My wife belongs to me. She is my property.

I belong to my wife. I am her property.

My children belong to me. They are my property.

I belong to my children. I am their property.

We both belong to our ancestors. We are their property.

We both belong to our descendants. We are their property.

And so we live no longer for ourselves alone but for all that came before us and for all that will come forth from us.

In a world where people are desperately searching for belonging, we already know where we belong.

We know who our people are.

We know what our obligations are.

We know what our responsibilities are.

We are not disconnected from what came before.

And we are not severed from what will come forth through us.

People today are miserable because they do not belong to each other.

They do not belong together.

They do not share ownership of one another, or of each other’s future.

They do not invest in one another.

They do not protect one another.

Because they are not each other’s property.

That is a miserable state of affairs.

We, who know the proper function of family,

We are not ashamed to belong.

We are happy to be owned,

Because we are owned in love, in duty, in covenant.

And we own each other the same way.