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Our Bodies Tell God's Story: Discovering the Divine Plan for Love, Sex, and Gender
In response to a world awash in sexual chaos and gender confusion, this book offers a bold and thoroughly biblical look at the meaning of the body, sex, gender, and marriage.Bestselling author, cultural commentator, and popular theologian Christopher West is one of the world's most recognized teachers of John Paul II's Theology of the Body. He specializes in making this teaching accessible to all Christians, with particular attention to evangelicals. As West explains, from beginning to end the Bible tells a story of marriage. It begins with the marriage of man and woman in an earthly paradise and ends with the marriage of Christ and the church in an eternal paradise.In our post-sexual-revolution world, we need to remember that our bodies tell a divine story and proclaim the gospel itself. As male and female and in the call to become "one flesh," our bodies reveal a "great mystery" that mirrors Christ's love for the church (Eph. 5:31-32). This book provides a redemptive rather than repressive approach to sexual purity, explores the true meaning of sex and marriage, and offers a compelling vision of what it means to be created male and female. Foreword by Eric Metaxas.
193 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 21, 2020
139 people are currently reading
2047 people want to read
About the author
Christopher West
138 books230 followersChristopher West is a research fellow and faculty member of the Theology of the Body Institute. He is also one of the most sought after speakers in the Church today, having delivered more than 1000 public lectures on 4 continents, in more than a dozen countries, and in over 200 American cities. His books – Good News About Sex & Marriage, Theology of the Body Explained, and Theology of the Body for Beginners – have become Catholic best sellers.
Christopher has also lectured on a number of prestigious faculties, offering graduate and undergraduate courses at St John Vianney Seminary in Denver, the John Paul II Institute in Melbourne, Australia, and Creighton University’s Institute for Priestly Formation in Omaha. Hundreds of thousands have heard him on national radio programs and even more have seen him defending the faith on programs such as Scarborough Country, Fox and Friends, and At Large with Geraldo Rivera. Of all his titles, Christopher is most proud to call himself a devoted husband and father. He and his wife Wendy have five children and live in Lancaster County, PA.
Christopher has also lectured on a number of prestigious faculties, offering graduate and undergraduate courses at St John Vianney Seminary in Denver, the John Paul II Institute in Melbourne, Australia, and Creighton University’s Institute for Priestly Formation in Omaha. Hundreds of thousands have heard him on national radio programs and even more have seen him defending the faith on programs such as Scarborough Country, Fox and Friends, and At Large with Geraldo Rivera. Of all his titles, Christopher is most proud to call himself a devoted husband and father. He and his wife Wendy have five children and live in Lancaster County, PA.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 101 reviews
February 8, 2021
This was a great book unpacking the basic teachings of Pope John Paul II's Theology of the Body doctrine (something I had heard about but was not terribly familiar with prior to reading this book) and its various implications for marriage. West is a great writer and the imagery and symbolism he drew upon was fantastic for framing how marriage really is supposed to fit into the grand redemptive narrative. I loved his points about how casual sex inherently leads to objectification as well as how marriage can not be primarily seen through the lens of power and authority if we are serious about viewing it biblically.
His last chapter on birth control was less helpful (and where his Catholicism comes out the most--though you can see hints of distinctly-Catholic doctrine in other parts of the book as well that will be less relevant for Protestant readers like myself). Because this is part of Catholic doctrine (along with Theology of the Body doctrine), I can't fault him for arguing this within the book. But I don't find the "every sexual act needs to be open to fruitfulness but doesn't always need to be fruitful" distinction to make much sense rationally or historically. Arguing that every sexual act must be fruitful would by implication rule out natural family planning along with sexual activity during other naturally "sterile" periods like pregnancy or after menopause (and Catholic doctrine historically taught that prior to the Reformation, at least with pregnancy). The view West argues is certainly the standard view of the Catholic church right now, but I don't find the argument (or his attempted distinction) particularly persuasive.
At any rate, critiques of the last chapter aside, this was a great book that I really enjoyed reading. It also sparked interest on my end to read more of PJP's Theology of the Body, which is, perhaps, West's ultimate goal with this book.
Rating: 4-4.5 Stars (Excellent).
His last chapter on birth control was less helpful (and where his Catholicism comes out the most--though you can see hints of distinctly-Catholic doctrine in other parts of the book as well that will be less relevant for Protestant readers like myself). Because this is part of Catholic doctrine (along with Theology of the Body doctrine), I can't fault him for arguing this within the book. But I don't find the "every sexual act needs to be open to fruitfulness but doesn't always need to be fruitful" distinction to make much sense rationally or historically. Arguing that every sexual act must be fruitful would by implication rule out natural family planning along with sexual activity during other naturally "sterile" periods like pregnancy or after menopause (and Catholic doctrine historically taught that prior to the Reformation, at least with pregnancy). The view West argues is certainly the standard view of the Catholic church right now, but I don't find the argument (or his attempted distinction) particularly persuasive.
At any rate, critiques of the last chapter aside, this was a great book that I really enjoyed reading. It also sparked interest on my end to read more of PJP's Theology of the Body, which is, perhaps, West's ultimate goal with this book.
Rating: 4-4.5 Stars (Excellent).
October 17, 2022
This is a thoughtful, thought-provoking look at gender, marriage, and the “Great Mystery” which speaks of Christ and the church. Well worth the read!
February 22, 2021
I personally did not find this book very enlightening. I picked it up in hopes of reading more about how to approach issues surrounding sex, gender, marriage, etc., but that is not quite the purpose of this book.
More specifically, this book is meant to be a summary of some of the main points of John Paul II's Theology of the Body. In that way, the book fulfills its purpose. It makes a few good points in the beginning, but it is heavy on purity culture and falls prey to some logical fallacies, even going so far as to have an entire chapter saying birth control is unbiblical and is basically the root of half the problems in America.
