An emphasis on status builds a wall.

What does it mean to love oneself? First, it is best to delineate what it does not mean. Love of self can never imply a sense of uniqueness, an emphasis on difference, a concern about status. If one feels unique and thinks of separateness, that is not loving oneself. That is building a wall. That wall blocks out any vision beyond its midst. So loving self can never imply separation from the sacredness of others.

Loving self also does not mean one has blessings that are deserved, that are earned, and that one is entitled to. You do not earn a gift; you are given a gift. You do not earn love; you are given, you are offered, that love. You do not earn blessings. You do not earn status in the eyes of God. You do not earn value through your influence. The whole idea of separateness flies in the face, as it were, of what it means to be a reflection, an extension, of God’s loving presence.