Friday, February 9, 2007

The Matrix Unrestrained

Since I was fortunate enough to receive a Netflix subscription for Christmas from my best, non-spouse friend in the known universe, I have been watching many more movies than usual. Recently, I watched "The Matrix Reloaded" even though I swore that I wouldn't watch either of the sequels. At the outset of Reloaded, Neo and Trinity are shown in bed together aboard the Nebuchadnezzar. Shortly thereafter, they arrive at the underground city of Zion and the instant they are left alone in an elevator, they begin groping each other. I assumed that these scenes are supposed to indicate that there is a rule against coupling while on the ship. Furthermore, I couldn't help but notice the underlying assumption that the only way anyone could refrain from coupling was the hope of future unrestrained relations. How sadly divergent this is from the experience of marital chastity which I have learned through NFP. Marital chastity is a path of deeper, constant love which does not grasp but patiently waits. Patience is what allows abstinence to be more than a white-knuckled lesson in restraint. Patience is how I show respect for my bride, by treating her as more than an object to be grasped but as a person to be embraced.

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