Detachment

Of all the methods in this chapter, detachment is probably the hardest for us to practice. We think that our attachments to this life and the things of this world define who we are. Falsely, we think we are our possessions. We view ourselves through the lens of our attachments to people, relationships, what we do for work, our bank accounts, and where we live. We wake up each day and rely on all these things to provide us with security and meaning. Our attachments are rooted deeply in us, and therefore confronting all of these with the notion of letting everything go is seemingly traumatizing. 

The irony here is that all that we are attached to cause us most of our suffering over time. All of these things provide us with a false sense of purpose and security, because all of these things are transitory. Relationships can fall apart, people can be relied upon to only a certain degree, and people eventually die. Possessions will deteriorate, be stolen or destroyed by fire, and money will be consumed by bills and taxes, or will vanish for other reasons. Careers and status, are ever changing, and life is ever changing. The body can’t even be relied upon, as illness, disease and death are always lurking around the corner. 

Let us be sure of one thing; in the end, attachment to things of this life only cause us distress, anxiety and suffering. To be attached to the things of this world, is to be detached from God. To cherish things above God eventually leads to worship of these things. This is at the core of the second of the ten commandments, which instructs believers to have no idols and worship nothing of this world, and bow down and serve nothing except the one God (Exodus 20:4-6). This commandment was given to us for our own good. 

Detachment is a core teaching of Jesus Christ. It is found throughout the Gospels, but the most direct display of this is found in the story of the rich man (Mark 10:17). As the account goes, a young man came running up to Jesus, knelt down, and asked, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” This is the most expansive and important of all questions. Jesus answers by instructing him to not seal, murder, and lie etc… and the young man says that he has kept all these commandments. 

 Looking at the man, Jesus felt genuine love for him. “There is still one thing you haven’t done,” he told him. “Go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” At this the man’s face fell, and he went away sad, for he had many possessions.

This decision to prioritize clinging to things of this world over letting go is the great self-delusion. Saint John Climacus had a great deal to say about this in his book, The Ladder of Divine Ascent:

The man who really loves the Lord, who has made a real effort to find the coming Kingdom, who has really begun to be troubled by his sins, who is really mindful of eternal torment and judgment, who really lives in fear of his own departure, will not love, care or worry about money, or possessions, or parents, or worldly glory, or friends, or brothers, or anything at all on earth. But having shaken off all ties with earthly things and having stripped himself of all his cares, and having come to hate even his own flesh, and having stripped himself of everything, he will follow Christ without anxiety or hesitation....

To be sure, attachments are chains and prison bars. They are like large stones tied around the neck with a coarse rope, causing us to be pulled to the earth, or keeping us at the bottom of the sea, and surly keep us from being elevated to greater heights. They deprive us of freedom, and will most definitely keep us anxious and fearful. St. Macarius the Great († AD 391):

For whatever attachment a man does not bravely combat, and resolutely resist, in that he takes gratification, and it becomes like a chain or fetter fastening down his mind, so that he cannot elevate himself to God… 

Saint Macrius describes in detail how necessary detachment is for progress in unseen warfare: 

If a man is entangled in the things of this world, caught by their many shackles, and seduced by the evil passions, it is very hard for him to recognize that there is another invisible struggle and another inner warfare. But, after detaching himself from all visible things and worldly pleasures, and beginning to serve God, he then becomes capable of recognizing the nature of this inner struggle and unseen warfare against the passions. Yet, as we said, unless he first achieves outward detachment by aspiring to serve God totally with his whole soul, he will not recognize the secret passions of evil and his inner fetters. On the contrary, he will be in danger of thinking that he is healthy and not ailing, when in fact he is full of wounds and nourishes unseen passions. But if he has despised desire and glory, he may first become aware of these inner passions and then fight against them, calling on Christ with faith and receiving from heaven the weapons of the Spirit: the breastplate of righteousness, the helmet of salvation, the shield of faith, and the sword of the Spirit (Eph. 6:14).  

To be detached is to live a life that is not of this world, or a life that is elevated. This is one thing the saints had in common. The great ascetics, the martyrs, the humble silent person in the church every Sunday; all lived lives that were above earthly cares.

 Saint John the Apostle was very clear in his teachings about love of the things of this world. Yes, it may be a hard precept to live by initially, but the result in this life is good, and the eternal result is sublime: 

Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever.

In all things we should strive to increase detachment from this world and the things of this world, and increase attachment to God’s grace, holiness and love. We must decrease so God’s presence in us can increase.