What is Theology of The Body?

1. St. John Paul II’s powerful glimpse of the human person – expressed in 129 separate audiences – revealing the beauty of God’s design for us rooted in love now and for all eternity.

2. A theological time bomb, set to go off with dramatic consequences. – George Weigel

Who we are

Theology of the Body is the popular term given to a collection of 129 general audiences given by Pope St. John Paul II from 1979-84 at the beginning of his pontificate. The late Holy Father referred to the catechesis as an “adequate anthropology, which seeks to understand and interpret man in what is essentially human” (TOB 13:2). Theology of the Body explores what we can learn about the human person before creation, after the Fall (both before and after Christ came to redeem us), and in view of the resurrection of the body. These thoroughly Scriptural reflections explore what we can learn about who we are, where we came from and where we are going – questions that each human person grapples with throughout the entirety of his life.

What we are made for

Pope St. John Paul II treats several main themes in his work, including love, gender, self-gift, vocation, creation, redemption, purity, covenant, Sacrament and the relevance and dignity of the body. Although commonly thought of as a manual of sexual morality, Theology of the Body aims to touch the deepest roots of being human – exploring the intrinsic relationships (to God and to others) for which we were each created. In this way, Theology of the Body goes far beyond sexual morality, instead exploring the reasons for sexual morality, vocation, a covenantal relationship with our Creator and Redeemer, the nature of love and many other pertinent topics to all human persons. It arms young and old alike with reasons for our faith.

Why teach TOB in Schools?

It has the power to transform the way every young man and woman understands their:

• Body & Soul
• Masculinity & Femininity
• Vocation in this Life
• Destiny in the Next Life

As a Catholic culture, we are wandering adrift.

• 76% of Catholics agree that same-sex relationships should be accepted by society
• 81% of Catholics agree that using birth control is morally acceptable
• 24% of Catholics are currently attending Sunday Mass

And where will eating this fruit lead?

After a hundred years of what has been called the dictatorship of relativism, there is much confusion about the human person. I am unattached and independent. I am free to believe what I want to believe. I am free to do whatever feels good. Are we happier holding these beliefs? Is our culture healthier because we choose to live this way? We have lost our sense of self – our understanding of the fundamental uniqueness of every human person – and our purpose. We’ve lost our dignity and our way.

But all is not lost…

Our Catholic schools exist to evangelize. TOB offers both the FAITH and REASON to lead us back onto the path of true happiness. Endowed with a true understanding of who we are and what God is calling us to be, we can live our lives accordingly and lead happier lives and prepare for eternal life. Providing our children these guidelines when they are young and being formed, will help keep them on the road toward free, total, faithful, fruitful communion with Christ for a lifetime…and then some.