Overall, I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone really looking for practical, gracious ways of approaching the many different ideas regarding sex, gender, and marriage in our society. It has very traditional, conservative views of all those topics. However, if you're beginning to study John Paul II's Theology of the Body, this book is a good place to start, but that should be the only context in which this book is read.
More specifically, this book is meant to be a summary of some of the main points of John Paul II's Theology of the Body. In that way, the book fulfills its purpose. It makes a few good points in the beginning, but it is heavy on purity culture and falls prey to some logical fallacies, even going so far as to have an entire chapter saying birth control is unbiblical and is basically the root of half the problems in America.
Overall, I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone really looking for practical, gracious ways of approaching the many different ideas regarding sex, gender, and marriage in our society. It has very traditional, conservative views of all those topics. However, if you're beginning to study John Paul II's Theology of the Body, this book is a good place to start, but that should be the only context in which this book is read.
February 20, 2024
A great find!
This is a positive approach to sexual beauty and goodness, which wrong and negative approaches have concealed in the name of freedom.
This is a positive approach to sexual beauty and goodness, which wrong and negative approaches have concealed in the name of freedom.
December 23, 2023
An adaptation of Pope John Paul II’s Theology of the Body for a popular audience. Generally a good perspective on sex and humanity. Two points were surprising to me: the idea that sexual lust (specifically Jesus’ instruction about looking to lust in Matt 5:27-28) objectifies the opposite sex, even in marriage. The other was that contraception is the source of sexual chaos of the modern world. Both of these are controversial points, but I can see the argument and they seem worthy of deeper thought.
April 18, 2021
When we look in the mirror, it’s hard to believe that we are made in God’s image. I’m sure I’m not the only one who struggles with body image. I carry around my age, weight, scars and bruises like a ball and chain that can’t be removed. Nonetheless, scripture tells me that our bodies tell God’s story. And even more so, that God wants to be united with me forever. West lays out the theology of our bodies in this very interesting book that he bases off of Pope John Paul II’s “The Theology of the Body”. Using Pope John Paul II”s teaching, he walks us though the mystery of sex and marriage.
If we add to the ball and chain of our body image, all of the difficulties and experiences some of us have had with sex and marriage, It can be a very difficult read. I was determined to complete the book and I am glad I did. While I did appreciate many of his connections and analogies, I was hoping he would elaborate more on the many struggles so many of us face from our past and present situations. Especially as he gets into the last chapter about birth control. I was kind of disappointed that his book concluded on such a technical note, when what I really needed was a climatical ending that would have me running towards the wedding feast of the lamb at the end of scripture.
Having been through fertility treatment, I was also concerned with what he would have to say about that, since his stance on birth control was so strong. I found myself feeling guilty for taking matters into my own hands in the opposite way that birth control takes over the natural process. I understood his teaching and it was directed well towards scripture, but I felt like I was missing out on many of the experiences that the theology of my body promised me. If that even makes any sense. With every theological point, I was left pondering the fact that I have not experienced this earthly promise that is supposed to be a sign of the promises to come.
The hope that was given to me, though, was a beautiful picture that God is a lover and he wants to marry us, all of us. I’m sure for a person who is unfamiliar with scripture, this sounds so foreign and crazy, but for the person who is familiar with scripture, it was an easier leap of connections. West explains the spousal imagery of God’s covenant story of marital love. He describes how scripture is bookended with a wedding in Eden to the wedding in the New Jerusalem. And how in-between is an erotic pursuit of us as his bride, from the prophets to the poetic writing in the Song of Songs.
West challenges us to direct our hunger and thirst towards God’s eternal banquet of love. Like the wedding in Cana where Jesus performed his first miracle of turning the water into the best wine. West says, “There is a banquet of love that corresponds to the hungry cry of our hearts.” Which ultimately, is the gospel message, where our bridegroom give us his body, “ This is my body given for you”. God invites each of us to become one flesh with him through marriage to his Son, Jesus Christ. West even goes as far to say that “the gospel invites us to a holy intoxication on God’s wine.” And the imagery is there to back up his claims.
West goes further to say that the entire meaning and purpose of our sexuality is to point us to the marriage of the Lamb in Revelation. He says that our bodies make visible the invisible reality of the mystery of God. The physical reality of our bodies convey spiritual mysteries. In a world where so many want to separate the body from the spirit, scripture tells us the opposite, that we are incarnate spirits that are a marriage of body and soul. In fact, this is the Enemy’s goal, to separate our bodies forever from our souls. He uses many tactics to accomplish this, but his main aim is to attack our sexuality. He wants it to be a hot mess in any situation, no matter the circumstances.
I’m sure we can all agree that we have had hot mess situations of our sexuality. None of us are exempt. I appreciated the wise words of West when he says, “ Lust tramples on the ruins of the spousal meaning of the body.” “It seeks the sensation of sexuality” vs “the gift of self and communion of persons.” “When we fail to appreciate the profound unity of body and soul, we no longer see the human body in light of our creation in the image and likeness of God. Rather we reduce it to a thing to be used, exploited, manipulated and even discarded at will.” “Lust is the reduction of the original fullness God intended for erotic desire-it is intended to be a “foretaste of communion with God.”
Until the Day arrives, I will look forward to the promise where “all that is masculine in our humanity will be in union with all that is feminine in our humanity.” We will be one body. We will be one Bride collectively together forever in eternity with our Bridegroom. While our bodies now remain a temporary symbol of our eternal reality. I will do my best to sexually orientate myself toward the promise of the eternal wedding feast. The glory that awaits us is the redemption of our bodies as we are raised in glory, reunited with our souls and received at the eternal wedding feast. Until then, “we live in the tension between our origin and our destiny.” Meanwhile, “ Christ calls us in the midst of the tension” and “his goal is to take us to a new dimension.” This is our hope. “ And the Spirit and the Bride say, Come Lord Jesus.”
