by The Rev. Rich Heinz
It began with my ill wife dozing on the sofa on Easter Monday evening. I was in another chair. She had the remote. We had watched “Dancing with the Stars,” and now no one changed the channel. The following program unfolded before our eyes and we could not help but watch it, like nosy passers-by near an accident. What was it? “The Bachelor: An Officer and a Gentleman.”
What is so appealing about this show? That evening there were fifteen women vying for the Bachelor’s attention. Many of these girls appear to have questionable morals, attempting to use appearance rather than their true selves to “get that rose.”
The more one thinks about it, it’s hard to imagine why anyone would agree to be on the show, knowing that the mate she is seeking happens to have over a dozen women throwing themselves at him. Who knows how much of himself he will have shared – emotionally and physically – with the other contestants by the time he picks “the one.” It doesn’t matter how much he looks like “Malibu Ken” with perfect teeth, ripped chest and abs, and a flawless tan.
Forget that he has the strength and courage to be in the navy, serving as a medical officer for a special operations dive unit in Pearl Harbor. Never mind that he has the intelligence to be a high school valedictorian and go on to earn a medical doctorate. Don’t dwell on this amazing athlete who competes in triathlons and marathons. Don’t give a thought to the sentiment of a man who created a charity to raise funds for pancreatic cancer research, in memory of his uncle. He’s been looking for love on T.V., enjoying a crowd of other women fawning over him!
Nevertheless, these girls don’t seem to mind. Willing to forget the process of many women attempting to latch on to him, the ladies on the show appear to want to be exclusive with this too-good-to-be-true Lieutenant Dr. Andy Baldwin. Many get catty and extremely competitive, believing they will become his fiancée. Some seem genuinely surprised when they are passed over and do not receive the rose that signifies his desire to have them continue in his quest for a bride.
Isn’t this a sad commentary on our entertainment: that we can be so shallow at times, able to enjoy the voyeurism of the filmed courtships on “The Bachelor?” Do you ever feel sorry for the young women who are willing to make themselves this vulnerable on national television, just to get a 1 out of 25 chance at being Mrs. Too-good-to-be-true Lieutenant Dr. Andy Baldwin?
Dear friends in Christ, we can be so joyful! Our dear Savior is also the Perfect Bridegroom. Since wed at the cross to His Bride, the Church, He is no longer a Bachelor. And we are no longer lonely women* since He has baptized us, and brought us into His Body – His Bride.
We also have the joy of knowing that our Too-good-to-be-true Bridegroom is indeed true! There is nothing false or deceiving about Him; He is perfect beyond imagination!
Do not worry; our dear Lord will not allow you to be embarrassed in some televised competition to be received into His family. Instead, He gives it purely as Gift, through His Baptism and Gospel. And He sustains you in that relationship as His gives His Body to you – not in some obscene way, flirting in a hot tub or fornicating “off camera” – but in the pure and holy placing of His Body and Blood inside of yours at His altar!
Dearly Beloved, yes, Andy Baldwin seems like the perfect catch for many ladies. But Jesus Christ has made each of you part of His “perfect catch” as His eternal Bride. “Hotties” and “hunks” will come and go in this world, but the Lord Jesus will endure as your eternal Love!
* The “latching,” “vulnerable,” “lonely,” etc. comments apply equally to the men on seasons of “The Bachelorette;” such adjectives are in no way sexist.
