"Why does Jesus regard the Father and himself as the best model for all humans? Because neither the Father nor the Son desires greedily, egotistically. God 'makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and he sends his rain on the just and on the unjust.'
God gives to us without counting, without marking the least difference between us. He lets the weeds grow with the wheat until the time of harvest. If we imitate the detached generosity of God, then the trap of mimetic rivalries will never close over us."
Girard defines this "mimetic rivalry" to be the awakening of desire within us when our neighbor simply has something we don't. This is like a toddler who wants the toy that the other toddler has in his hand, even though there are hundreds of toys just like it on the floor.
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If you want a great telling of the toddler in the playroom example, look to Gil Bailie's "Violence Unveiled". I could look it up, but Bailie has an amazing and well regarded take on mimetic desire.
Hey, thanks Rico!
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