The Theology of the Body and Modern Medicine: Informing the Practice of Healing

Paul John II The Theology of the Body: Human Love in the Divine Plan (Boston: Pauline Books and Media, 1997). A newly translated version, based upon new findings from the John Paul II archives, has also recently been published: John Paul II, Man and Woman He Created Them: A Theology of the Body, trans. Michael Waldstein (Boston: Pauline Books and Media, 2006).

To conserve space and avoid repetition, we use the generic pronouns “he” and “his” in this paper to refer to either the masculine or feminine gender. Also, the words “physician” and “healer” are used interchangeably to refer to many different medical healing roles such as physician, nurse, physician assistant, therapist, caretaker, and so forth.

Paul John II The Theology of the Body, 359 (general audience of January 12, 1983).

The Theology of the Body, 402 (general audience of September 5, 1984).

See Vatican II Gaudium et Spes (Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World; December 7, 1965), n. 24, http://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/: “Man, who is the only creature on earth which God willed for itself, cannot fully find himself except through a sincere gift of himself.”

All Bible quotations are taken from The Holy Bible, Revised Standard Version (New York: Oxford University Press, 2004).

Paul John II The Theology of the Body, 60 (general audience of January 9, 1980).

In a more literal sense, the entire matter of organ donation, often spoken of as a “gift of life,” captures this reality of self-giving in a very concrete way.

Paul John II The Theology of the Body, 66 (general audience of January 16, 1980).

The Theology of the Body, 45–48 (general audience of November 14, 1979).

Healy Mary Men and Women Are from Eden: A Study Guide to John Paul II's Theology of the Body (Servant Books, 2005), 26.

Mt 25: 40: “As you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me.”

In addition, they remain faithful to the Church's teachings (and John Paul II's teachings in Theology of the Body), when they do not intentionally sterilize any sexual act. Whether they are blessed with procreative fertility or not, their bodies are inherently apt for self-gift and for expressing the nuptial meaning of the body. Remaining open to children in each marital act is the way that spouses speak the language of the body in truth and love.

Stanislaw Dziwisz and Czeslaw Drazek, “Suffering in the Life and Teaching of John Paul II,” in Let Me Go to the Father's House: John Paul II's Strength in Weakness (Boston: Pauline Books and Media, 2006), 8–12.

Comastri Angelo “Sainthood Now!” in Let Me Go to the Father's House, 107: “During his illness, which gradually deprived John Paul II of his most brilliant and treasured personal qualities, he did not go into hiding. It must have cost him dearly, but he did not permit a veil to protect him from the indiscreet eyes of others: he lived his illness publicly, turning it into a living homily that touched the hearts of all humanity.”

Paul John II Theology of the Body, 57–60 (general audience of January 2, 1980), 68-70 (general audiences of January 30, 1980, and February 6, 1980), and John Paul II, Love and Responsibility (Polish 1960; New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 1981), 174-193.

Paul John II Theology of the Body, 57 (general audience of January 2, 1980).

Theology of the Body, 70 (general audience of February 6, 1980).

Theology of the Body, 53 (general audience of December 12, 1979).

Shivanandan Mary , Crossing the Threshold of Love: A New Vision of Marriage (Washington, DC: Catholic University of America Press, 1999), 123.

Paul John II Love and Responsibility, 174.

Love and Responsibility, 175.

Love and Responsibility, 179–180.

Paul John II Theology of the Body, 402 (general audience of September 5, 1984).

Imago Dei (formerly known as Women Affirming Life), A New Language: A Study Guide on John Paul II's Theology of the Body, 2nd Edition (Women Affirming Life, 2005), 33.

Paul John II Love and Responsibility, 174.

Paul John II Theology of the Body, 222 (general audience of April 22, 1981).

Theology of the Body, 227 (general audience of May 6, 1981).

VI Paul Humanae Vitae (“Of Human Life”) (Boston: Daughters of St. Paul, 1968), n. 22

Paul John II Theology of the Body, 228 (general audience of May 6, 1981).