fair share of blasphemy. No, I’m just kidding! If you’re going to like Dodge, I’m not going to judge you.
Here’s the conclusion I’ve come up with, though; Individual ‘selfies’ themselves aren’t necessarily selfish, but maybe ‘selfies’ on the whole have shown the more selfish sides of our nature. I don’t think a ‘selfie’ in itself is wrong. I guess, if it’s me, I would just ask myself beforehand, “What’s my motive for this?”
…Let’s go deeper—Are Selfies Self-ish?
Obviously the Bible doesn’t talk about ‘selfies’. But it does talk about our selfish natures. In Philippians 2:3-4 it says, “[Let] nothing [be done] through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.” I believe these verses are good illustrations because our selfishness can often be based on strife and vainglory. We often try to amplify ourselves when we are at odds with others or when we just want to bring attention to ourselves, many times due to insecurity, or just plain pride in ourselves. This can be difficult to recognize unless we are aware. The latter half of that verse describes the opposite—the way we should be. It describes a humble person, who considers others before themselves.
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2 Timothy 3:1-2 “This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy.” I guess, sadly, this is the verse that made me think about our modern day culture when I was writing this post. Here, I’m speaking specifically of the ‘lovers of their own selves’ portion. It seems, in this day and age, that selfish behaviors are becoming more so the norm than the exception. It’s not that there aren’t a lot of well-meaning people out there, it’s just that it appears our society is pointing away from selflessness and towards selfishness. It’s about the direction we see things going and the speed at which it’s happening.
So, how do we curb this trend? Well, I think it starts with each one of us, individually, applying Philippians 2:3-4 to our daily lives; Casting aside our selfish behaviors and, with humility, thinking about others and their needs.
Philippians 2:3-4 it says, “[Let] nothing [be done] through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.”
Ecclesiastes 1:9 says, “The thing that hath been, it [is that] which shall be; and that which is done [is] that which shall be done: and [there is] no new [thing] under the sun.”
2 Timothy 3:1-2 “This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy.”