Why I Wish I Were Matt Damon

This semester I learned a new word that has enlightened the way I see human nature.

Exocentricity - Finding meaning to life outside of ourselves.

All humans have this. We look for friends to complete us. We search for jobs to sustain us. We marry to fulfill us. We travel to protract us. We purchase to maintain us. And the list goes on and on. We as humans are not complete as we are. We need something outside of ourselves to make us feel fully alive. This is why we create habits, have friends and even find favorite restaurants.

We take an object or thought and compare it to some other object or thought. We look beyond the present to fulfill the definition of the current moment. What we have is never sufficient and we think we need to obtain that which will make our joy complete. This is why marketing is so popular. When Coca-Cola released their slogan “The Real Thing” their profit margin nearly doubled. The reason for this is because their advertising spoke to our exocentricity. We as humans search for the real thing. We need the real thing and don’t know what it is.

As humans we are all born and live with a fundamental lack. We don’t feel whole and need something to fulfill us. This is why in a church we have sanctuaries, stain glass windows, high rafted ceilings, a communion table, a pulpit, pews, and prayer rooms. All of these objects remind us of something that is outside of ourselves that brings meaning. We create a Godly space. We believe that we need God. These things in a church remind us and give us different avenues to that fulfillment. Our exocentricity needs these objects in order for us to feel alive, wholesome and valid.

We as humans don’t have the capacity to look inside ourselves and find wholeness. This is not a bad thing. If we did then we would be completely narcissistic and would not attempt to use other people for support and fulfillment plus this behavior would eventually lead to our own destruction.

The reality I am slowly coming to understand is that we humans are made in the Image of God. Theologians call this the Imago Dei. But have you ever thought about what this really means?

Are we in the image of God because of our body reflects that of God’s? Probably not! Are we the image of God because we have dominion over the earth as God does? Even though we do, this is probably not why we are the image of God. How about our ability to reason and create, is that how we reflect God’s image? I submit this is not completely correct either.

I believe we are made in God’s image because of our ability to form and invest in a relationship with God as well as other people. The love we share with one another reflects the image of God. Our exocentricity attaches to others and we bring love, joy, excitement and validity to each other’s humanity. We create a Godly connection between one another because we are sharing that which we share with God – a love relationship!

Exocentricity is a good thing. We need fulfillment outside of who we are. We need community with those around us. God is the ultimate fulfillment and is what all our desires are seeking towards whether we are cognizant of it or not. My hope for you is that you will fall in love with that fulfillment and in turn share it with all you know.