The extent of the search
The collective imagination of our day is filled with the stories of those who have done elaborate or extreme things to find the next level for them. The Beatles all travelled to India to study under a Yogi, and behind them was a long trail of young people who hitchhiked across the world. They are not alone. Winston Churchill chased after glory by reporting for the English newspapers as a war correspondent in the wars and revolutions of his day as a young man. Still others have had the search thrust upon them. J.R.R. Tolkien, and many thousands of other young men in his day, was thrust into the first World War in the British Army. What he saw caused him to search to understand the depths of the depravity and heroism in men. People of all stripes and religions make pilgrimages of one type or another. Some go to great extremes to show their faith and devotion, doing such things as fasting and praying for days, weeks, even months at a time. Others go to holy sights and perform rituals that involve ritual suffering and self mutilation, called asceticism. Some seek to escape the trials and temptations of life and escape to caves and monasteries. The Stylites, a monastic movement from the fifth and sixth centuries, lived on the top of pillars several stories tall. Simeon, the most well-known of them, was visited by many great leaders and was known for his spiritual insight and wisdom. People from all over the surrounding area would come to seek the advice and prayers of this great spiritual leader. We are all seeking something. Today the bizarro world lives of people are fodder for hundreds of hours of television programs. From becoming a finalist on American Idol, to being a subject of a show on teenage pregnant moms, many are seeking their "fifteen minutes of fame." By the way, they call this "reality TV."
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