An Introduction to the Theology of the Body
“The Great Analogy of Spousal Love”
Session 2 Summary
In this session, the first truth we learn is the reality of God’s deepest secret: God himself exists in an eternal exchange of love. (CCC2212) This may seem difficult to grasp or even worse meaningless when compared to the gravity of problems we face in our daily lives but it is essential if we are to understand our great dignity as persons created in God’s image.
More than just “created” by God, we have been created “FOR” God, specifically to live in a relationship with God. He planted this seed, gave us this desire when he created us and all throughout our lives, beginning from our conception, he calls us to come closer to him, inviting us to enter into a personal communion with him. (CCC27) We are created to desire the “infinite” yet we settle for the “finite” and that is how sin takes us further from God. “Great sinners and great saints are made from the same stuff; a deep hunger for love. The difference between the two stems from how we try to fill that hunger.
We learned through the scriptures that God compares his love for us to a love of a bridegroom for his bride. The bible begins and ends with marriage and directly in the middle is the erotic love poetry of a passionate couple desiring to give themselves to each other. Through the “lens” of spousal love, we came to understand that God seeks to love us with a fiery love, a love that demanded he come down to earth, take on human flesh and love us as we desired to be loved. This love is the most radical form of human love and it is from here our definition of human love must begin. (Deus Caritas Est, Pope Benedict XVI)
The church and in all truth, our very lives cannot be properly understood if we neglect this “great Mystery” of Christ’s love for his bride, the Church. (Ephesians 5) Through Christ’s intense love for us we learn what the measure of our worth, dignity and at the same time, we discover the truth of our identity. We are called to BE LOVE, to be a gift to others as Christ was and is to us.
If the “great Mystery of spousal love” is truly meant to be the “least inadequate” way to see God’s love for us, then we can understand why marriage and sex is attacked so terribly in the world today. If one wishes to see what is most sacred in the world all you need to do is look to that which is most profaned. There is a fierce spiritual battle going on for the souls of all around us. The devil seeks to cloud our minds and hearts with pursuit of the “finite” which promises on a temporary pleasure while we ignore the “infinite” which offers us lasting happiness. In an effort to inspire men to take up the cross and fight the good fight, we finished the night praying Ephesians 6.
Session 3 is entitled “Man and Woman He Created Them” and will take place on September 18. Don’t Miss it!
“The Great Analogy of Spousal Love”
Session 2 Summary
In this session, the first truth we learn is the reality of God’s deepest secret: God himself exists in an eternal exchange of love. (CCC2212) This may seem difficult to grasp or even worse meaningless when compared to the gravity of problems we face in our daily lives but it is essential if we are to understand our great dignity as persons created in God’s image.
More than just “created” by God, we have been created “FOR” God, specifically to live in a relationship with God. He planted this seed, gave us this desire when he created us and all throughout our lives, beginning from our conception, he calls us to come closer to him, inviting us to enter into a personal communion with him. (CCC27) We are created to desire the “infinite” yet we settle for the “finite” and that is how sin takes us further from God. “Great sinners and great saints are made from the same stuff; a deep hunger for love. The difference between the two stems from how we try to fill that hunger.
We learned through the scriptures that God compares his love for us to a love of a bridegroom for his bride. The bible begins and ends with marriage and directly in the middle is the erotic love poetry of a passionate couple desiring to give themselves to each other. Through the “lens” of spousal love, we came to understand that God seeks to love us with a fiery love, a love that demanded he come down to earth, take on human flesh and love us as we desired to be loved. This love is the most radical form of human love and it is from here our definition of human love must begin. (Deus Caritas Est, Pope Benedict XVI)
The church and in all truth, our very lives cannot be properly understood if we neglect this “great Mystery” of Christ’s love for his bride, the Church. (Ephesians 5) Through Christ’s intense love for us we learn what the measure of our worth, dignity and at the same time, we discover the truth of our identity. We are called to BE LOVE, to be a gift to others as Christ was and is to us.
If the “great Mystery of spousal love” is truly meant to be the “least inadequate” way to see God’s love for us, then we can understand why marriage and sex is attacked so terribly in the world today. If one wishes to see what is most sacred in the world all you need to do is look to that which is most profaned. There is a fierce spiritual battle going on for the souls of all around us. The devil seeks to cloud our minds and hearts with pursuit of the “finite” which promises on a temporary pleasure while we ignore the “infinite” which offers us lasting happiness. In an effort to inspire men to take up the cross and fight the good fight, we finished the night praying Ephesians 6.
Session 3 is entitled “Man and Woman He Created Them” and will take place on September 18. Don’t Miss it!