Vivat Jesus,
GK Allan Reith
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John Paul II’s Legacy – Theology of the Body
By: Deacon Ed Sheffer
The Feast Day for St. John Paul II is on October 22. Much has been written about his life and papacy.
Although it is impossible to do justice to the first major teaching he undertook as pope, I hope this short
article inspires some to seek to become much more familiar with Theology of the Body. I believe it will
be one of St. John Paul II’s greatest legacies.
In its original release, Theology of the Body included one hundred and twenty nine talks, delivered
between September 1979 and November 1984. Why did he write it? For one big reason, his entire papacy
was devoted to bringing hope to a world in desperate need of hope. In Theology of the Body, he shares
incredible insight to anyone who wishes to live a much fuller life.
His life experiences revealed to him that the culture has very little use for the idea that the visible body
reveals the invisible person. But he says what we do with our bodies profoundly affects our souls, and
to ignore that greatly distances us from being more fully human. Today even more than when he released Theology of the Body the prevailing belief is that if God exists, God doesn’t really care what we do with
our bodies. God is principally concerned that we respect each other as persons. St. John Paul II says that
falls woefully short in exploring the very gift of God – love.
Theology of the Body completely affirms the goodness of sexuality. It clearly discloses that sex is not a
dirty little word or limited to a bodily need and or function. God and sex can and should be spoken in the
same sentence. God is the author of love and love is what drives a person to give, whether in marriage or
in celibacy.
St. John Paul II believed that the nature of things is indispensable to understanding love and marriage. The problem with understanding how our world perceives marriage has a significant amount to do with an
erroneous grasp of human nature. When one’s vision of humanity likens us to a mechanical machine that
just happened to evolve, then yes the body has no meaning, and what we do with it has no inner meaning
and so marriage can’t possibly be comprehended in its truest form. St. John Paul II says the human body
in its deepest nature was formed by God, it has spousal meaning, and the meaning for marriage flows
from the nature of man and woman, male and female, created in the image of God.
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John Paul II’s Legacy - Theology of the Body Continued
He illuminates something that clearly needs to be understood if one is to
understand love at a deeper level, each and every one of us is called to be
a gift, a gift to one another and a gift to God, and that this giving and receiving
requires real presence. This life altering reality is becoming even more
challenging in a world becoming more and more gender neutral, not to
mention virtual.
When one begins to comprehend and sense the truths of Theology of Body,
the Sacrament of Marriage comes much more into focus and its ordained
purpose can be seen as a divine order of creation. For the invisible realities
are made visible through the physical world. Why is this important? Because
everything in the created order points to God. Once a person understands
and accepts this, it changes the complexion of things. For everything we see
and touch and do has something to do with the sacred. We need to touch
it all aware of our connectedness to God, for it comes from God and reveals
God in some way.
The beauty of Theology of the Body is it goes a long way in helping us
discover the biggest why’s of life. Mysticism is the why behind everything –
why we’re human, why we’re made, why we are female and male, and unless
we know the real why, we don’t know how to be fully human. Theology of the
Bodyexplores all these whys. Theology of the Body is a unique vehicle to call
us back on the path to fuller humanness.
Stay tuned, sometime this next year, St. Thomas the Apostle will be offering
multi-week presentations on Theology of the Body.
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~ SCHEDULE OF EVENTS~
OCTOBER 2017Date / Day / Event
1 / Sunday / Sell Oktoberfest Tickets after all Masses in the St. Thomas Courtyard. (Jim Click Car Raffle) tickets)
1 / Sunday / Pancake Breakfast 7:30 – 10:30 AM
7-8 / Sat-Sun / Sell Oktoberfest Tickets after all Masses in the St. Thomas Courtyard
9 / Monday / Chief Judge John Roll Chapter Meeting @ Holy Family Catholic Church 7 PM
12 / Thursday / Council #10441 Meeting @ 7PM
13-14 / Fri-Sat / PWID Drive – Safeway (Swan & Sunrise)
14-15 / Sat-Sun / Sell Oktoberfest Tickets after all Masses in the St. Thomas Courtyard. (Jim Click Car Raffle)
14-15 / Sat-Sun / Possible visit from Archbishop of India.
15 / Sunday / K of C Coffee & Donuts 7:30 – 10:30 AM
19 / Thursday / Assembly 2392 Meeting @ 7PM
21 / Saturday / Arizona Rosary Celebration for the Diocese of Tucson
21 / Saturday / Oktoberfest in St. Thomas Courtyard 6:30 – 9:30 PM
27-28 / Fri-Sat / PWID Drive – Safeway (Swan & Sunrise)
28-29 / Sat-Sun / PWID Drive after all Masses in the St. Thomas Courtyard
NOVEMBER 2017
Date / Day / Event
1 / Wednesday / All Saints Day
2 / Thursday / All Souls Day
4-5 / Sat-Sun / Jim Click Car raffle tickets after all masses
5 / Sunday Pancake Breakfast 7:30 – 10:30 AM / Pancake Breakfast 7:30 – 10:30 AM
9 / Thursday Council #10441 Meeting @ 7PM / Council #10441 Meeting @ 7PM
11 / Saturday / VETERAN’S DAY
11 / Saturday / Patriotic Degree (Phoenix)
12 / Sunday / Blood Drive (O’Leary Hall) 7:30 AM - Noon
13 / Monday / Chief Judge John Roll Chapter Meeting @ Holy Family Catholic Church 7 PM
14 / Tuesday / Memorial Mass - 6 PM Chapel Mass; followed by 7 PM Dinner in Parish Hall
16 / Thursday / Assembly 2392 Meeting @ 7PM
19 / November Coffee and Donuts / Coffee and Donuts
23 / Thursday / Thanksgiving - Give thanks
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