Self-Esteem Without Selfishness: Increasing Our Capacity for Love

by Fr. Michel Esparza

We’ve all been exhorted to cultivate self-esteem and nurture a positive self-image. That sounds appealing. But we also know that God calls us to humility. And many well-intentioned Christians have it in the back of their minds that being humble means living their lives in a haze of discouragement, anxiety, and preoccupation with their own sinfulness. After all, the only alternative our culture seems to offer is a vacuous “I’m OK, you’re OK” relativism: the false peace that this world gives. We know that can’t be right. So how can we attain the peace God wants for us if we’re mired in self-contempt? How can we spread Christian joy if we don’t have any ourselves? In Self-Esteem Without Selfishness, Fr. Michel Esparza leads the way out of this conundrum.