In Bernard Lonergan's classic Method in Theology the author constantly urges the reader to "be attentive, be intelligent, be reasonable, be responsible." This is not only the way to self-transcendence but also one's contribution to social progress. Such a program requires forsaking one's egotistical motives in order to attend to reality.
The fact that very often we fail to transcend ourselves probably indicates our sinfulness. Our sins are both of commission and omission. We falsely treat the reality that is before us and we just allow it to pass us by. It might sound strange to confess "failure to transcend myself one hundred and twenty-three times" but it's a corrective to us who sleep easy most nights thinking that we do not sin.
We are saddened by our own and others' personal failure but we truly fear social deterioration. A society also can fail to deal with the reality that faces it as it responds to the needs of everyone. Such a situation diminshes everyone's possibility of self-transcendence and may produce an impossible living arrangement.
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