If we add to the ball and chain of our body image, all of the difficulties and experiences some of us have had with sex and marriage, It can be a very difficult read. I was determined to complete the book and I am glad I did. While I did appreciate many of his connections and analogies, I was hoping he would elaborate more on the many struggles so many of us face from our past and present situations. Especially as he gets into the last chapter about birth control. I was kind of disappointed that his book concluded on such a technical note, when what I really needed was a climatical ending that would have me running towards the wedding feast of the lamb at the end of scripture.
Having been through fertility treatment, I was also concerned with what he would have to say about that, since his stance on birth control was so strong. I found myself feeling guilty for taking matters into my own hands in the opposite way that birth control takes over the natural process. I understood his teaching and it was directed well towards scripture, but I felt like I was missing out on many of the experiences that the theology of my body promised me. If that even makes any sense. With every theological point, I was left pondering the fact that I have not experienced this earthly promise that is supposed to be a sign of the promises to come.
The hope that was given to me, though, was a beautiful picture that God is a lover and he wants to marry us, all of us. I’m sure for a person who is unfamiliar with scripture, this sounds so foreign and crazy, but for the person who is familiar with scripture, it was an easier leap of connections. West explains the spousal imagery of God’s covenant story of marital love. He describes how scripture is bookended with a wedding in Eden to the wedding in the New Jerusalem. And how in-between is an erotic pursuit of us as his bride, from the prophets to the poetic writing in the Song of Songs.
West challenges us to direct our hunger and thirst towards God’s eternal banquet of love. Like the wedding in Cana where Jesus performed his first miracle of turning the water into the best wine. West says, “There is a banquet of love that corresponds to the hungry cry of our hearts.” Which ultimately, is the gospel message, where our bridegroom give us his body, “ This is my body given for you”. God invites each of us to become one flesh with him through marriage to his Son, Jesus Christ. West even goes as far to say that “the gospel invites us to a holy intoxication on God’s wine.” And the imagery is there to back up his claims.
West goes further to say that the entire meaning and purpose of our sexuality is to point us to the marriage of the Lamb in Revelation. He says that our bodies make visible the invisible reality of the mystery of God. The physical reality of our bodies convey spiritual mysteries. In a world where so many want to separate the body from the spirit, scripture tells us the opposite, that we are incarnate spirits that are a marriage of body and soul. In fact, this is the Enemy’s goal, to separate our bodies forever from our souls. He uses many tactics to accomplish this, but his main aim is to attack our sexuality. He wants it to be a hot mess in any situation, no matter the circumstances.
I’m sure we can all agree that we have had hot mess situations of our sexuality. None of us are exempt. I appreciated the wise words of West when he says, “ Lust tramples on the ruins of the spousal meaning of the body.” “It seeks the sensation of sexuality” vs “the gift of self and communion of persons.” “When we fail to appreciate the profound unity of body and soul, we no longer see the human body in light of our creation in the image and likeness of God. Rather we reduce it to a thing to be used, exploited, manipulated and even discarded at will.” “Lust is the reduction of the original fullness God intended for erotic desire-it is intended to be a “foretaste of communion with God.”
Until the Day arrives, I will look forward to the promise where “all that is masculine in our humanity will be in union with all that is feminine in our humanity.” We will be one body. We will be one Bride collectively together forever in eternity with our Bridegroom. While our bodies now remain a temporary symbol of our eternal reality. I will do my best to sexually orientate myself toward the promise of the eternal wedding feast. The glory that awaits us is the redemption of our bodies as we are raised in glory, reunited with our souls and received at the eternal wedding feast. Until then, “we live in the tension between our origin and our destiny.” Meanwhile, “ Christ calls us in the midst of the tension” and “his goal is to take us to a new dimension.” This is our hope. “ And the Spirit and the Bride say, Come Lord Jesus.”
July 28, 2020
Wonderful words about the beauty of sacramental marriage and sex, but there was little mention of how God's story is told through the faithful lives of singles.
August 9, 2022
Love, love this book
August 17, 2023
Some good nuggets and take aways, but lots of theological differences.
June 7, 2025
The correction and exhortation West offers the Church is one she’s needed for decades, maybe even centuries. An excellent example of what it means for theology to lead to doxology
March 1, 2022
3.5 stars, rounded up.
If I had read this before Jay Stringer's Unwanted I might have given it a full four stars... Definitely worth reading, a good beginner book to prep one for Pope JP II's Theology of the Body.
West covered very well how marriage images Christ and the Church, and I thought he dealt pretty well with Eph 5 and love and submission between spouses.
I want to highlight a part near the end of the book: West spends a section of the final chapter contemplating how the culture and the church condoning contraceptives has been harmful to human flourishing and connection. He makes the case for contraception being at the root of the fragmentation of African American families as well as the culture at large. I listened to the audiobook, so I'm not sure if he cites any sources for this, but it is a known fact* that Margaret Sanger wanted to practise eugenics to "weed" out "unfit" races where Planned Parenthood clinics were located (many in lower income ethnic communities).
Christians in particular would do well to consider their use of contraceptives and their root reason for divorcing bearing children from having sex. Before you imagine having a dozen children and nowhere to put them, West makes the case that God gave us reason and science to know when to practice the self-control of abstinence within marriage (during a woman's fertile window in her cycle) if we aren't ready to welcome another child into our families.
That might all sound like conservative Catholic rhetoric, but West does a good job of explaining the implications of removing the generation of new life [pro-creation] from the experience of sex.
My one caveat is that I was very disappointed that West didn't address singleness and how our bodies tell God's story as single persons.
In spite of not being as "wowed" by this book as I thought I might be, I still want to read West's Fill These Hearts.
*https://www.baltimoresun.com/maryland...
If I had read this before Jay Stringer's Unwanted I might have given it a full four stars... Definitely worth reading, a good beginner book to prep one for Pope JP II's Theology of the Body.
