Posted by MarsBike on June 16, 2008 at 18:50:40:
In Reply to: Re: Heads It Is posted by Owl on June 15, 2008 at 06:53:10:
Perhaps you should look into books written for monks. Or ask monks, for that matter.
Through most of the history of Christianity,
monasticism was a very real option for most people.
Through the Holy Spirit,
the Church has learned that "it is not good for man to be alone" -- we
all need Community,
whether it be marital,
monastic,
or otherwise.
One of the big problems with
the Protestant Reformation was the discouraging of monasticism (to varying degrees --
Anglicans/Episcopalians still have some monasteries,
the Lutherans have a small number,
and
there's one Methodist convent that I know of).
This removal of the celebate community made it
falsely seem like marriage is the only legitimate path for a Christian.
It is not.
I'm not saying necessarily that you should become a monk.
For one thing,
I don't know you at
all; for another,
even if I did,
I'm not qualified to even advise someone on that,
other than to state
that it is an option.
Maybe.
Most monasteries won't (and shouldn't) take someone who is in
debt,
or who has family obligations,
or anything else like that.
Monasticism isn't an escape from
the world -- it is,
rather,
a way of intensely facing your own spiritual problems.
And therein lies
my point --
Monks,
for at least 18 centuries now,
have been struggling with their various passions,
including
lust,
in a non-marital context.
They have learned an enormous amount.
I advise anyone to seek
out their wisdom.