Anthony de Mello’s phrases reveal an ecumenical thinker, who had great clarity in capturing the essential aspects of contemporary spirituality; himself was the very synthesis of various cultures and beliefs.
Anthony was born in Mumbai, India, but unlike most of his compatriots, he was a Catholic, in fact became a priest, on the orders of the Jesuits, moved to the United States, where he became famous for his preaching and books.
- “Perfect love is built on fear.
- Where there is love there are no demands.
- There are no expectations.
- There is no dependence.
- I don’t demand that you make me happy; My misfortune is not up to you.
- If you left me.
- I wouldn’t feel sorry for myself; I love your business.
- But am I not attached to it?-Anthony de Mello-.
Many of Anthony de Mello’s phrases cannot be framed in a specific belief, he took elements of Eastern religions and mixed them with a Catholic message and, at the same time, a social message, although his thinking has been controversial for some, the truth is that millions of people around the world have benefited from his teachings. Here are some of his most memorable phrases.
This is undoubtedly one of Anthony Mello’s most quoted and memorized phrases: “Happiness cannot depend on events. Is it your reaction to events that makes you suffer?”
As we see, there is a strong influence of Eastern philosophies on this affirmation, which reminds us that lived reality is a source of happiness or suffering, depends only on our inner world, so the main thing is our response to events, not the events themselves.
Another sentence by Anthony de Mello says, “You see people and things not as they are, but as you are. “Again it is reiterated that everything depends on the perception of each person, on how he builds his world.
This phrase reminds us of something psychoanalysis also talks about: the projection mechanism, it is our gaze that shapes what we see.
Enlightenment is one of the concepts repeated over and over again in the sentences of Anthony de Mello, which gives it a similar meaning to that of Buddhism. It is a deep awakening of consciousness that allows us to come into contact with reality in a more authentic way.
Anthony de Mello says: “Enlightenment is an absolute cooperation with the inevitable. “It’s a beautiful way of expressing that lucidity has just accepted things as they are. In fact, we don’t just have to accept, but cooperate? With it, that is, let it happen and add to its dynamics.
The next sentence is a reflection on current life in cities. In it, Anthony de Mello notes: “When you are away from nature, your mind dries and dies, because it has been violently separated from its roots. “
This is very interesting because one of the main sources of stress in cities is precisely this lack of contact with nature. Therefore, there are many contemporary therapies that guide us to come into contact with other living beings to achieve healing.
It is one of Anthony de Mello’s phrases that portrays several contemporary evils. It says: “Approval, success, praise, appreciation, are the drugs to which society has attached us, and since we do not always have them, suffering is terrible. “
The clarity of this statement is astonishing. Anthony de Mello died in 1987, that is, he did not notice the masification of new technologies, however, in the previous sentence he already foreseed the new style of human relations, he also warns against these new forms of addiction, which only lead to suffering.
Anthony de Mello is much more than the author of several bestsellers, the clarity with which he conveyed his teachings has made him one of the great masters of today’s world, he was inspired by his deep faith in love as the source of everything and in the conviction that, through words, the world can also be changed.