The Beauty of Man A Synopsis of St. John Paul II's Theology of the Body by Rev. Benjamin P.Bradshaw, STL The Beauty of Man: A Synopsis of St. Pope John Paul II’s Theology of the Body Rev. Benjamin P. Bradshaw, STL 1 For Joseph Ratzinger (Pope Emeritus) 2 Preface: Pope Francis has noted that too often there exists an inappropriate rift between the realm of theology and that of the lived realities of the lay faithful in the pews: Not infrequently an opposition between theology and pastoral ministry emerges, as if they were two opposite, separate realities that had nothing to do with each other. We not infrequently identify doctrine with conservatism and antiquity; and on the contrary, we tend to think of pastoral ministry in terms of adaptation, reduction, accommodation. As if they had nothing to do with each other. A false opposition is generated between theology and pastoral ministry, between Christian reflection and Christian life. … The attempt to overcome this divorce between theology and pastoral ministry, between faith and life, was indeed one of the main contributions of Vatican Council II.1 For his part, Joseph Ratzinger has noted that there is clearly an “ecclesial vocation” by which the- ologians, in the dedication of their work, partake.2 If theology is truly to be “done on one’s knees,” at some point it must make the leap from the classroom to the pew and from the pew to lived realities of those sitting in the pews on any given Sunday.3 The argument could be made that few transitions are more needed in our own time than for St. John Paul II’s Theology of the Body to become a lived reality in the culture. While many Catholics, including clergy, have at this point heard of the Theology of the Body, few have likely taken the time to actually read it or meditate on its cultural implications. This text aims to bridge part of this gap and serve as a pos- sible medium between the Theology of the Body corpus and the Christian faithful. If Tertullian (d.225 AD) was correct that, “The body is the hinge of salvation” (caro cardis salutis) then man’s corporality really does mean something and what we do with our bodies real- ly does matter, both for us and the culture in which we find ourselves. As Stanisław Grygiel has noted, there is a language spoken in-and-through the body which communicates the love which is the source of its origin: “The human body speaks with a language proper to beauty. Only po- ets, whose language is song, comprehend it.”4 Karol Wojtyla’s catechesis on the human body, at times poetically mystical, communicates this song spoken in the body as it relates to man’s great vocation. I want to thank the faculty of the Pontifical John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and the Family for their integral, and much needed, work for the Church surrounding the issues of marriage and family. I also thank the staff at the parishes where I have served as pastor for patiently allowing me the time I needed to write this. Going through John Paul II’s general audi- 1 Pope Francis. Pope's video message to the Second International Congress of Theology in Buenos Aires: overcome the divorce between theology and pastoral ministry. Friday, September 04, 2015 2 Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger. Instruction on the Ecclesial Vocation of the Theologian. Congregation for the Doc- trine of the Faith. May 24, 1990. 3 Pope Francis. Pope's video message to the Second International Congress of Theology in Buenos Aires: overcome the divorce between theology and pastoral ministry. Friday, September 04, 2015. 4 Stanisław Griegel. Discovering the Human Person (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2014): 95. 3 ences is both beautiful and, at times, daunting, as it takes no shortage of time to spiritually digest. I started writing this in 2013, and, over the years, in between funerals, weddings, quinceañeras, and marriage counseling sessions, I would rob a few minutes here and there to work on it. Thanks to my parish staff for their great patience as I stole away from time-to-time to cocoon into the text. A sincere thanks as well to my dear friends who offered their humble and honest suggestions and corrections. This work is not meant to be a theological think-piece, but a compendium for those who may be seeking to hear St. John Paul II in his own voice, though perhaps do not have the time to appropriate the entirety of his Wednesday general audiences on the body. The following is a humble attempt to communicate this song of the body, as he understood it. Hopefully, I can get out of the way and allow the Holy Father’s words to speak for themselves. 