West covered very well how marriage images Christ and the Church, and I thought he dealt pretty well with Eph 5 and love and submission between spouses.
I want to highlight a part near the end of the book: West spends a section of the final chapter contemplating how the culture and the church condoning contraceptives has been harmful to human flourishing and connection. He makes the case for contraception being at the root of the fragmentation of African American families as well as the culture at large. I listened to the audiobook, so I'm not sure if he cites any sources for this, but it is a known fact* that Margaret Sanger wanted to practise eugenics to "weed" out "unfit" races where Planned Parenthood clinics were located (many in lower income ethnic communities).
Christians in particular would do well to consider their use of contraceptives and their root reason for divorcing bearing children from having sex. Before you imagine having a dozen children and nowhere to put them, West makes the case that God gave us reason and science to know when to practice the self-control of abstinence within marriage (during a woman's fertile window in her cycle) if we aren't ready to welcome another child into our families.
That might all sound like conservative Catholic rhetoric, but West does a good job of explaining the implications of removing the generation of new life [pro-creation] from the experience of sex.
My one caveat is that I was very disappointed that West didn't address singleness and how our bodies tell God's story as single persons.
In spite of not being as "wowed" by this book as I thought I might be, I still want to read West's Fill These Hearts.
*https://www.baltimoresun.com/maryland...
March 17, 2024
A summarized version of Pope John Paul II’s teachings on the “Theology of the Body” (TOB), this book gives a very detailed account of how God’s plan for marriage helps us understand His love for, and communion with, us.
While I learned a lot, it was a slower read for me because of the depth within each chapter. Also, I know the author made it clear that the book was intended to summarize a Catholic pope’s works at the beginning, but it would have been helpful to have clearer callouts for the theological doctrines that were purely Catholic vs. doctrines of traditional Christianity.
Overall, it was an interesting read.
While I learned a lot, it was a slower read for me because of the depth within each chapter. Also, I know the author made it clear that the book was intended to summarize a Catholic pope’s works at the beginning, but it would have been helpful to have clearer callouts for the theological doctrines that were purely Catholic vs. doctrines of traditional Christianity.
Overall, it was an interesting read.
November 2, 2024
This is a phenomenal book. I have always applauded the Catholics outlook on families, children and birth control. The Christian church could take a few notes from them. So incredibly important, but also, I believe, controversial and hard to hear in many Protestant communities. I was challenged, encouraged, and CONVICTED on the many topics West covered in this book.
West delivered the message with a ton of scripture as well as quotes from Catholic scholars and Christian pastors and theologians alike. There was some points I did not agree with, but I felt he was graceful in presenting his thoughts regardless.
I am thankful for this book, truly. Will be a reread for me!
West delivered the message with a ton of scripture as well as quotes from Catholic scholars and Christian pastors and theologians alike. There was some points I did not agree with, but I felt he was graceful in presenting his thoughts regardless.
I am thankful for this book, truly. Will be a reread for me!
May 22, 2025
Catholics have a far more robust theology of the body, so this is an invaluable resource for the lay person (or Protestant 😜). He graciously unpacks the weighty phrase from Paul: “this is a profound mystery” speaking of Christ and the church. West gets into the nitty gritty of desire and the meaning of gender and sex and the implications of birth control all within the context of the EMBODIED purpose of it all.
Ultimately, God wants to marry us. We are his bride and this is an unbelievable truth. This book casts a vision for that mind blowing reality. HIGHLY RECOMMEND (even if you don’t agree with it all).
Ultimately, God wants to marry us. We are his bride and this is an unbelievable truth. This book casts a vision for that mind blowing reality. HIGHLY RECOMMEND (even if you don’t agree with it all).
April 7, 2023
A book on the theology of the body from a Roman Catholic perspective. He claims that he is coming across the aisle and giving a Protestant view of sexuality but in reality he just doesn’t do it sufficiently. This book could’ve been condensed by 30 pages as well. The real shining spot of the book has to be the ending when discussing IVF and the sterilization of sex. Really intriguing stuff and he actually convinced me when comparing euthanasia to sterile sex.
April 5, 2022
A thorough read on the theology of the body, God’s design for mankind, & God’s enduring love. West does a beautiful job of explaining how mankind has fallen from God’s original designs & how believers can return to His holy purposes. Whether married or not, a great read to understand the relationship between Adam & Eve, marriage today, & the ultimate Marriage in Revelation.
October 13, 2022
Incredible book! I absolutely love learning more about the theology of the body. Even though I'm not Catholic, I resonated with most of this book and it gave me a better understanding of the importance of our physical bodies even in spirituality. I grew up with the idea that our bodies were just temporary containers for our souls, but that is certainly not the case. I though this was well done and fascinating.
April 5, 2025
Some strange takes here and there, but also a lot of really good stuff that I do not see written much elsewhere. There is a need for more works on this topic, especially from evangelical Protestants. Glad I read. May reread in the future.
March 20, 2020
As a devout Catholic and TOB enthusiast, I read this book before passing it off to any of my non-Catholic Christian friends. I felt like I was waiting for the final chapter the entire time (but probably because the practicality is what I’m currently living in my life after fully understanding the teaching behind it). I loved all the references and annotations of non-Catholics to support all the key points. I’m excited to get it in the hands of some of my friends and eager to hear their thoughts!!!! Thanks again Christopher West!
July 27, 2024
If you have never heard of Theology of the Body, or are just getting started in your journey, this is a great book to begin with. However, if you’re already well versed in it, this book can seem a bit basic. NEVER a bad thing to go back to the basics and fundamentals though!
May 21, 2025
Wow. Not at all what expected. Mind blown. This is a book I will return to for deeper study. If you are curious about the “Theology of the Body” but want a soft entrance and protestant/non- Catholic view, read this. If you aren’t interested in TOB, read it anyways. My initial thought was this should be included in every Christian marriage counseling, at least as a discussion. But, it’s actually more encompassing. Glad I found this!
