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 %REFLEXIVE EVALUATION PARADIGM INTEGRITY ADDICTION 881101

     The  integrity  of  a  person  or  community  depends
critically upon provisions within the leading paradigm for
the  evaluation  of the dominant ideals,  values,   goals,
traditions,  assumptions,  etc.   which are central in the
life of the person and community.

     The situation is paradoxical and circular.

     If the dominant ideals,  values,  goals,  traditions,
assumptions  make  no  unbiased provision  for  their  own
evaluation; they constitute a prison.   To the extent that
they  make  no provision for their own transcendence  they
are a prison.  This is the practical meaning of idolatry.

     Those  people and communities that practice  idolatry
make  no provision for the transcendence of the objects of
their  worship.    They are trapped by their  devotion  to
their idols.   Their worship does not point to anything of
worth  beyond  the limited focus of  the  worship.    With
nothing of worth beyond the limited focus of their worship
their  ship of state has no reliable reference  points  to
serve as the  basis  for navigation.  Ultimately human and
communal  experience are relevant to the ideals,   values,
goals,   traditions and assumptions which presume to  lead
behavior  through  decision making.   When  experience  is
ignored  and repressed because of the compulsive   worship
of that which is not grounded in  experience,   the people
who are trapped by  their worship  cannot learn from their
experiences.   They make  the  same kinds of mistakes over
and over, never learning from their mistakes.

     Addicts  and codependents are trapped in  a  paradigm
which  prevents  them from learning from their own  tragic
efforts.    Their  failures  are  grounded  in  misleading
ideals,  values, goals, traditions and assumptions; not in
technical  weaknesses  and  inadequacies.   They  need  to
evaluate  their conceptions of life in the light of  their
tragic  experiences,   and  be  honest  about  what  their
experiences  are  telling  them.    They  need to consider
alternatives  to their paradigm and to be in  conversation
with  different kinds of people about  their  experiences.
They  also need to be in conversation with people who have
been trapped like themselves,  but have started to recover
from  their imprisonment.  Any effective provision for the
evaluation  of our highest ideals  will involve  open  and
honest dialogue with people who are dedicated to different
ideals which we might consider as alternatives to our own.
We  can  best  recognize our own errors by  comparing  our
efforts  with  the efforts of other people and  how  their
experiences compare to our experiences.   Different people
are  not a threat,  they are a resource for our  salvation
from our prisons of limited perspectives and insights.  We
may be a resource to them in return.

                                                                                                                               
                         (c) 2005 by Paul A. Smith in      
                    (On Being Yourself, Whole and Healthy)  
                                                                                                                               
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