The Moon, The Clouds, and Three Vows

Writing an essay is sometimes a difficult endeavor. A topic or theme has to be chosen. A position decided upon. An attitude embraced and expressed in words and phrases, both succinct and yet descriptive. Writing about my impression of Catholicism is both daunting and comforting.

There is no topic. There is no theme. I shall share my stream of consciousness. Or my meditation on humanity. Yes, this shall be something between a meditation and a stream of consciousness.

There are white clouds against a washed out blue sky. The Washington Monument looks neon white in the distance. I have been thinking about a vow of chastity, a vow of poverty, and a vow of obedience.

The three vows have bounced in and out of mind during the last two days. Which vow is most appealing? Which is most troublesome? Chastity. Obedience. Poverty. All three of them can easily be romanticized. The vows suggest a beauty, a yearning for purity that is decidedly simplistic, decidedly opposed to the hectic, free-wheeling life of rampant consumerism.

This is an age of materialism and pettiness. Love is a commodity. Great conversations center on drinking, sex, boss avoidance, Delaware tolls, iced tea. Jobs often are not vocations but a means to an end. Materialism provides a wonderful background and handsome props. But, it also produces a brittleness, an anxious fragility. This is not the time to examine one's conscience. This is not the time to sit silently, thinking about God. This is not the time to write an essay.

For many those statements are true. But, for a few, a select group of brave adventurers who understand modern life and it's difficulties, who understand and accept the beauty, strength, and peace of chastity, obedience, and poverty, let them always be our guides and our inspiration.

I can see the moon, white and shining, against the washed-out blue sky. It is a little beyond eight o'clock. I can see a jet flying above the clouds. It is Friday. This sunset has an unworldly beauty, like something created for a Hollywood science fiction movie. Another jet appears and flies against the white cloud as it moves above them.

The three vows possess an unworldly power, otherworldly serenity. There is a hint of something real, something beyond ordinary, day to day comprehension.

There is an ancient naturalism in them.
I am drawn to the three vows. This is not the essay I had planned on writing. This is not the essay which was arranged in my mind.

I am left with a question of personal conviction, personal bravery, personal conscience. Looking at this July sunset, with the moon and clouds, I ask myself, what am I willing to do for God.

Writing an essay is sometimes about presenting a solution; however, sometimes, it might also be about presenting the unasked question.