Immortal Diamond: The search for our true self

By Richard Rohr

In Falling Upward (and in many of his other teachings), Richard Rohr talks at length about ego (or the False Self) and how it gets in the way of spiritual maturity, especially if its preoccupations continue into the second half of life. But if there's a False Self, is there also a True Self? What is it? How is it found? Why does it matter? And what does it have to do with the spiritual journey? In his new book, the author likens True Self to a diamond, buried deep within us, formed under the intense pressure of our lives and needing to be searched for, uncovered, and separated from all the debris of ego that surrounds it. In a sense True Self must, like Jesus, be resurrected, and that process involves not resuscitation but transformation.

• Language: English
• Publisher: SPCK
• Release date: Feb 21, 2013
• ISBN: 9780281070183

Richard Rohr

Fr. Richard Rohr is a globally recognized ecumenical teacher bearing witness to the universal awakening within Christian mysticism and the Perennial Tradition. He is a Franciscan priest of the New Mexico Province and founder of the Center for Action and Contemplation (CAC) in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Fr. Richard's teaching is grounded in the Franciscan alternative orthodoxy—practices of contemplation and lived kenosis (self-emptying), expressing itself in radical compassion, particularly for the socially marginalized. Fr. Richard is the author of numerous books, including Everything Belongs, Adam’s Return, The Naked Now, Breathing Under Water, Falling Upward, Immortal Diamond, and Eager to Love: The Alternative Way of Francis of Assisi. Fr. Richard is academic Dean of the Living School for Action and Contemplation. Drawing upon Christianity's place within the Perennial Tradition, the mission of the Living School is to produce compassionate and powerfully learned individuals who will work for positive change in the world based on awareness of our common union with God and all beings. Visit cac.org for more information.

Reviews for Immortal Diamond

[ajlewis2_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I guess I highlighted about 1/3 of the book which I want to go back and look over taking my time and meditating. I got the e-book from the library, so I'll buy a copy. Just one example of what grabbed me was his explanation of the error in the thinking that God required the sacrificial death of Jesus to atone for sin. I've always felt that this just could not be a necessity for the Source of all that is. But don't get the impression that this book is about head knowledge. I see it more as a weaving of a trail enticing the reader to go up to and through a gateway that they might not have been afraid to approach. Richard Rohr seems to care a great deal more about the reader than he does of himself. How wonderful to run into that.

[livelylady · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Very deep, philosophical book about recognizing and separating the True Self from the False Self.

[dubiousdisciple · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Ready to experience the mystical side of Christianity with a Franciscan friar? Here’s a journey that Father Richard Rohr promises will secure a happier existence. It’s the quest for your True Self … the resurrected self, the “immortal diamond” deep within you, which he says is neither God nor human, but both at the same time.It took me a little longer than usual to get into the book, which keeps it below a five-star review, but it was worth the persistence. My problem was that Rohr writes with a sort of matter-of-fact authority that left me wondering if I missed the proof text somewhere along the way. Perhaps I did; Rohr has published around two dozen books since his first in 1976, and this is the first I’ve read.Rohr’s target is those who sense God is closer than they’ve been told. If you find yourself “in recovery from religion,” you’re in Rohr’s crosshairs. He wants to introduce you to a deeper meaning to life, deeper even than the surface Christian tradition that has been your paradigm to date. While Rohr’s heritage is clearly Judeo-Christian, and many of his quotes come from the Bible, he aims at uncovering the perennial truths that all religions share.Resurrection is key, both of our Lord and of ourselves. Resurrection is necessary for new life, life in unity with God. As “children of the resurrection” (Luke 20:36), our relationship with God changes … we “breath God in and out—much more than we ‘know’ God, understand God, or even talk to God.” There is an intimacy with God at this level that we never reach within our selfish, base existence, the “False Self.”A deep read, if you’re ready to take the leap.