Friday, June 15, 2007

On Marriage and the Decline of a Culture

What is it about marriage that makes it what it is? Is there any sentimental idea that encapsulates what we think of when we think of marriage?

I think of beautiful young men and women, smiling in photographs. I think of tender moments such as the sharing of the first piece of cake. I think of men dancing with their mothers to a song written to bring a tear to the eye, and daughters doing the same. Weddings are a celebration of the cycle of life; one generation moving to the next in a manner that is ageless.

Can anyone really imagine these same moments at a ceremony celebrating the permanent union of two men, or two women? Do you think you would feel the same way? There is something in a wedding that goes beyond the couple themselves. It's more than even just the cycle of life, although that's a part of it. The idea of marriage is something as old as the hills and is simply just a part of us; so much a part of us that we can miss it.

How do we forget these things? How could we miss something so fundamental, so natural, and so close we could barely miss it? How do you not see something that is right in front of your face?

Speaking only for myself, I know that in the past I missed a lot of the magic of sex and marriage. I believe that I was in the class of people that St. Paul was referring to when he said "Their god is in their belly". My shortsightedness was my own fault, and I suspect that may be the case with many people today.

People change their minds slowly, and only through grace and sacrifice. There will be no quick fixes. Our culture is sick, and your prayer is the remedy. Get to work.

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