Helping the Afflicted Transcend Self-interest

Abstract

We have observed throughout this book that human dispositional scaffolds have been weakened by the West’s embrace of egocentrism. The way to rebuild individual dispositional scaffolds is to shift consciousness among people from serving the self to serving others. The Abbé Pierre provided us with a foundation to help shift people’s consciousness. He had a colorful career and had a tremendous influence on France following World War II. In the words of one lawyer, “‘[the Abbé Pierre] almost singlehandedly mobilized the entire government and people of France to do something for the poor’” (Time, 1978). Unsurprisingly, the the Abbé Pierre was born to a wealthy family and had most of his needs gratified at a young age. He later decided to give away his inheritance.