A disturbed child who had known nothing but abuse was taken into a kindlier atmosphere. At first, to the dismay of those who were trying to help him, the child clawed at their faces. Soon someone discovered that instead of intending to hurt the others, he was trying to scratch off their masks. Having known only the face of cruelty, he thought other expressions were masks.
The story points up our innate distrust of masks, even kindly ones. And this is as it should be. God is Truth, and He reveals to us true selfhood in all its beauty and perfection, unlimited in its capacity for expressing and accomplishing good, and free from dissimulation. It is not necessary, contributive to healing, or even safe to put on a mere mask of goodness. Circumstances will claw at every mask until reality replaces it.
"Mask" is one of the meanings of the word from which "person" and "personality" are derived. Little wonder, then, that seeing oneself and others simply through personal sense, on the level of mortal personality with its role playing, is not only nonproductive and unsatisfying but actually detrimental.
