Culture of Having vs Culture of Being

The culture of Having is primarily characterized by attachment. This is “an emotional state of clinging caused by the belief that without some particular thing or some person you cannot be happy” (Anthony de Mello, Call to Love: Meditations, p. 13).

There are three modern indicators, also called modern idols, of this emotional clinging which not only make the clinger unhappy but others as well: attachment to power/authority, to riches and profit, and to fame and popularity. Control and violence result from the first, poverty and hunger from the second, and pride and arrogance from the third. They are the internal causes of deceit, corruption, conflict, terrorism, killings and war.

In response to the first, Christ thru the Church teaches service, to the second, sharing and justice, and to the third, humility and simplicity.

The Culture of being is generally characterized by detachment or self-emptying (kenosis in Greek), resulting in humble service and simple lifestyle, all of which are what is called personal transformation, character building, becoming a self-possessed person, truly human, free and peaceful. The famous expression “peace of the heart” refers to this person. This is the reason why we can also say with St. John Paul II, “The peace of the heart is the heart of peace.”

In the Hebrew culture peace is a person, not an idea or a social condition. The word for it is Shalom. And St. Paul calls the most detached, humble, simple, self-possessed, free and perfect human being Jesus Christ, “our shalom”, our peace (Eph 2:14).