SPEAKING on the Theology of the Body, St. Pope John Paul
II revealed that by means of the body, man and woman are uniquely endowed by
the Creator with the particular capacity of expressing love as chosen by
eternal love. “Whoever accepts the ethos of Matthew 5:27-28 must know
that he is also called to full and mature spontaneity of the relations that
spring from the perennial attraction of masculinity and femininity. This
spontaneity is the gradual fruit of the discernment of the impulses of one’s
own heart.” Christ’s words demand that in this sphere, which seems to
belong exclusively to the body and to the senses, that is, to exterior man, he
should succeed in being an interior man, a true master of his own deep
impulses. “ He should draw from all those impulses what is fitting for purity
of heart, building with conscience and consistency that personal sense of the
nuptial meaning of the body, which opens the interior space of the freedom of
the gift.” (General Audience, 12.11.1980)
Scriptures tell us “the two will become one flesh” Gen.
2:24) with regard to the joining of man and woman in marriage. On the
other hand, Jesus construed that “Some are born incapable of marriage. Some
have been made that way by others. But there are some who have given up
the possibility of marriage for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. Let
the one who can accept it, accept it” (Mt. 19:12). This pronouncement
gives no reason to assert the inferiority of marriage, nor the superiority of
virginity or celibacy. Christ proposed the ideal of continence only for
the sake of the kingdom of heaven. This implies a value and beauty that
goes beyond the purely physical dimension of sexuality.
No comments:
Post a Comment