The Dignity of Indelibility

What we caution about tattoos is the same appeal people make who get them. 

We say: "We wouldn't care if it wasn't permanent."

And the people who get tattooed say "We wouldn't care if it wasn't permanent."

Check it out. We understand the appeal of permanence. We understand the dignity of indelibility.
We understand all about indelibility because we understand all about sacraments. And maybe if sacraments were not such a big part of our lives, we would go out and get tattooed, too.


A sacrament is an outward sign of an invisible reality – on the outside it may look like a thin wafer, but in reality it is the bread of life.




A sacrament is the sign with power; it brings about what it signifies – baptismal water symbolizes purity and it also purifies the soul.


Tattoos can often be outward signs of an invisible reality, too. 

We understand the appeal of putting something beautiful or something powerful or something provocative on our body permanently to show the world that we have something beneath our skin that is abiding and original.

And if people who get tattoos are uniting themselves with this spirit of permanence then this is something deep in common that we share.
More and more in our society as break ups and blown vows pile up evidence that love can't last, we protect ourselves from disappointment and rejection and suffering by becoming cynics who say promises are made to be broken.
So it is an act of revolution as much as an act of fashion to put on a tattoo that says: 

'Yes I know this thing is permanent, but I know who I am, and that is the first step to knowing where I'm going and why I'm here.'
We are not so certain that tattooing CHOSEN1 across one's shoulders constitutes an outward sign of an inward reality. We are not talking about vanity tats.
But we are saying we want to encourage integrity. We want to encourage fidelity. We want to encourage conviction.
Because ultimately, we want to encourage mission and service and radical love.
And if a tattoo helps remind people of their enduring and eternal inward reality, then maybe it is a sign with power.