April 2, 2025
The more I think about this book, the more I appreciate the ideas that West challenges in many of the chapters. I do not fully align with his conclusions, but it really challenged my thinking about why God made our bodies the way He did and why He created marriage union the way He did. In our culture I think the enemy has done some of his finest work in lying to us and teasing us into believing that lust and destruction are so much more alluring than the love and life God intended for us to experience.
August 7, 2022
After watching an interview where the guest was Christopher West - I was intrigued by his way of approaching the topic of the body and decided to read this book. When it was chosen as the read for a virtual book club, I was even more motivated to dive into it.
Relying on the writings and sermons of Pope John Paul II (Theology of the Body-TOB) - Christopher West presents a holistic and in a way mind-blowing approach to what the role of our bodies is and how the good news of the Gospel is interwoven in it. He is challenging the usual dualism that we all have internalized - that the soul is good and the body is bad, and that that should be our motivation to change any behavior that is seen as problematic and that involves our bodies.
What if our bodies are so much more than just the dusty flesh? What is God's purpose in creating us the way he has, with the desires we have? And why on Earth did he choose to be incarnated in the same type of body? How can the change of our perspective impact and influence the ways we treat our bodies and influence our choices of activities which involve our bodies?
This book offers a fresh perspective on the theology of our body and even though I wouldn't agree with everything that was said in it (especially the contraception part as well as stretching some Bible verses too far) - I still think it is a great read that I would highly recommend!
Relying on the writings and sermons of Pope John Paul II (Theology of the Body-TOB) - Christopher West presents a holistic and in a way mind-blowing approach to what the role of our bodies is and how the good news of the Gospel is interwoven in it. He is challenging the usual dualism that we all have internalized - that the soul is good and the body is bad, and that that should be our motivation to change any behavior that is seen as problematic and that involves our bodies.
What if our bodies are so much more than just the dusty flesh? What is God's purpose in creating us the way he has, with the desires we have? And why on Earth did he choose to be incarnated in the same type of body? How can the change of our perspective impact and influence the ways we treat our bodies and influence our choices of activities which involve our bodies?
This book offers a fresh perspective on the theology of our body and even though I wouldn't agree with everything that was said in it (especially the contraception part as well as stretching some Bible verses too far) - I still think it is a great read that I would highly recommend!
November 20, 2022
Certainly a thought-provoking book, and I appreciate all the biblical verses and stories to back up the arguments. I've read other books with similar arguments, but I did appreciate the further detail in this regard.
Like some other reviewers, I would have been interested in more details related to those who are single. I get that sex is meant to only be for married couples, so sex as it relates to singles may be considered a moot point by Mr. West. He does touch on this subject some, but it still left me feeling lacking.
Additionally, though I can understand some of the views against contraceptives, I also believe there are valid reasons for using them. At one point Mr. West argued that to separate sex from babies (i.e. reproduction) is to separate sex from marriage, and "sexual intercourse is the rightful domain to those who have committed themselves to raising children."
I have never had the desire to have children, and I don't believe it's God's will for my life. So it seems that Mr. West is arguing that, even if I'm married, I'm not to have sex because I'm not willing to have children, even though sex consummates the marriage...?
All in all, I can understand some of his arguments against contraceptives, such as it making people reckless in sex, but I don't agree with a number of his points on this matter.
Like some other reviewers, I would have been interested in more details related to those who are single. I get that sex is meant to only be for married couples, so sex as it relates to singles may be considered a moot point by Mr. West. He does touch on this subject some, but it still left me feeling lacking.
Additionally, though I can understand some of the views against contraceptives, I also believe there are valid reasons for using them. At one point Mr. West argued that to separate sex from babies (i.e. reproduction) is to separate sex from marriage, and "sexual intercourse is the rightful domain to those who have committed themselves to raising children."
I have never had the desire to have children, and I don't believe it's God's will for my life. So it seems that Mr. West is arguing that, even if I'm married, I'm not to have sex because I'm not willing to have children, even though sex consummates the marriage...?
All in all, I can understand some of his arguments against contraceptives, such as it making people reckless in sex, but I don't agree with a number of his points on this matter.
March 10, 2021
A introduction to the Theology of the Body for a Protestant Evangelical audience. The Theology of the Body is a set of Roman Catholic teachings presented by Pope John Paul II in the early 1980s as a response to the sexual revolution. In this book Christopher West works to make John Paul II's sometimes dense arguments accessible to a wider audience. West provides a cohesive overview of Theology of the Body and general Catholic sexual ethic arguments, many of which come about in scattered and unified forms in the general public. He also presents the topic in a positive matter, instead of focusing on 'thou shalt not' elements stressing instead the Christian framework of marriage in its fullness.
Although I gave the book five stars, it is a overview text and does more to present a Christian framework and less than debate with specifics. While on one hand this was disappointing, it allowed the text to remain under 200 pages and provides opportunities for these topics to be addressed in other works.
Although I gave the book five stars, it is a overview text and does more to present a Christian framework and less than debate with specifics. While on one hand this was disappointing, it allowed the text to remain under 200 pages and provides opportunities for these topics to be addressed in other works.
March 17, 2024
I really did not like this book. I feel like the author said nearly the same thing in every chapter just threw in some extra content to make it match the chapter heading. I also felt like the ideas in the chapters were disjointed. We’d be sailing along going through one idea, then the wind would change and we’d be off on a different course. In some chapters the we came back to the original idea and sometimes we’d veer even further off course. Most chapters left me wondering what the main idea of the chapter was. The last thing I have to say is that I didn’t totally agree with all of his ideas. The idea of the book and some of the information it contained weren’t bad, for me it was the writing that warned it a one star. If this hadn’t been for an assignment I would’ve DNFed it.
