Attachment is necessary and desirable in life. Our human experience and condition, of frailty and weakness, and of relational longing and desire for union, means that we naturally and necessarily seek healthy bonds in life. The crucial question is to what or to whom should we be attached, and its corollary, from what and who do we need to detach?
One way Jesus frames this attachment/detachment issue is by saying, “Don’t worry about what we will eat, drink, or wear, but instead seek the kingdom of God.” He is not only speaking about that which occupies our attention and thoughts, but also what we believe is most important for our well-being.
Detachment is more commonly called “letting go,” which does not mean absolute disassociation, but instead questions how tightly we hold certain things and whether we see them as the essence of life. We all need to eat, drink, and clothe ourselves, but Jesus is asking us to think carefully about that to which we primarily tie ourselves. The necessities of daily life compare poorly to a grander and expansive participation in the reign of God. The latter includes the former, while also superseding it.
If we attach ourselves, heart and soul, will and love, to sharing in the way God is expressing his love through everything, we will simultaneously “let go” and hold more loosely other matters in life. Detachment from lesser things enables us to be deeply connected and committed to what is truly more substantive.
No soldier in active service entangles himself in the affairs of everyday life, so that he may please the one who enlisted him as a soldier. 2 Timothy 2:4
Paul illustrates this “let go and take hold” movement that is inherent and necessary for our spiritual sojourn through life. Our world offers many potential attachments, but Paul commends the singular focus of a soldier whose role and duty to follow his commanding officer, while other concerns no longer draw away his attention. He simply does not get caught up in other matters.
We cannot really juggle truly rival commitments. Something has to take precedence. If we become entangled and distracted from the true meaning of life, our whole being suffers.
For everyone, letting go is a requirement because we all have much to which we are inclined to hold too tightly snd must release, not because it is evil, though sometimes it may be, but because there is a greater good. We must let go because no one can hold everything equally. Unconscious letting go can happen when the urgent takes precedence over something more important. We want to improve at intentional detachment, so we may deepen our attachments to what is most beneficial.
Unfortunately, we most easily hold the immediate things in life, and often neglect that which truly gives fullness to our lives. Letting go involves releasing what we do not need to make prominent and taking hold of that which brings lasting value.
When Jesus talks about what moth and rust corrupts, and what thieves can steal, he is emphasizing the foolishness of centering on what we ought to push to the periphery. Sooner or later, it will be taken from us anyway.