Theology of the Body 2015/03/31

It's been two months since I've posted excerpts from the book on Pope St. John Paul II's Theology of the Body. Just a quick review. The Pope sees celibacy as a special vocation. Jesus' words about it come after he has taught that remarriage after divorce is adultery. He says that celibacy can be a result of being a eunuch from birth or by human action, or it can be freely chosen for the kingdom of God.


"The man or woman who freely chooses celibacy for the kingdom is a sign of the world to come, where God will be our 'all in all' (1 Cor. 15:28). Such a person reveals that the body's ultimate destiny is total union with God. … In and through Christ, all the children of heaven … will be united in the communion of saints.

"Celibacy for the kingdom … is a sign that the body is not destined for the grave but for resurrection. …

…

"When the angel Gabriel told Mary that she would bear a son, she was astounded. 'How can this be,' she asked, 'since I am a virgin?' (Lk. 1:34). Separately, the angel told Joseph,  'What is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit' (Mt. 1:20). Mary and Joseph thus become the first witnesses of a fruitfulness different from that of the flesh — spiritual fruitfulness.

" … Within [Mary and Joseph's virginal] marriage, the Incarnation of the Word was realized; the Son of God, of one essence with the Father, was conceived and born of the Virgin Mary.

"The life-giving unity of the Trinity is the source of all spiritual fruitfulness. Mary's divine motherhood reveals this fruitfulness in a superabundant way. But the Spirit bears fruit in all those who accept Christ and do his will, including those who answer the call to celibacy for the kingdom.

"The vocation of celibacy was revealed only gradually. When Jesus spoke of it … his disciples did not know of his virgin birth. They had only the example of Christ himself, who had remained celibate for the kingdom. Later, when … St. Paul extolled the virtues of virginity, Christ's followers came to understand that celibacy for the kingdom is a way of attaining the supernatural fruitfulness of the Holy Spirit."


I'm also reminded by my note on my earlier posts, that I still owe you my thoughts on how celibacy as a special vocation, freely chosen, squares with traditional Christian teaching that sex belongs only in marriage. If homosexual orientation is not freely chosen and celibacy is required of homosexuals, how can it be freely chosen for the sake of the kingdom?