March 18, 2024
He does much to reclaim the beauty of sex in God’s creation but I feel like he goes far beyond plain teaching of scripture to make a stronger link between marital sexual relations and our union with God.
1:
if we are made in the image of God as male and female (see Gen. 1: 27), and if joining in “one flesh” is a “profound mystery” that refers to Christ and the church (see Eph. 5: 31–32), then our understanding of the body, gender, and sexuality has a direct impact on our understanding of God, Christ, and the church.
The legalist asks, “How far can I go before I break the law?” Instead, John Paul II asks, “What is the truth about sex that sets me free to love?” To answer that question, we must ask why God made us male and female in the first place. These are questions that plunge us into the deepest truth of what it means to be human. Indeed, the fundamental fact of human existence is that God created us male and female.
Summary: we are made in the image of God and need to discover the beauty and wonder of sex and unity as the picture of our unity with God. This will change our view of sex entirely.
2:
God gave us eros “in the beginning” to be the very power to express agape. In other words, he gave us sexual desire to be the power to love as he loves—in a free, sincere, and total gift of self. This is how the original married couple experienced it.
A man’s body makes no sense by itself. Nor does a woman’s body. But seen in light of each other, sexual difference reveals the unmistakable plan of God that man and woman are meant to be a “gift” to one another in spousal love.
summary: man and woman complete each other in spousal love.
3:biblically sound theology of the body saves us from the strong temptation of normalizing our brokenness, as if God made us that way. It’s okay that we’re broken. Everyone is. God loves us right there and comes to meet us right there. But it’s not okay to call our brokenness “health.”
Yet there is another way! Rather than repressing lust by pushing it into the subconscious, trying to ignore it, or otherwise seeking to annihilate it, we must surrender our lusts to Christ and allow him to crucify them. As we do, the Spirit of the Lord gives new form to our desires. As we allow lust to be crucified, we also come to experience the resurrection of God’s original plan for eros. Gradually, progressively, as we take up our cross every day and follow, we pass through various (and sometimes painful) purifications—and through it all, we come to experience sexual desire as the power to love in God’s image.
summary: God wants to redeem our fallen perversion of lust to regain the beauty and power of Eros. We are not doomed to live a passionless life, but must grow in self-control against that which leads us to objectify God’s image bearers.
4: There will be no marriage in heaven not because it will be deleted but because it will be eternally completed in the marriage of the Lamb. This should not cause sadness but rejoicing. Every human longing, every desire of the heart for love and union will be fulfilled beyond our wildest dreams. That deep ache of solitude will finally be completely and eternally satisfied.
Of course, the normal way to prepare for the heavenly marriage is through earthly marriage. But some are given a special grace to “skip” earthly marriage and go straight for the heavenly reality. - Good description of celibacy
In the absence of redemption, Paul’s words can only be viewed as an admonition for wives to resign themselves to male lust and tyranny. But redemption has been accomplished! The knowledge that Christ died and rose again to empower us to live according to God’s original plan of love deeply imbues the apostle’s entire teaching on marriage. In fact, he presents redemption itself through the analogy of spousal love and sexual union.
Summary: sex as we know it won’t exist in heaven, but what it points to (our union with God) will be completed
5: In the absence of redemption, Paul’s words can only be viewed as an admonition for wives to resign themselves to male lust and tyranny. But redemption has been accomplished! The knowledge that Christ died and rose again to empower us to live according to God’s original plan of love deeply imbues the apostle’s entire teaching on marriage. In fact, he presents redemption itself through the analogy of spousal love and sexual union.
The apostle’s linking of the one-flesh union with the union of Christ and the church “is the most important point of the whole text,
summary: In Ephesians, Paul describes a new kind of unity with the husband and wife that is a true signpost to our communion with God.
6: God’s eternal plan is to marry us—to live with us in an eternal union of love that the Bible compares to the union of spouses in one flesh. The Song of Songs takes us to the very heart of biblical faith. And that heart is this: we can enter into nuptial union with God, our deepest aspiration. The erotic love poetry of the Song of Songs gives us entrance to the wedding feast that never ends.
If the sexual revolution of the twentieth century turned sex into an idol to be worshiped, the Christian revolution, as I say in my book Heaven’s Song, “transforms sex from something that is worshiped to something that is worship.”
Summary: this is the chapter where I felt like I lost traction with his arguments and he drifted beyond what I see in scripture.
7:
until 1930, all Christian denominations were unanimous in their firm opposition to any attempt to sterilize sexual intercourse
genitals are meant to generate, and a culture that fails to respect this truth will de-generate.
Summary: contraception separates babies from sex and makes something God designed to be fruitful inherently unfruitful through man’s intervention and control. The author claims this robs sex of its intrinsic worth and purpose.
1:
if we are made in the image of God as male and female (see Gen. 1: 27), and if joining in “one flesh” is a “profound mystery” that refers to Christ and the church (see Eph. 5: 31–32), then our understanding of the body, gender, and sexuality has a direct impact on our understanding of God, Christ, and the church.
The legalist asks, “How far can I go before I break the law?” Instead, John Paul II asks, “What is the truth about sex that sets me free to love?” To answer that question, we must ask why God made us male and female in the first place. These are questions that plunge us into the deepest truth of what it means to be human. Indeed, the fundamental fact of human existence is that God created us male and female.
Summary: we are made in the image of God and need to discover the beauty and wonder of sex and unity as the picture of our unity with God. This will change our view of sex entirely.
2:
God gave us eros “in the beginning” to be the very power to express agape. In other words, he gave us sexual desire to be the power to love as he loves—in a free, sincere, and total gift of self. This is how the original married couple experienced it.
A man’s body makes no sense by itself. Nor does a woman’s body. But seen in light of each other, sexual difference reveals the unmistakable plan of God that man and woman are meant to be a “gift” to one another in spousal love.
summary: man and woman complete each other in spousal love.
