One of the central themes of JP II’s Theology of the Body is that the body has a “nuptial meaning.” On his blog, Msgr. Charles Pope gives a brief explanation of the nuptial meaning of the body, specifically as it relates to the priesthood. To speak of the nuptial meaning of the body, means that the very design of our … Read More
To Love at All
To love at all is to be vulnerable. -C.S. Lewis See the original comic here. The full version of the quote, taken from Lewis’s book, The Four Loves, reads “To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything, and your heart will certainly be wrung and possibly be broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, … Read More
What Makes the Body Beautiful?
Emily Stimpson continues her look at the Theology of the Body in a slightly different way than it is traditionally presented: [W]hat makes a body beautiful is how well it loves. That’s not pious claptrap. It’s the simple reason why people walked away from Mother Teresa fully convinced that they’d just met the most beautiful woman in the world. Her … Read More
TOB Tues: JPII, Food, Sex, and God
Emily Stimson has a TOB must read over at CatholicVote about how discovering JP II’s vision of the human person helped her overcome anorexia and negative body image issues: The Theology of the Body taught me that my body was not some hunk of flesh encasing my soul; it was me. It expressed me. It made me present to the … Read More
Star Trek, Pope Francis and TOB for the Aged
After I wrote this post about an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation that I thought responsibly handled disability and assisted suicide, I was informed by multiple people about another episode of TNG that seemed to be a little more pro-suicide. The episode was Half a Life and it involved a planet on which all of its members voluntarily … Read More
TOB Tues: TOB for Kids?
Amid the ongoing debate in the Catholic blogosphere about proper and effective sex education, I came across this post from Dr. Gregory Popcak on whether it’s appropriate to teach the Theology of the Body to children 10 years old or younger. He’s responding to Elizabeth Duffy who thinks that TOB is too complex for young kids. Popcak disagrees saying, “Teaching … Read More
TOB Tues: Homosexuality and the TOB Cont.
Part II of Fr. Peter West’s look at homosexuality and the Theology of the Body: True love is demanding. The source of the beauty of this love is its demanding nature. That is why true love builds up the true good of man and allows it to radiate to others. St. Paul gives us the definition of love in 1 … Read More
TOB Tues: Homosexuality and the TOB
Fr. Peter West takes a look at homosexuality and the Theology of the Body: Polls show that most young people today, even those who identify themselves as Christians, have no problem with “same-sex marriage.” If young people today are at all aware of what the Catholic Church teaches about marriage and human sexuality, what they think they know is often … Read More
Be Not Afraid of Sex
So, you’ve decided that you definitely do not want what the world has to offer in terms of sex. You’ve even read (or read about) and embraced John Paul II’s Theology of the Body. Now what? Let’s face it, as beautiful and inspiring as the TOB is, it can seem a bit intimidating — like a lot to live up … Read More
TOB Tuesday: Our Bodies Tell the Story
Still not sure if you want to pick up Christopher West’s new book Fill These Hearts? Here is another sneak peak for you: From CHAPTER 7: OUR BODIES TELL THE STORY Several years ago a friend gave me a picture book called Magic Eye: Beyond 3D2 that promised to enable the viewer to “see what is invisible.” It was my … Read More