Chapter 29
“The unexamined life is not worth living.” (Socrates). “But as for me, I know that my Redeemer lives.” (Job 19:25).
Our lived experience (phenomenology) calls us to notice how things appear in the experience itself. To be at peace, we have to be present to the other as they are, not merely as our psychological projections. Cultivating a non-judgmental posture of “attentive seeing” allows us to engage the actual person rather than a caricature shaped by our own bias.
Immediate judgment in the discipline of phenomenology is what is known as “epoche”. Edmund Husserl, the “father” of modern phenomenology, spoke of suspending our presuppositions (judgments) to encounter phenomena afresh. Applied to being at peace with others, it means pausing before we assign motive or meaning to their behavior. That pause opens a space where reconciliation is still possible.
As Husserl wrote, “Religious faith is a highest form of freedom and self-determination. It is the highest ethical act, because it is an act of pure, unconditional obedience to an absolute reason.”
This week, let’s practice the “epoche” in our interactions. Let’s pause before we judge, suspend our assumptions, and make space for grace. By doing so, we can move from merely reacting to others to truly seeing them as they are, creating a pathway to authentic connection and peace.
Philemon