Image and Likeness: Literary Reflections on the Theology of the Body

by Erin McCole Cupp (Editor), Ellen Gable (Editor), Karina Lumbert Fabian (Contributor)

If St. John Paul II ever summarized his Theology of the Body, it may have been when he said, “Man cannot fully find himself except through a sincere gift of himself.” But how does this sincere gift look when lived out by human beings with all their failings? What happens to our humanity when we withhold that sincere gift? What does life require of us when we give most deeply?

Full Quiver Publishing brings you this moving collection of poetry and prose, featuring some of today’s brightest Catholic literary voices, including award-winning authors Dena Hunt, Arthur Powers, Michelle Buckman, Leslie Lynch, Theresa Linden, and many more. By turns edgy and sweet, gritty and deft, but always courageous and honest, the works contained in Image and Likeness explore countless facets of human love—and human failure. Readers of Image and Likeness will experience in a variety of ways how humanity, in flesh as well as spirit, lives out the image and likeness of a God who created human intimacy to bring forth both our future and to illustrate our ultimate meaning as human persons.

With an Foreword by international Theology of the Body voice Damon Owens, Image and Likeness puts life and breath into St. John Paul II’s Theology of the Body in ways that readers won’t soon forget.

Warning: Mature themes and language.

314 pages, Paperback

Published October 22, 2016

About the author

Erin McCole Cupp is a wife, mother, and lay Dominican who lives with her family of vertebrates somewhere out in the middle of Nowhere, Pennsylvania. Her short writing has appeared in Our Sunday Visitor, Canticle Magazine, The Catholic Standard and Times, Parents, The Philadelphia City Paper, The White Shoe Irregular, Outer Darkness Magazine, and the newsletter of her children’s playgroup. She is a contributor to CatholicMom.com and has been a guest blogger for OSV Newsweekly, The National Catholic Register, Integrity Restored, Tekton Ministries, and the Catholic Writers Guild. Her other professional experiences include acting, costuming, directing, youth ministry, international scholar advising, and waiting tables. When Erin is not writing, cooking or parenting, she can be found reading, birding, dancing historical, singing a bit too loudly, sewing for people she loves, gardening in spite of herself, or dragging loved ones to visitors centers. Erin’s books are available on Amazon.

Reviews

[Barb · Rating 5 out of 5]

What, exactly, are “literary reflections on the Theology of the Body?” They’re stories and poems about how we live, and how we live our lives in relationship with each other, with our bodies, with our souls, and with God. It’s not some complicated, esoteric subject.

Because it’s an anthology, there’s something for everyone, from detective stories to poetry to tales of family life that range from the harrowing to the uplifting. These stories and poems are about life. Like life, they are not always neat and tidy and packaged in a pretty box with a crisply-tied ribbon. I’ve come to expect just this from other work from Full Quiver Publishing: this publisher does not shy away from difficult subjects and situations in its commitment to promoting the culture of life and the Church’s teaching on marriage and family.

Image and Likeness: Literary Reflections on the Theology of the Body will not only bring you to tears occasionally, it will make you think. There’s no preaching, no hammering the reader over the head with the Truth, but the Truth is all over these stories.

My review is based on a preview copy provided by the editors, who are fellow members of the Catholic Writers Guild.

Read my full review of this book.

[Carolyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Even if you've read St. John Paul II's Theology of the Body from start to finish and a half dozen nonfiction books about it on the side, I guarantee this collection of shorts will uncover the teachings in ways you hadn't considered. It will challenge you in unexpected ways. One or two (or more) of the stories may make you uncomfortable. While the writing is polished, the varnish coating the darkness of our lives is stripped, laying bare the truths written on our heart and the lies we tell with our bodies.

Recommended for reading, reflection, discussion, and even entertainment. A gritty but beautiful introduction not only to the Theology of the Body as it is lived (or rejected), but also to the breadth and promise of Catholic fiction being written by contemporary authors. These shorts are accessible to any careful reader, whether familiar with the Theology of the Body or not.

(I received an advance copy. I am contracted by Full Quiver Publishing for other projects, but had no part in Image and Likeness. Opinions expressed are purely my own.)

[Steven R. McEvoy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a big fan of anthologies. First I find they are a great way to meet new authors. Second I find the skill needed for shorter prose is greater. Third it is a great change of pace from non-fiction, and fiction. And this one was excellent on many levels. I had read 4 books by Full Quiver authors over the last year and decided this Anthology might be a great way to be exposed to some other authors to explore. Now to be honest I was familiar with a number of the authors and had read books by three of the seventeen.

