Rose-Window- An Article Published in WarKitchen

οὐκ ἀπείρατοι δόμοι
ἐντί: λέλογχε δὲ μεμφομένοις ἐσλοὺς ὕδωρ καπνῷ φέρειν
ἀντίον. τέχναι δ᾽ ἑτέρων ἕτεραι: χρὴ δ᾽ ἐν εὐθείαις ὁδοῖς στείχοντα μάρνασθαι φυᾷ.
πράσσει γὰρ ἔργῳ μὲν σθένος,
βουλαῖσι δὲ φρήν, ἐσσόμενον προϊδεῖν

(Different men have different skills. One must take the straight path: fight with what one has by nature. Action is the way of strength; stratagem the way of council, in those endowed with the gift of foresight.) -Pindar, Nemean 1 22-27

    Man is made by God to be a spiritual and physical representation of the divine, created in His image. How often is it that this image is darkened, degenerated, harmed, and otherwise polluted? It is too easy to see the body as disposable, something to take a person from point A to point B and terminate with no great Aesthetic or performative achievement. From this perspective the body, in all of its lines and graceful curves, is a chance and disorderly combination of flesh and blood, misfiring neurons, creaky joints, flab and phlegm. What a philosophy! A tangled and unsightly mass, and not a Soul beneath it. The sense of Wonder, of the Infinite, clear and indomitable heights that the inward Eyes can penetrate is lost, and the sheer decimating Beauty of the external world that springs forth from the Eternal creative imagination to greet Man everyday blighted and dismissed. 
    

    Man ought to walk in Majesty, as is his Paternal birthright. The saying goes, “The outside is only a reflection of the inside,” a know-thyself to carry daily, hourly, minutely. The internal machinations of a materialist worldview is seen above, the soul is untended, the Lord is ignored, what else is there to honor? Not the body, it can not be controlled oh no! how could it, it is only a byproduct of chance and monkeys and stardust and whatever else! Externally this is on full display, impossible to hide with brand-name clothes and cosmetics. There is no aesthetic for a materialist that has any lasting value, it is hard to look at in fact. Pasty, unkempt, negative muscle mass, excessive with no restraint: no need to give details here. Like a post-war tenement house, this body exists but does it serve a lasting purpose? If the primary care of Man is the honoring of God, and the doing of good, mighty and heroic deeds, and, since modern society has manifested the opposite of these Moral principles, there is good reason to believe them true, what is the Aesthetic of this Embodier? 
    

    Architecture is the most fitting analogy to describe a person. Architecture is humanity on display, a collection of a region’s people made of stone, wood, and glass. A building, whether a merchant’s house, grand cathedral, or a palatial residence, shows the soul of a people mapped out for the World. The One who harnesses this beauty in themselves is a cathedral in miniature, a side chapel in a Cosmotic Basilica. This is the ideal We aim for. The outside is a stately Romanesque, powerful and sturdy, large and imposing, expected to last for years. There is a symmetry in the muscles, a flowing symmetry of Parts that contribute to the Whole. Weights, good food, clean living, and community have all gone into making this an elegant facade, brick-by-brick. Yet, this is only a reflection of the Soul. The Soul, which betrays the simplicity of the exterior of massive stone walls and narrow arcades is a Baroque masterpiece, a flourish of design and polish that is arresting to behold. The Solomonic columns have been built from Wisdom and Virtue to uphold the altar-roof of Discipline and Mastery. The frescoes and stucco embellishments are Grace made visible, and the polyphonic tones of the Psuchic choir echo Hymns that radiate with an understanding of Truth and undiluted Beauty. The Foundation has been laid of pure Gold on a bed of Stone, not a sinking dross. The Structure is built geometrically from the ground up, an imposing mixture of Weight and Tracery, delicate Filigree and strong Turrets. O! To embody these things would be to leave the World behind!  

“Signeur, vous estes mi homme et mi ami et mi compagnon. A le journee d’ui, je vous pri et requier tres especialment que vous me menes si avant que je puisse ferir un cop d’espee.” 

(My lords, you have been my men, friends, and companions. I beg of you earnestly that you lead me with you to the press of the battle so I may strike the enemy down by my blade.)

    -Jean Froissart, Chronicles