I was asked not long ago to share what I thought might be the three most powerful thoughts to come from a study of Pope John Paul II's "Theology of the Body." This series of Biblical reflections, written by the late Pope John Paul II, has been called "one of the boldest reconfigurations of Catholic theology in centuries." It addresses some of the most fundamental and important questions of human existence.
Here are the three things that continually fill me with wonder and awe, and are daily becoming the tripod on which I stand to view God, Life and Everything in Between.
1. The body is holy.
So many of us grow up being conditioned to think that our bodies are somehow dirty, our desires always sinful, and sex is a guilty pleasure (even among the married!) We seem to forget that it was God Himself Who gave us our bodies. In the beginning, He declared them to be "very good," and the first commandment He gave us was not a "Thou shalt not" but a life-affirming, joyful, and ecstatic charge to "Be fruitful and multiply."
So our bodies are holy, as in: unique, set apart, different and wholly one with our souls, not pieces of luggage our souls are wrapped in until death do us part. Our bodies are destined to share in the glory (or the horror) that is to come. The body is "a unique composite — a unity of spirit and matter, soul and body, fashioned in the image of God and destined to live forever."
Our bodies, ourselves are made for a communion, of which marriage is just a little glimmer. It's the sad consequence of sin that has caused a rift in the body/soul harmony. Everyone today, in a hundred different ways, is trying to figure out how to restore the balance.
Our bodies are temples, really. I think we sometimes consider them to more like parish youth centers, or maybe modestly carpeted church basements. But they are temples. Something beautiful, something theological is expressed in and through our bodies! What is it?
2. Marriage is an appetizer.
The truth is we are made for communion. And we must become a gift for others in order for this communion to happen. It happens in a spiritual way primarily, but marriage gives us a physical icon that all humans can see and that many of us experience.
Man is meant to become a total gift for woman and woman is meant to receive this gift from man, and then… life comes from the union of the two. This giving and receiving is the great dance; the spousal meaning of our bodies proclaims it. It points to the fact that in the end there will be the final realization of God's plan for humanity and the universe. And that is… (tadah!)
1. That we sit on clouds and strum harps?
2. We fan God on His Throne with palm branches saying "Yeah, God!"?
No, the final realization is the Wedding Feast of Heaven, when we at last come to see that God wants, not simply for us to follow the rules and be good but above all God wants to marry us! He wants to draw us into the great embrace of the Love of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Marriage here below reflects that hope, gives us a glimmer of the love to come, and offers us, even now, that mysterious equation found in families: 1 + 1 = 3
The very mystery of Who God Is is stamped right in our bodies as male and female! We're so much more than biology; we're biology that speaks a theology, a word about God!
3. God is a Lover.
This word that marriage speaks about God is that He is above all a Lover. Are we ready for this? Even though it is in fact love we all long for, did we ever think that God was the source of this Love? His is more than a Father's love, or a Grandfather's. His is the beginning and end of Love. Look at the saints and mystics… their prayer became rapture, their hearts were wooed by the Divine. Pope John Paul II said "Prayer can progress as a genuine dialogue of love, to the point of rendering the person wholly possessed by the Divine Beloved, vibrating at the Spirit's touch, resting filially on the Father's heart. This is the lived experience of Christ's promise…" (Novo Millennio Ineunte 33)
If these truths don't lead your heart to cry out for God and the deepest meaning of your own life, then I don't know what can. So let's trade in any false loves, any counterfeits we've bought into… and we'll cry out these ancient prayers from the Psalms:
"As the deer longs for streams of water, so my soul longs for you, O God. My being thirsts for God, the living God. When can I go and see the face of God?" (Psalm 42)
"My soul yearns and pines for the courts of the LORD. My heart and flesh cry out for the living God." (Psalm 84)
July 12th, 2007 at 11:48 am
I know that what you are saying is true, but I must admit that, as a man, it is difficult for me to connect with the image of "marrying" God. I've always struggled with this image. I know that it isn't difficult for women, but for many men, being the "bride of Christ" is a struggle.
July 12th, 2007 at 1:28 pm
Married 37 years, I discovered Theology of the Body (TOTB) two years ago and have been happily soaking it up via Christopher West's 10 CD set, "Naked without Shame" (available at giftfoundation.org for less than $4.00 USD per set). As many have said, TOTB is truly the major jewel in the crown of JPII's papacy - an incredible gift to our time. It reminds me of the "blackballs" we used to purchase at the candy store as small children (four for a penny!) - we would let them roll around inside our mouths and each time we'd remove them to check, another colorful layer would be revealed.
So it is with TOTB - and yet, the more I study this rich, deeply layered theology, the more I feel a certain sadness. Yes, this is for our times - but in terms of learning, TOTB is algebra while most of the people with whom we share pews are still mastering their addition and subtraction facts. How to reach them with this gem when so many have not been properly evangelized or catechized!
If I were archbishop, I would commence a three-year program of weekly homiletic evangelization and catechization using the Catechism of the Catholic Church as a guide. I would videoptape sections preached by solid gifted priest speakers, and distribute the tapes (DVD's) to all parishes as part of the homiletic series. Then when I was assured my flock had been well-instructed in our beautiful Catholic faith, and could grasp the rudiments of the algebra of faith, I would introduce TOTB.
Alas, I am not bishop - but I can pray — and evangelize — and catechize - to the very best of my ability. Thanks for a great article, Bill - it is something I can forward to those who just might be ready for TOTB's sweet challenge.