To bowl or not to bowl -- that was the question

Each year during the summer the men in the diocese of Atlanta studying to become deacons are required to attend a retreat. All the men in formation aspirants to seniors are required to attend. The retreat opens on a Friday evening and closes on Sunday.

The golfers arrive early and play golf Friday morning. Over the years the non golfers tried to find an activity that would provide fun and fellowship. In my senior year someone suggested bowling. Little did we know what lay ahead when we agreed to gather on the lanes in Cullman Alabama.

Men being men the competitive nature we possess came to the front almost immediately and the trash talking began. Teams were formed the lanes were reserved and the game was on.

At this point I am sure you are wondering why you should care about men in formation going bowling. Well the answer is not an easy one. As with many things that came up over my years of formation there was never an easy answer. Several events which took place as the retreat approached led to the pondering of a theological question and a paper explaining my answer to the question.

The first sign of trouble came just days before the big match. Two of my classmates announced they would not be able to participate. The first guy dropped his bowling ball on his foot and broke his toe; the other guy came down with pink eye in both eyes.

Emails abounded and it was decided that we would continue as planned. We arrived at the monastery on schedule unpacked and headed to the bowling alley to decide which class was the king of the lanes. As we approached we saw fire trucks police cars and what once was a bowling alley was burned to the ground.

Well being students of theology and all things related to God the conversation at the dinner table was filled with the events related to the great bowling alley disaster. Several men suggested that God had intervened and set in motion the events that disrupted our outing. The broken toe, pink eye and the icing on the cake the bowling alley burned down.
Others disagreed and implied that God had better things to do than disrupt a planned outing to a bowling alley. One of our instructors listened intently and suggested we return to our rooms after dinner and contemplate God’s divine providence in our daily lives.

Upon return for our first class for the evening we were asked to write a paper explaining our thoughts on God’s intervention into our daily lives. Writing papers is a large segment of the formation process. If a question arises more likely than not a paper on the subject will be in order.

Seems silly doesn’t it writing a paper about a bowling match that never took place. But seeking to find a better understanding as to how God operates in our lives is far from silly. The problem was we were limited to a couple of paragraphs. How can you discuss explain or begin to ponder such a question in such few words? I am not sure but my response to the question is written below. Read my answer, ponder the question and if you are so inclined please comment.

To Bowl or not to Bowl

I have searched my concordance from Aardvark to Xylophone.
I find no declaration from God that thou shall not bowl.
But recent events a broken toe, pink eye times two and a bowling alley burned to the ground might lead one to surmise that God would rather have us stay away from the lanes.
But scripture is silent on the issue as well as the catechism, tradition and cannon law.
So if your toes are not broke and your eyes are not pink if you can find a lane and maybe a cool drink.
Then bowl my brother bowl