As the day of my marriage quickly approaches me, I find the Lord leading me to the birth of something new and great within my heart. As I make my vows to my future wife, Shelby Trautman, I am likewise making vows to the Almighty… to be a faithful husband to God and to my wife. Both of these promises bear the mark of eternity, as all of these vows shall be in place for all the days of my life from henceforth.
The Grace and Guidance of the Holy Ghost
It is my belief that at every moment of my life, my eyes, my heart and my mouth is guided to the degree which I let the spirit lead me to the place and posture I am meant to be in. As of late the Holy Ghost has lead me to St. Catherine of Siena, a patron Saint of Italy. In her company of Italian Patron Saints is the great St. Francis of Assisi, who wrote the great Prayer of St. Francis which has its famous phrases like “Lord make me an instrument of thy peace. Where there is hatred, let me sow Love”. What is interesting about St. Catherine of Siena is that she also experienced great states of Holy Ecstasy in which she had visions of Christ. She was so led by these visions that she was noted to have experienced a marriage union with the almighty in which Christ offered her a ring which was, interestingly enough, made of Christ’s foreskin from his Circumcision. This ring was visible to Catherine alone, but along with visions of her own Stigmata, Catherine believed this ring was always visible to her. This Holy Wedding to Christ was so inspirational to Catherine that she went on to heal one of the greatest divisions in the Catholic Church, the great Schism. The great Schism was an event in middle of church history in which the church Papacy and Leadership split into two factions; One centered in Rome, the other centered in Avignon, France. One of the stops on my college choir tours was to the Papal Palace in Avignon, France. Catherine was lead by the Spirit into a politically active Life in which she later led to the unification of the Church back into one Body of Christ.
The Sacred Union
The Sacred Union
The earthly, yet also Heavenly union of two people has me thinking of St. Catherine’s sacred union with Christ which lead her to an earthly vocation. Is it coincidence that I am introduced to this extraordinary Saint with her stories of her sacred Marriage to Christ just before my own Wedding, or is this the work of the Holy Spirit? What will my sacred union provoke within me? If after her own union with Christ, St. Catherine went on to reunify the Church into one body… what will my contribution be to the history of the Church. As with Plato’s Symposium, the union of two individuals into one, is an empowering action; One which is in all, difficult to find, obtain and maintain but one which, when achieved, is infinitely empowering. Plato’s interlocutor (partner in dialogue) even states that when one finds this union, they become a God themselves. Though this concept isn’t necessarily Christian in basis, is there Truth to it? Does this union make us more God-Like? For Plato, and the Myths which preceded him, puts forth that it was Zeus himself that split humanity into separation and its discontents simply because while they were in union, they were too powerful and rivaled the power of the Gods. Will I, when I undergo and perfect this union, feel the power of the Almighty within me? Will I be a new man forever transformed such that “I will never be the same”?
I am Love Champion
For those of you who know me, you know that I have dedicated a chunk of my life to the concept of Love Champion. It has become one of the greatest artistic projects of my life. It was during one of my states of mystical ecstasy in which I heard a mighty, yet subtle voice shouting from the wilderness, proclaim “I am Love Champion”. Though this voice was foreign, it was likewise my own. I have also had similar states of ecstasy in which God made me question within my soul “Could I be the happiest person to ever live?”. And with this statement is the fearful question “Will one individual ever be this Happy again?” It also leads to the question “How would you measure and quantify Happiness such that you could prove that one person WAS indeed the Happiest person ever?” Perhaps we can known Happiness by its fruits? St. Catherine was noted to be so Happy as a child that she was called “Euphrosyne”, which is Greek for Joy and also the name of an early Christian saint. Is it common for those on the path to question whether they are the Happiest person in the world? But the concept of Love Champion is not one of an arrival but one of a quite particular type of striving. To become Love Champion, one must become and burn like the raging fires of a blazing fire storm, a storm which starts with one individual spark and grows constantly and eternally to an all consuming fire. In this state of eternal burning one finds in every second of burning, a new dimension in which to burn. To burn (as mathematicians say) to the n-th degree.
The Crown of the Champion
Put on the Armor of Light
What does the Crown of the Love Champion look like? What is its nature, its substance and its form? When can I finally place this crown on my head? How can my place this crown on my head without likewise adorning the hubris of a king? How can I put this crown on my head without arriving at a stasis which produces the spiritual death? As I embark upon this journey, I come to a turning point, a tangent point on the curve and path towards becoming Love Champion. I am becoming the minister of the one and the likewise the minister of all. May the ministry of my marriage teach me what I need to know for the ministry of All. May I put others before my Own selfish needs and find comfort in the comfort of the Other. May I delight in the smiles and joys of my other half, my wife, Shelby Trautman… maybe then I will crowned, Champion of Love.
