A life without commitment is not a life that is free, but is in fact scattered and running around in circles. Another word for commitment is taking some sort of vow. Marriage for instance, as well as in some sort of religious vocation is one of the most common ways to make a promise. If the promise is not taken seriously then it is useless and will not have any kind of impact on ones life…..well a negative one for sure. For to make a vow and then to not keep will have deep ramification on the one who breaks them. We are going against our connection to those with whom we are connected by our pledge of fidelity. We can cause great pain and suffering when we go against our word.
Commitment allows us to have a direction to go in when things get hard-hitting. It can free us from falling into self-destruction ways of dealing with our problems. Addictions are an attempt to deal with life, but only works for a short time, until they take over and in reality we can become our addictions, so what promised freedom becomes our prison.
We do need to swim upstream and not go with the current if we want to mature and grow. To seek to escape our promises to ourselves and others keeps us at the emotional age in which we started to seeking escape from the struggle that we all go through, and actually seems necessary. Sort of like a chick having to struggle to get out of her egg, no struggle no escape.
Br. Mark Dohle, OCSO
Holy Spirit Monastery