3:biblically sound theology of the body saves us from the strong temptation of normalizing our brokenness, as if God made us that way. It’s okay that we’re broken. Everyone is. God loves us right there and comes to meet us right there. But it’s not okay to call our brokenness “health.”
Yet there is another way! Rather than repressing lust by pushing it into the subconscious, trying to ignore it, or otherwise seeking to annihilate it, we must surrender our lusts to Christ and allow him to crucify them. As we do, the Spirit of the Lord gives new form to our desires. As we allow lust to be crucified, we also come to experience the resurrection of God’s original plan for eros. Gradually, progressively, as we take up our cross every day and follow, we pass through various (and sometimes painful) purifications—and through it all, we come to experience sexual desire as the power to love in God’s image.
summary: God wants to redeem our fallen perversion of lust to regain the beauty and power of Eros. We are not doomed to live a passionless life, but must grow in self-control against that which leads us to objectify God’s image bearers.
4: There will be no marriage in heaven not because it will be deleted but because it will be eternally completed in the marriage of the Lamb. This should not cause sadness but rejoicing. Every human longing, every desire of the heart for love and union will be fulfilled beyond our wildest dreams. That deep ache of solitude will finally be completely and eternally satisfied.
Of course, the normal way to prepare for the heavenly marriage is through earthly marriage. But some are given a special grace to “skip” earthly marriage and go straight for the heavenly reality. - Good description of celibacy
In the absence of redemption, Paul’s words can only be viewed as an admonition for wives to resign themselves to male lust and tyranny. But redemption has been accomplished! The knowledge that Christ died and rose again to empower us to live according to God’s original plan of love deeply imbues the apostle’s entire teaching on marriage. In fact, he presents redemption itself through the analogy of spousal love and sexual union.
Summary: sex as we know it won’t exist in heaven, but what it points to (our union with God) will be completed
5: In the absence of redemption, Paul’s words can only be viewed as an admonition for wives to resign themselves to male lust and tyranny. But redemption has been accomplished! The knowledge that Christ died and rose again to empower us to live according to God’s original plan of love deeply imbues the apostle’s entire teaching on marriage. In fact, he presents redemption itself through the analogy of spousal love and sexual union.
The apostle’s linking of the one-flesh union with the union of Christ and the church “is the most important point of the whole text,
summary: In Ephesians, Paul describes a new kind of unity with the husband and wife that is a true signpost to our communion with God.
6: God’s eternal plan is to marry us—to live with us in an eternal union of love that the Bible compares to the union of spouses in one flesh. The Song of Songs takes us to the very heart of biblical faith. And that heart is this: we can enter into nuptial union with God, our deepest aspiration. The erotic love poetry of the Song of Songs gives us entrance to the wedding feast that never ends.
If the sexual revolution of the twentieth century turned sex into an idol to be worshiped, the Christian revolution, as I say in my book Heaven’s Song, “transforms sex from something that is worshiped to something that is worship.”
Summary: this is the chapter where I felt like I lost traction with his arguments and he drifted beyond what I see in scripture.
7:
until 1930, all Christian denominations were unanimous in their firm opposition to any attempt to sterilize sexual intercourse
genitals are meant to generate, and a culture that fails to respect this truth will de-generate.
Summary: contraception separates babies from sex and makes something God designed to be fruitful inherently unfruitful through man’s intervention and control. The author claims this robs sex of its intrinsic worth and purpose.
March 16, 2024
I appreciate the emphasis West put on the relationship between Christ and the church and the way our bodies show this deeper reality. It was a bit hard to read though, perhaps because there were so many integrated quotes from John Paul II’s Theology of the Body. Nonetheless, it was a meaningful read.
December 15, 2024
Our bodies tell God’s story book notes
* The body is not only biological
* When we get our body wrong we get God’s story wrong
* The church teaches starvation - so people turn to fast food - immediate gratification
* Spousal imagery in scripture shows Gods love
* If we are made in the image of God, and if we are joined in one flesh, than our view of our body is our view of our faith
* Our body is theological
* We get the divine story wrong when we get sexuality wrong
* Jesus’ highest call is to love as He loves John 15:12
* Our need for love is built into our body
* Our body tell us the story of our purpose - but we must read the story right
* John 4:2-3 Jesus came in the flesh - we cannot de flesh Jesus
* God never meant man to be purely spiritual - God uses matter to teach and reach us - God likes matter Ge invented it
* We are a marriage of body and soul
* The body is not bad, the body becomes the dwelling place of the Spirit
* Everything God created is VERY GOOD
* the devil is a creature - not a creator
* Evil can only take VERY GOOD creation, and distort it
* Redemption is the untwisting
* Never blame the body itself - evil’s goal is to split body and soul
* Christianity is one of the only religions that say the body is good - Jesus came in a body
* Suffering can break us or break us open to the mystery of Christ
* God is beyond vision but God appears to us - flesh makes the invisible visible
* Everything hinges in the incarnation of God
* Our bodies make visible what is invisible (what is inside)
* Eph ch 3:9 Mystery hidden in God (eternal plan of reality)
* God has made this mystery known in Jesus Christ
* God is an eternal exchange of love and bliss
* Ex 16:7-8 Oz 2:18-20 God uses boldly erotic images to express His love for us.
* Mary said yes to God, and gave birth to eternal life in her womb
* We use our human realities to define divine realities
* Paul uses spousal imagery to describe a divine reality in human terms
* Because of sin, the body looses character as part of the divine mystery
* What is most sacred in this world? What is most violently profane.
* Evil warps sex because it is sacred
* Our bodies are meant to proclaim the mystery of God- so evil stifles this
* Legalism: how far can I go?
