So, the aliens are reporting back on their field trip to Western civilization: “The purpose of their lives is pleasure, their main source of pleasure is playing chicken with procreation, and modern society has more pleasure than they can shake a stick at. Looks good for our breeding programme.”
Modern dating methods weird me out. Think of Tarzan swinging through the jungle on vines toward Jane. The general vibe of society is to go from partner to partner, hopefully improving on them until the last one, which is named as ‘true love’. It bears the reminiscent feel of fast-forwarding a really good song to the best part or always opting for junk food because it just seems to taste better. Instant gratification. But it’s all too easy to permanently subscribe to that attitude of ‘I want the latest, best, nicest, newest thing right now’ and divorce the art of patience permanently so it can never bug you again.
If sex isn’t sacred, then there must be another reason that we think it ideal to make families inside sexually-exclusive relationships. There must be some other reason that affairs are so disastrous. We have to find another reason for why parents generally discourage their teenagers from sleeping around, and why fathers are so strict on their daughters’ boyfriends. G.K. Chesterton once answered those who complained they could only marry once with, “That’s like complaining you can only live once.” And sure, maybe it seems today that you can live multiple times. But isn’t that really still only living one life that is interrupted with several births and deaths? You’re still stuck with yourself for an entire lifetime. To some, the fact that you will inescapably always be you is a revelation. But some seem ignorant to that and much prefer to be solely responsible for making sure they are sexually satisfied. But is romantic boredom inevitable and comparable with death? Are we just going to accept and expect it and make do with a series of honeymoon periods?
Waiting can often feel like the end of the world. Yet, we can’t stop time, but rather we can only make the most of it. And this is all about making the most of all of time, not just consecutive segments. Time is bigger than today, than our lifetime, than a world of lifetimes, and this is about not making love into less than what it could be.
Because what it really comes down to is that you have the chance to make love a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Make it one, and take it.
- The Changing of the God by Kathryn McBeath
- Putting God Back Into Prayer by Kathryn McBeath
- The Art of Thankfulness by Kristy Drake
- You Don’t Have To Live This Way by Kristy Drake
- Selfless (In My Own Selfish Way) by Daniel Tattersall
- The Gospel to Postmodernism by Kathryn McBeath
