Day 10: The Religious Interpretation
This series is based on a systematical reflection of John Paul II’s great masterpiece on Theology of the Body, “Love & Responsibility.”
Explanation and Reflection
Only God creates, properly speaking, but John Paul II tells us that we participate in God’s creative act. Here are his very words: “A man and a woman by means of procreation, by taking part in bringing a new human being into the world, at the same time participate in their own fashion in the work of creation.” This puts a whole new spin on what it means to have sex. If the conjugal embrace is a participation in God’s very own act of creation, there’s a whole lot more to it than meets the eye.
“They [parents] can therefore look upon themselves as the rational co-creators of a new human being. That new human being is a person.” Only God can create the soul, but he places it in the organism generated by the parents. Every new human being is the result of a joint effort between God, a man, and a woman.
Furthermore, the love between a man and a woman which provides the backdrop for the genesis of a new person does not stop with the gift of life. Love is a continuous phenomenon; it is not static, but dynamic. The love of a couple which generates the child continues its participation in God’s creation by later providing for the education of the child, above all the spiritual education. What a responsibility and a privilege this is that God has entrusted to a man and a woman!
My Prayer with God
Father in Heaven, thank you for such a wonderful world in which you have truly made me your own child. You have allowed me to participate in your very own work. John Paul II’s Theology of the Body helps me to realize that the world is good and beautiful, and that my purpose in life is worth living for. What an awesome gift you have given to me!
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