Praying for the End of Time

Meat Loaf died yesterday. He was one of our all-time favorite artists. It's outrageous that neither he nor his collaborator Jim Steinman have been inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. But that's not the reason for this post. Those familiar with the rock classic Paradise By The Dashboard Light, which was written by Steinman and recorded by Meat Loaf, will recognize that the title of this post was taken from the last verse of the song. It tells the story of a young man and his girlfriend, who are "barely 17 and barely dressed." As the boy begs her to go all the way, she extracts a pledge from him that he will love her 'til the end of time. The song ends sometime later with the boy now "praying for the end of time to hurry up and arrive." This illustrates one of the reasons why The Book of Grace expresses a preference for age-18, even though it may be unrealistic to expect all adolescents to wait that long.

It is reported that Meat Loaf had been battling the effects of Covid-19, whether or not that was the direct cause of his death. His years of obesity and rock & roll lifestyle logically made him more susceptible. It is unknown whether he was vaccinated against Covid, though it's unlikely as he was an outspoken opponent of mandatory vaccination. We have thus far held off commenting on the Covid pandemic, as we don't claim to understand it any better than most folks. We have certainly not had any further revelations related to it. However, The Book of Grace recognized that "it may take cooperation among all of us to stop the next one [pandemic]." If so, how has that been going? There has indeed been much international cooperation in efforts to defeat Covid. And yet, there has also been considerable resistance among people in the so-called enlightened nations. When vaccines are available that are proven to build immunity to infection, and to reduce the severity of the disease if it is contracted, why would anyone refuse to take one? Particularly when the unvaccinated are more likely to spread the disease to others, thereby helping to prolong the pandemic. And how can otherwise intelligent people choose sophistry over science, or believe that their rights are more important than their responsibilities? Are they praying for the end of time, too?

It occurs to us that Covid-19 may be a form of intelligence test to determine whether humankind is worthy to continue as the dominant species on this planet. Assuming that to be true, it remains uncertain at this time whether we will pass it.

Blessings of Grace!

January 22, 2022

Desmond & Molly