The contributors are:
Michelle Buckman
AnnMarie Creedon
Karina Fabian
Anne Faye
Ellen Gable (Hrkach)
Barbara Hosbach
Dena Hunt
Katy Huth Jones
Antony Barone Kolenc
Theresa Linden
Leslie Lynch
Erin McCole Cupp
John D. McNichol
Damon Owens
Arthur Powers
Gerard D. Webster
R. Elaine Westphal

And the contributions are:

Foreword by Damon Owens
Venus if You Do by Arthur Powers
Thou by Gerard Webster
No Turning Back by Leslie Lynch
Purple Hearts by Tony Kolenc
Cries of the Innocents by Karina Fabian
Victorious by Katy Huth Jones
Movements by Michelle Buckman
Full Reversal by Theresa Linden
In the Death of Winter by Arthur Powers
Guess Who's Coming to Sunday Brunch by Erin McCole Cupp
Nice by Gerard Webster
My Pot of Gold by R Elaine Westphal
Claudio by Arthur Powers
This is My Body by AnnMarie Creedon
Good For Her by Erin McCole Cupp
Pear Trees by Dena Hunt
The Walk by Anne Faye
Two Kinds of People by John McNichol
Hard Choices by Barbara Hosbach
MS by Arthur Powers
Made For Love by Theresa Linden
The Death of Me, The Life of Us by Ellen Gable

But this is more than just a collection of stories with a theme, or unifying thread running throughout them. As Damon Owens in the introduction states:

"The power of stories on people is a fascinating phenomenon. A poem, anecdote, short story, biography or novel can engage our imagination, intellect, emotions, and memory in transformative ways. We truly are "hard-wired" for story. As a Catholic speaker and evangelist for over twenty years, I have witnessed how a well-told story can build rapport, engender trust, and influence even the most reluctant listener."

C.S. Lewis in On Stories: And Other Essays on Literature stated: "It is very rarely that a middle-aged man finds an author who gives him, what he knew so often in his teens and twenties, the sense of having opened a new door." But this book did that. This book is not just a great collection of stories and it is that. Because the theme central to the stories is The Theology of the Body, the stories have incredible impact. I have already started reading through this a second time, taking a slower pace, and just one story every other night. I also have plans to read books by a number of the contributors, the ones I was already familiar with and some new authors to check out.

This book has punch, from the first story by Arthur Powers, which literally has a fist fight. And it is the not the only story to see actual punches thrown. These stories included unexpected pregnancies, the military's don't ask don't tell, vigils at abortion clinics, cancer. There are stories about living in a fallen world, but also stories about a redeemer, and the church that holds his banner high. I especially appreciated Theresa Linden's first contribution Full Reversal, which continues, sometime after her Chasing Liberty trilogy. And Ellen Gable's The Death of Me, the Life of Us is an incredibly moving piece dealing with guilt. And the poem MS by Arthur Powers simply masterful.

Damon Owens in the introduction also stated:

"I am indebted to the authors and poets of Image and Likeness for their gifted storytelling of real life "ugly." This book isn't afraid to hold our gaze into the darkness of sin, doubt, and brokenness before the resolution of redemption. Some of these stories are heartbreaking to read precisely because I know this is true. Some of them I will never forget because of their unexpected turn to redemption. Through and through, this is an artistic instruction in TOB that shows us the wounds needing the balm, the balm applied, and the health and wholeness of men and women healed. And, like every well-told story, its penetrating TOB truths will influence even the most reluctant reader."

And I completely agree. An incredible collection that I know everyone who gives it a try will be blessed, and likely a little challenged.

Read the review on my blog Book Reviews and More.

Note: This book is part of a series of reviews: 2018 Catholic Reading Plan!

[Karen Ullo · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a wide-ranging collection of short stories and poetry that deal with themes of sexuality and respect for human life and the human body, presented from a distinctly Catholic vision. It would be especially good as a resource for catechists looking for ways to help teens or college students wrestle with these topics. The introduction asks, "How can we teach [the Theology of the Body] more as master storytellers and less as didactic instructors of concepts and ideas?" Some stories managed this task more deftly than others. A few of them do devolve into sermonizing that is thinly veiled as dramatic dialogue. But on the whole, they are well-crafted, set in locales as varying as prisons, high school drinking parties, and a futuristic dystopia. There is something here to resonate with just about any reader.

[Cynthia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a well written fiction and poetry collection that reflects on issues of respect and love for the human body and human life, in the context of Church teachings. Although I am familiar with previous works of several of these authors, the variety of prose I found was surprising. Each contribution was engaging in a different way. For readers who are not familiar with these authors, I recommend you search for other work by your favorites. I received an ARC of this book, and this is my honest review.

[Brendan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a hard one to summarize, so I'll just give my over all impression. It's a little hit-and-miss, but there's a lot of heart. For those who like poetic reflections on Church teaching there are some gems in there but I had a hard time staying invested I'm sorry to say.