"Freedom lies at the heart of the gift-giving meaning of the body. Before the fall, Adam and Eve were free from the constraints of sin. Naked and unashamed, they weren't oppressed by the urge to misuse each other.
"The human body … is not only a source of … procreation. It also has the power to express love, allowing the person to become a gift. This self-giving love is unique to human beings — other living creatures reproduce, but they don't love each other in the image of God's love.
"Beyond marriage, Christ revealed another vocation for men and women — that of remaining unmarried for the sake of the kingdom of heaven (Mat 19:12). This only confirms the nuptial meaning of the body. In freedom we have the power to offer ourselves as a gift — to another person, or even to the kingdom of heaven.
"So many people wonder: … Why am I here on this earth. The answer is found in this self-giving love. We were created by Love, and we're called to love in return. A man can only find his true self by giving himself away. When we live according to the nuptial meaning of our bodies, we fulfill the very meaning of our existence.
"In order to make a gift of himself, a man must be free. Adam and Eve were totally free because they were totally innocent. … For us to achieve freedom, we must learn self-control. The gift-giving, nuptial meaning of the body can only be realized when we're free from sinful passions."
An der Grabstätte von Kronprinzessin Cecilie
1 week ago
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