Two spiritualities of self-emptying: Weil’s ‘Decreation’ and Merton’s Emptying Out the False Self

Abstract

Simone Weil and Thomas Merton make unique contributions to our understanding of self-emptying. Weil uses the term ‘decreation’ to describe the process. It is argued that Weil’s use of expressions such as ‘the destruction of the «I»’ should be read metaphorically rather than literally. Thomas Merton constructs his spirituality of self-emptying around the notions of the true and the false self. When the false self is emptied out, a person’s ownmost self-in-God is allowed to assume its rightful place. It is contended, following Merton, that a proper self-love, a love of our ‘nothingness’, is essential if we are to know inner peace and freedom and to love God and others in a wholesome way.