Love itself whipped, scourged, tied, nailed, and tortured to death. He gave himself up for us freely. He gave himself totally. He is faithful to the end. His love brings us new life.
The violent porn will not.
Friends please, I'm joining the cacophony of internet voices and plead with you, if you do anything this Valentine's day, don't go see that horrible movie. I hope it's the biggest flop. I hope it doesn't get any funding for a sequel. I have hope that people won't all go see porn at the box office. But really? The sales of the book are pretty disheartening. So many people bought that trash. Wait, worse than trash. It's poison.
Poison in, poison out.
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is
just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if
there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think
about these things.
-Philippians 4:8
I just had a talk with Clare a few days ago about some weird valentine card she got from a ballet classmate. I am so disconnected from the strange cartoons lately that I have no idea what the card was. Monster something? The card had two glamorous teenage monster things on it saying, "You're fang-tastic!" I had to explain to the kiddo why Daddy and I don't really let her watch stuff like that. I quoted the above from the Bible. I had to explain that if we fill our mind and soul with ugliness we'll lose sight of heaven. Beauty and goodness are given to us by God to remind us of our heavenly home.
I'm pretty sure we can all agree that "50 Shades of Grey" is not true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, gracious, or excellent. Right? If not, then we're pretty lost.
Hopefully I'm not too late to the party in posting this, but if you believe in true love, don't go see this movie. True love isn't dominating and self-seeking. It's self-sacrificial and self-donating.
Since I am so vehemently opposed to this movie I have been working on a couple of blog posts about it. I couldn't really decide which to publish, so here's what I wrote for the other one.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Wives and Husbands.
Be subordinate to one another out of reverence for Christ. Wives should be subordinate to their husbands as to the Lord. For the husband is head of his wife just as Christ is head of the church, he himself the savior of the body. As the church is subordinate to Christ, so wives should be subordinate to their husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ loved the church and handed himself over for her to sanctify her, cleansing her by the bath of water with the word, hat he might present to himself the church in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. So [also] husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. For no one hates his own flesh but rather nourishes and cherishes it, even as Christ does the church, because we are members of his body.
Be subordinate to one another out of reverence for Christ. Wives should be subordinate to their husbands as to the Lord. For the husband is head of his wife just as Christ is head of the church, he himself the savior of the body. As the church is subordinate to Christ, so wives should be subordinate to their husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ loved the church and handed himself over for her to sanctify her, cleansing her by the bath of water with the word, hat he might present to himself the church in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. So [also] husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. For no one hates his own flesh but rather nourishes and cherishes it, even as Christ does the church, because we are members of his body.
“For this reason a man shall leave [his] father and [his] mother
and be joined to his wife,
and the two shall become one flesh.”
This is a great mystery, but I speak in reference to Christ and the church. In any case, each one of you should love his wife as himself, and the wife should respect her husband.
-Eph 5:21-33
It's Saint Valentine's day and the internet is buzzing with opinions,
outrage, and excitement over a certain movie release. I for one can't
think of a worse way to honor Saint Valentine than by releasing "50
Shades of Grey". The movie isn't about love. It has for some reason in
our disordered society been associated with love and romance. Sure,
there is sexual content in the movie, but does that equal love? In
today's society sex has been flung so far from love it has become
unrecognizable. No one remembers what sex is for. No one remembers
what love is. Everything seems like a dizzying cycle of shock factors
and pleasure seeking. It's weird. So weird.
Hopefully
you know by now that Saint Valentine has a great story in which his
life gives witness to God's love. That's really what we should be
celebrating on this feast isn't it? God's love and how it transforms
us, our lives, our souls, and everything. That's worth celebrating.
Pope Saint John Paul II had a favorite portion of scripture when it came
to speaking of love between husband and wife and God's love; Ephesians 5
quoted above. It reminds us what true love is and gives us true
insight into relationships between men and women.
"Be
subordinate to one another out of reverence for Christ". Not
subordinate to each other for BDSM sex which is completely disordered.
"Husbands should love their wives as their own bodies." Dominating a woman and torturing her doesn't exactly say, "I love you and I will take care of you".
Furthurmore, sex is about unity and procreation! "The two shall become one flesh!" Not about torture and twisted sexual pleasure. Rightly ordered sexual pleasure is amazing! Thank goodness God made Man and Woman and the marital embrace the way he did! But when society sterilizes, twists, and fetishises what should be faithful, total, fruitful, and free we lose sight of that self-sacrificial Christ like love. TRUE LOVE is supposed to be a mystery which reminds us of "Christ and the church".
NOTHING about 50 shades of grey reminds us of the love Christ has for his Church.
So don't go spend your money on porn friends. Go help a women's domestic violence shelter and help undo the way our culture is twisting and suffocating true love.
"Husbands should love their wives as their own bodies." Dominating a woman and torturing her doesn't exactly say, "I love you and I will take care of you".
Furthurmore, sex is about unity and procreation! "The two shall become one flesh!" Not about torture and twisted sexual pleasure. Rightly ordered sexual pleasure is amazing! Thank goodness God made Man and Woman and the marital embrace the way he did! But when society sterilizes, twists, and fetishises what should be faithful, total, fruitful, and free we lose sight of that self-sacrificial Christ like love. TRUE LOVE is supposed to be a mystery which reminds us of "Christ and the church".
NOTHING about 50 shades of grey reminds us of the love Christ has for his Church.
So don't go spend your money on porn friends. Go help a women's domestic violence shelter and help undo the way our culture is twisting and suffocating true love.
No comments:
Post a Comment