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Real love… a parable…

January 4th, 2019 by Stephen Bauman

Several decades ago I was involved in a musical comedy production at my children’s school. I played the male romantic lead, which required me to kiss the ingenue with some passionate intensity. This prompted an interesting conversation with my kids, who were then six and eight years old. More than once they witnessed me practicing this moment of dramatic intimacy. They were both embarrassed and very curious about our relationship.

One night around the dinner table I was asked if I liked kissing this other woman. I shrewdly responded by saying that we were simply pretending to be in love. Real love, I said, was all about living out commitments, being responsible to one another, helping each other, just like how we did at home. Anything that happened on stage was left there and had no meaning beyond the story. At home, we built a life based on our relationships.

My son immediately piped up and said, “Well, Dad, it sure looked real.” “Just great acting,” my wife, Melissa, replied as I took my dishes out to the kitchen…

Stephen Bauman

Rev. Dr. Stephen P. Bauman is the Senior Minister at Christ Church.