4 Table of Contents: I.) Groundwork for the Theology of the Body Catechesis 10 a.) Karol Wojtyla’s Correction of Modern Philosophy 12 b.) St. Thomas Aquinas on the Holy Trinity 22 c.) St. John of the Cross and the “Law of the Gift” 24 d.) Sexual Anthropology and the Person in Love and Responsibility 27 e.) Christian Personalism and the Second Vatican Council 33 f.) Pope St. Paul VI and Humanae Vitae 38 g.) Secular Feminism v. John Paul II’s New Feminism 48 II.) Introduction to John Paul II’s Catechesis on the Body 51 III.) Outline of the Theology of the Body Catechesis 58 IV.) A Synopsis of John Paul II’s Theology of the Body 61 V.) Conclusion and Implications for the Culture 137 VI.) A Word from the Author 141 5 Introduction: The fundamental linchpin of the entirety of Catholic life, doctrine, and liturgy is the In- carnate Logos: Jesus Christ. As the second person in the Holy Trinity, Jesus Christ is fully God and fully human. The kairos (Greek “right time”) of the Son has penetrated the chronos (time) of human history and has sanctified this time and therefore set humanity on a course for its es- chatological end (telos) in Him, to be fully manifest at the second coming (Gal. 4:4). Catholics profess this reality every Sunday in the Nicene Creed: “I look forward to the resurrection of the dead and the life in the world to come. Amen.” All of the cosmos and time finds its beginning and end in Him, as the Apostle Paul has noted: “He is the image of the invisible God, the first- born of all creation. For in him were created all things in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible…all things were created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together” (Col 1:15-17). This point is emphasized by the Second Vatican Council: “The Lord is the goal of human history, the focal point of the longings of history and of civiliza- tion, the center of the human race, the joy of every human heart and the answer to all its yearn- ings.”5 John Paul II himself underscores this reality as well in his first encyclical: “The Re- deemer of Man, Jesus Christ, is the center of the universe and of history.”6 As the Second per- son in the Trinity, Jesus possesses a human soul, a human and divine will, and becomes fully manifest in the Eucharist at every Holy Mass. Yet as pure spirit, God is neither male nor female, though he created man and woman in his image and likeness (Gn 1:27) and their gendered sexu- alities reflect the love of God.7 God is also omnipresent (everywhere), omniscient (all-knowing), and omnipotent (all powerful), while simultaneously being immutable (unchangeable), ineffable (utterly indescribable), and immanent in his creation, though not in a neo-pantheistic manner. In spite of this grandeur, God is also extraordinary in his humility and his infinite love of each hu- man person, and he has joined our own dignity with giving to others as he has given to us (Mt 25:40). Thats a lot to take in. It is at times vexing to ponder that God would become man who actually walked the earth, lived among us, and then redeemed the human condition. In Genesis and the Old Testament (Gn 1:31; Ws 11:20), God has set a particular order in his creation which reflects the divine goodness.8 While itself not divine, creation is not only good, it is also gifted to man (man and woman) whom God presents as its proper steward (Gn 1:26). From the very beginning, the Catholic Church has understood the created world, and in particular the human body (soma), as both good and reflective of God’s goodness and beauty; a teaching which the Church has had to actively protect over the years.9 With the creation of man, a new event takes place in time. Up until this point, creation is repeatedly declared to be “good.” Each creature; therefore, “Possesses its own particular good- 5 Second Vatican Council. Gaudium et Spes, no. 45. 6 John Paul II, Redemptor Hominis, no. 1. 7 Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 369-370. 8 Ibid., no. 339. 9 Ibid., no. 299. 6 ness and perfection.”10 There is also an evident beauty to creation which is iconic of the source of that beauty, the Holy Trinity.11 Catholic tradition has consistently understood that deep within creation there dwells an echo of the Creator, and a thing’s particular beauty points to that creative Source. The encounter with this beauty leads one to a wonder, or mystical awe, of the creative love within the Trinity, in a similar way that exquisite Church architecture or sacred polyphony points to the Creator.