* Liberty: what is the truth about sex that sets me free to love
* Our gender is based on how de regenerate - motherhood vs fatherhood
* Biologically we are made one way - if Satan can warp this human kind will stop reproducing
* The anomaly doesn’t alter the norm
* The creator made them male and female
* We have to go back to the beginning - that’s the normal - that’s the standard
* Christ came not to condemn - but to redeem
* Original solitude : we are not made to be alone
* We are free to do whatever we want with our bodies but we are NOT free to determine whether what we do with our bodies is good or evil.
* Flesh and bones - symbolize the whole being - men and woman share humanity
* God is eternal communion - not solitude
* Perfect love drives out fear
* How do we read nature for God s character?
* The wedding feast was Jesus’ first miracle
* Wine is a symbol of love
* We all have a sexual desire tainted by sin
* Love is not submitting to our desires, this isn’t love but using others
* Christs word are severe but also hold the power to save John 3:17
* Grace is not opposed to effort, only earning
* God created the union of the sexes as a sharing in divine life - we are created and called to be one flesh - Satan attacks this
* God gives a gift, but Satan told Adam and Eve they had to take their own gift
* We do not trust enough in Gods love so we grasp at the gift
* You can’t give what you don’t have
* Lust changes love into a desire to use for our own gratification
* Lust is a reduction of God’s erotic love - immediate gratification
* People obeyed the ethic, do not commit adultery, but God calls us to internal change, and our ethos is flawed
* Christ holds out a standard. He knows we cannot meet it seems hopeless but God gives this as a gift
* The gospel doesn’t give us more rules to follow, but rather works to change our hearts, so we no longer need the rules romans, chapter 7
* Marriage points to genesis
* Singleness points to revelation
* we can never exhaust the infinity of God
* Are we missing the mark? Is the solution to be to adjust the target or to adjust our aim?
* Our job is to not live as God loves for we cannot do it - but to open ourselves to God’s love
* Anytime we forget God’s reason for a gift we will misuse the gift
* The body is not only biological
* When we get our body wrong we get God’s story wrong
* The church teaches starvation - so people turn to fast food - immediate gratification
* Spousal imagery in scripture shows Gods love
* If we are made in the image of God, and if we are joined in one flesh, than our view of our body is our view of our faith
* Our body is theological
* We get the divine story wrong when we get sexuality wrong
* Jesus’ highest call is to love as He loves John 15:12
* Our need for love is built into our body
* Our body tell us the story of our purpose - but we must read the story right
* John 4:2-3 Jesus came in the flesh - we cannot de flesh Jesus
* God never meant man to be purely spiritual - God uses matter to teach and reach us - God likes matter Ge invented it
* We are a marriage of body and soul
* The body is not bad, the body becomes the dwelling place of the Spirit
* Everything God created is VERY GOOD
* the devil is a creature - not a creator
* Evil can only take VERY GOOD creation, and distort it
* Redemption is the untwisting
* Never blame the body itself - evil’s goal is to split body and soul
* Christianity is one of the only religions that say the body is good - Jesus came in a body
* Suffering can break us or break us open to the mystery of Christ
* God is beyond vision but God appears to us - flesh makes the invisible visible
* Everything hinges in the incarnation of God
* Our bodies make visible what is invisible (what is inside)
* Eph ch 3:9 Mystery hidden in God (eternal plan of reality)
* God has made this mystery known in Jesus Christ
* God is an eternal exchange of love and bliss
* Ex 16:7-8 Oz 2:18-20 God uses boldly erotic images to express His love for us.
* Mary said yes to God, and gave birth to eternal life in her womb
* We use our human realities to define divine realities
* Paul uses spousal imagery to describe a divine reality in human terms
* Because of sin, the body looses character as part of the divine mystery
* What is most sacred in this world? What is most violently profane.
* Evil warps sex because it is sacred
* Our bodies are meant to proclaim the mystery of God- so evil stifles this
* Legalism: how far can I go?
* Liberty: what is the truth about sex that sets me free to love
* Our gender is based on how de regenerate - motherhood vs fatherhood
* Biologically we are made one way - if Satan can warp this human kind will stop reproducing
* The anomaly doesn’t alter the norm
* The creator made them male and female
* We have to go back to the beginning - that’s the normal - that’s the standard
* Christ came not to condemn - but to redeem
* Original solitude : we are not made to be alone
* We are free to do whatever we want with our bodies but we are NOT free to determine whether what we do with our bodies is good or evil.
* Flesh and bones - symbolize the whole being - men and woman share humanity
* God is eternal communion - not solitude
* Perfect love drives out fear
* How do we read nature for God s character?
* The wedding feast was Jesus’ first miracle
* Wine is a symbol of love
* We all have a sexual desire tainted by sin
* Love is not submitting to our desires, this isn’t love but using others
* Christs word are severe but also hold the power to save John 3:17
* Grace is not opposed to effort, only earning
* God created the union of the sexes as a sharing in divine life - we are created and called to be one flesh - Satan attacks this
* God gives a gift, but Satan told Adam and Eve they had to take their own gift
* We do not trust enough in Gods love so we grasp at the gift
* You can’t give what you don’t have
* Lust changes love into a desire to use for our own gratification
* Lust is a reduction of God’s erotic love - immediate gratification
* People obeyed the ethic, do not commit adultery, but God calls us to internal change, and our ethos is flawed
* Christ holds out a standard. He knows we cannot meet it seems hopeless but God gives this as a gift
* The gospel doesn’t give us more rules to follow, but rather works to change our hearts, so we no longer need the rules romans, chapter 7
* Marriage points to genesis
* Singleness points to revelation
* we can never exhaust the infinity of God
* Are we missing the mark? Is the solution to be to adjust the target or to adjust our aim?
* Our job is to not live as God loves for we cannot do it - but to open ourselves to God’s love
* Anytime we forget God’s reason for a gift we will misuse the gift
Displaying 1 - 30 of 101 reviews