Why Theology of the Body?

You know what, I'm just going to quote straight from the book here. I think Michael Waldstein says it better than I ever could: "To conclude, the purpose of theology of the body is to defend the body against its alienation from the person in Cartesian rationalism. Put positively, the purpose is to show the divine plan for human spousal love, to show the goodness and the beauty of the whole sexual sphere against its cheapening in the "objective, scientific" way of looking at nature" (page 105). Waldstein also talks about how only through doing God's will are we happy.

What does this mean for humanity, specifically for me and my age group? First of all, our bodies and sex are amazing things. I mean, wow! We are able to work with members of the opposite gender to make a baby. Think about it. We could reproduce asexually. God could have put Adam and Eve in the garden and said: "Alright guys, now if you want to continue the human race you need to chop off a part of the body, so get going!" But no, a married man and a married woman can come together and have a baby, a visible sign of their love.

Now, I know most college kids don't see things this way. Lots of times, sex just becomes something that two people do when they love each other. Or even worse, something to do for fun. To fling around at parties after the alcohol is served. But that's not God's plan for us. God's plan is for man and woman to unite through the sacrament or marriage, and then have sex, bringing them together on a whole new level. Then have babies! :)

And you know what? God's plan is what will make you happy. Like really happy. I can't say I'm the best Catholic. I can't say that I've always had admirable faith in God. But for a long time, I've known that God has a plan. And following that plan is what will bring us joy. True joy.

And now, unless I say otherwise, I'm going to read the actual Theology of the Body all the way through from cover to cover. I'm going to go in whatever order the book has.

Just a note (which you will know if you have the same book I have), there is a section in the introduction I'm not going to blog on. But it's basically about the structure of the book, and I don't see the necessity. That said, I hold the right to completely change my mind and have a 100,000 page summary of that next week.

Lord, please bless us all in this week! And please help us accept your will. More than that, please give us the desire to do whatever you want. If we're not ready for that, give us the desire to want to do your will. Amen