Understanding the Priesthood through the Theology of the Body

My latest runs today at Catholic Exchange:

“What does that have to do with the priesthood, Father?”

I like to think, as Vocation Director, I can tie just about anything back to the priesthood, if I really try; but in the conversation noted, there was no need to try, as the links were plenty evident, if you but scratch the surface.

In the early parts of his papacy, Pope John Paul II delivered a series of Wednesday catechesis talks on spousal love. Built on his reflections of the first chapters of the Book of Genesis and refined during his trips as a young priest and bishop in Cracow, these talks have been coalesced into a systematic series of theology, collectively known as the Theology of the Body. Groundbreaking in their scope of thought, these talks are beginning a revolution in Catholic thought, especially in our understanding of the theology of marriage and the mutual gift of self contained there-in. In many ways, Pope John Paul II’s Theology of the Body gives the theological underpinnings for the teachings expressed in Pope Paul VI’s 1968 Encyclical Humanae Vitae.



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