I. Talk One: Introduction to the Theology of the Body
a. given by JPII the first four years of his pontificate to respond to modern crisis and to show people the way to happiness.
b. written with the help of the Theology Faculty at the University of Lublin; based on the struggles of the couples JPII knew well and those he counseled
c. the Tob is JPII’s way of looking at man with the eyes of God, his attempt at understanding how God made the human person and why. At its heart it is an anthropology, an understanding of who human beings are meant to be, so that we can live in accord with this and find happiness.
d. It is also a way to explain the universal call to holiness issued by Vatican II. (explain the universal call to holiness)
e. Begins with “In the beginning it was not so…”
f. JPII goes back to the beginning and looks at what it means to be made in God’s image and how the body was supposed to be a part of that from the very beginning
g. Then Jesus “fully reveals man” on the cross, especially how the human body was meant to play a role in our relationship with God and each other
h. Man was made to be a gift, like that of the persons of the Trinity, forming a “Communion of Persons” which is a taste of heaven on earth
i. Through this man become holy, ready for heaven, so JPII moves on to look at how one can live out the gift of self in a communion of persons in the vocations of celebacy and marriage.
j. Note about what the upcoming talks will be about
II. Talk Two: Taking a closer look at Being made in the Image of God: the Communion of Persons
a. the ad intra Trinity (gift of self that is full, free, faithful, fruitful)
b. the body makes visible the invisible (it is like a sacrament)
c. the male body as the image of God
d. the female body as the image of God
e. Made for our own sake (but… see f.)
f. Can only find ourselves by making a free gift of self and forming a communion of persons
g. Sexual desire is a gift from God to help spur us to make a gift of self, to help us love as God loves. (Holiness does not mean cutting yourself off from your sexual desire!)
h. How each of the two vocations live out being made in the image of God (by being a gift of self that is full, free, faithful, and fruitful.)
i. Marriage: Jesus reveals the love of the ad intra on the cross when He gives himself fully, freely, faithfully, and fully. Marriage is a sacrament of the union He established with the Church through His death. (Remember a sacrament makes the invisible visible.) Sex is what makes marriage a sacrament… but only if it matches up with the kind of love shown by Jesus on the cross. Discuss examples of how people make their marriage un-sacramental by avoiding one of the four f’s.
j. Celebates: “Marry” God and give their bodies to God by serving the His Kingdom in a gift of self that is full, free, faithful, fruitful.
k. Marriage reveals to celebates the kind of relationships that they (and everyone) are to have with God. Celebacy reveals that the loving relationship of spouses points to our relationshiop with God and is not just earthly. This is the tip of the iceburg called “The Complimentarity of the Vocations.”
III. Talk Three: Self Possession-freedom, the foundation of the Communion of Persons
a. the ad intra Trinity recap
b. the Trinity is the definition of what man was made to be
c. self possession is integrity; integration of all the parts of who you are
d. Wholeness at the natural level: thru virtue, and maybe even through counseling, etc.
e. Wholeness at the spiritual level: through prayer, sacraments, spir dir, etc.
f. The virtues are the crowning of freedom: self control, not control by passions
g. The virtues are good habits that make us have the spiritual “muscles” which enable us (and thus make us free to) do even difficult good things easily… Not many people are free to do difficult good things easily (even though everybody is free to do bad things without much difficulty due to original sin: virtues are a form of the redemption of the body)
IV. Talk Four: Relationships and Discernment
a. the ad intra Trinity recap
b. the ad intra is the definition of the gift of self and the definition of the form of a Communion of Persons
c. Recap how each of the vocations lives out this form of communion (gift of self that is full, free, faithful, fruitful) see talk II
d. Discernment: what is God calling me to? Is both a natural and supernatural process (where the spiritual builds on the natural).
e. Natural part: Knowing about your options and experiencing the different vocations, knowing yourself through giving yourself, growing through giving yourself in appropriate ways. Growing in self possession through the virtues and “holy indifference” so that you are free to choose.
f. Spiritual part: Praying for guidance, reflecting on how God is speaking to you through the situations in the world and in your own personal life, talking to a spiritual director.
g. Dating is for discerning if God is calling you to marry a certain person… This concept can also be applied to a convent or monastery/seminary.
h. Relationships: The body should play an important role, and it should always be a truthful sign of the relationship that actually exists (remember from talk two, the body should be a true sacrament of the relationship that actuall exists)
i. This means avoiding those things which pertain to marriage, including sex and intentionally arousing your date (which is really just the first part of having sex)
