The Bermuda Triangular, or Why We Need Romance

(DISCLAIMER: This is the document that was never found. A fictitious document that quite possibly could have been written. Three great writers discussing thoughts, three great angles, all while on vacation in the Bermuda Triangle. Later this would become known as the Bermuda Triangular, or so we can imagine. This transcript was lost immediately following the rendezvous, as everything goes missing in that region. Although this script is imaginary, all of the words in bold are actual quotes written by each writer at some point in his life.)

TIME: NEVER LATE, NOR EARLY, PRECISELY WHEN WAS MEANT

SETTING: SOMEWHERE NEAR THE BERMUDA TRIANGLE

AUTHORS/CHARACTERS: C.S. LEWIS, G.K.CHESTERTON & J.R.R. TOLKIEN

   Why We Need Romance

TOLKIEN: O romance, romance, where art thou romance? It seems today’s world has forgotten one of the greatest emotions instilled into the human heart by its Creator- romance. Not the “romance” prevalent in our secularized world, full of unruly passions, lustful desires, and overall emptiness after the rush of gratification subsides. What happened to the romance of life? What happened to that internal yearning for something greater than ourselves? What happened to that youthfulness of soul that could enlighten any man to sing, paint, or write? What happened to the joyful ache for Heaven and Jesus that gave men the motivation to live and love until He called them back to their true home? Where has all the romance gone? It is still here, we just need to find it. “Romance, glory, honor, fidelity, and the true way of all our loves on earth. . .eternal abundance, which every man’s heart desires” can be found in the Blessed Sacrament. The romance found in Jesus every man instinctually craves and needs, for by it, man gains the desire to embark cheerfully on his lifelong journey, out of a mysterious knowledge that there is something greater than himself.

G.K. CHESTERTON: God created men with a natural instinct to be curious. Without that "desire to know” the human race probably would have died-off within the first few decades. If men had not experimented with sticks and rocks, they would not have learned how to make a fire, and in the bitter winters would have died of cold and hunger. Man without curiosity leads to laziness of mind, and eventually, to despair. In modern society, almost everything has become utterly void of depth, leaving our world with a lack of purpose. We see this lack of motivation is rampant from young children to elderly adults. Where there is lack of mystery, there is lack of curiosity, and this has treacherous consequences. Throughout our Faith, we can find one mystery after another. We can spend our entire lives trying to solve the mystery of the Trinity or the Transubstantiation and not touch the surface of its depths. That is where we find the wonderful gift of romance- the unending love of the vast unknown. Man falls in love with something he cannot quite comprehend, so that he is never without some secret to ponder.”The riddles of God are more satisfying than the solutions of man.” The romance found in our Catholic Faith gives man a constant motivation to live for a higher purpose, and is what this world desperately needs.

True art, whether it be music, paintings, poetry or some other form, is a work of romance. In our modern times, the so called “art” being made seems to have no depth, is sexualized, or is outright ugly. If the artist is lacking a love of something above this world, their art is only a byproduct of their emptiness. True “art is born when the temporary touches the eternal.” In all of the great masterpieces, whether it be Michelangelo’s paintings, Mozart’s compositions, or Shakespeare’s plays, we find beauty. That beauty came from God. They channeled the romance and love they felt in their hearts for Him to create something magnificent to glorify His Majesty. That is why we need romance- because it inspires us to create beauty, and beauty leads us to God. We must all make something beautiful for God to share with a world starving for beauty, but first we must find romance in our relationship with Him, from whom all beauty flows.

C.S.LEWIS: Finding romance in our relationship with Christ helps us also find it in our intimate relationships with people. Men and women naturally fall in love because we find romance in the fact we will never fully understand each other. God designed it this way so that the human race would continue until His Second Coming. Sadly, many couples today choose to date or get married for selfish reasons and go against God’s wonderful design. Romance was made to inspire creation, yet much of today’s “romance” is about stopping it through contraception and abortion. Real love “. . .is unselfishly choosing for another's highest good.” There is a major deficit in society of true romance full of chastity and charity, which is crucial to keeping our relationships holy and to help our world continue growing.

J.R.R. TOLKIEN: Romance keeps the living living, the writers writing, and the world surviving. Frankly, we cannot live without it. Thus, the question becomes no longer “do we need romance,” but rather, what can it inspire us to create that will bring others to find beauty and purpose in our Lord Jesus Christ?

by Hannah Cutter

From the phrase "Bermuda Triangular"

As entered in the February 2024 Romantics vs Unromantics Contest