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April 21, 2024It’s a line we can so often miss in the creed, especially as it appears amidst a list of other key beliefs in the Catholic faith. “I believe in…the resurrection of the body.” As we continue to celebrate this season of Easter, we consistently revisit this reality of our Lord’s victory over death week by week. This victory that is so complete and powerful that the body which was once bruised, bloodied, and broken is now restored and transformed to reveal the glory of Christ’s sacrifice even through the persistence of the wounds of His crucifixion. God’s true omnipotence is indeed fully revealed! But there are two more points that we can come to appreciate about this reality of Christ’s resurrection. First, this piece in God’s plan of salvation history gives us great hope that we, too, as followers of Christ, can come to experience new life with Him after death in a way that doesn’t just involve our souls but our bodies. Our faith pushes back against the Gnostic suggestions of the world that believe our bodies are temporary vessels and proclaims that they, being a part of us, will share in the glory of Heaven. And second, and following this logic of the first point, we can then see that our Lord, through His Resurrection, evidences the great dignity of the physical body and its key role in revealing God’s love for His creation. Christopher West, through his weekly podcast, highlights the manifold implications of these and many other components of John Paul II’s Theology of the Body and helps each listener to embrace their fully integrated identity as a “beloved, irreplaceable, unrepeatable” gift from God. I cannot say enough about the honest vulnerability of Christopher and his wife, Wendy, who answer a handful of submitted questions each episode from both a theological and experiential lens. These range from inquiries related to pursuing chastity in courtship and marriage, navigating conversations related to gender identity or same-sex attraction, and understanding the Church’s most complex and difficult teachings. Whether you are single, engaged, married, a parent, or are actively discerning a religious vocation, I guarantee you will find Christopher and Wendy to be great friends to converse with during your daily commute or Saturday cleaning routine!
