As I mentioned a week ago in my post about Seth the waiter, my current "restaurant book" is Pope John Paul II's Theology of the Body in Simple Language. I actually brought it on my trip to Japan and started reading it then. I liked it so much that I was seriously considering offering a copy to any reader who wants one, and I may still make that offer. (In fact, if the following piques your interest in reading the whole book, let me know.) The other thing I thought of is occasionally posting short excerpts, and with this post I'm beginning to do just that.
The first 50 pages give the gist of the Pope's talks on "the beginning" as presented in Genesis. This is taken as showing us the significance of human sexuality as created by God. The book presents the following in the summary of the last talk in that series on the beginning.
"The Pharisees asked Jesus whether a man should ever divorce his wife. … 'Haven't you read,' Christ replied, 'that at the beginning the Creator "made them male and female," and said, "For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh"? So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate.' …
"Genesis is the starting point for the theology of the body. The word 'theology' usually refers to the study of God. What can theology have to do with the human body? For Christians, the center of our faith is the Incarnation. When God became flesh … the body entered the halls of theology through the front door." …
"It is so significant that in answering a question about marriage, Christ directs us back to the time of man's innocence. … But he is not just pointing us back — he is also pointing forward to our redemption.
"The promise of redemption bridges the gap between our present sinfulness and our original innocence. A theology of the body is of little use unless we live in the hope of the redemption of the body. In Christ and through Christ, what was once lost can be regained,"
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This promises to be an intriguing series of posts which I'll be following from intellectual curiosity. While I do not regard myself as a believer in any sense of the word I have, in my youth, studied the Bible in great depth trying to reconcile the things that were done to me with the concept of forgiveness.
I will be reading with great interest and hope to be able to engage in some challenging exchanges.
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