2.4 Response

STAGE 2: Awareness of Self

MY BODY

TRANSPIRING GRACEFULNESS

RESPONSE

Aim: To become aware of our unhealthy and sinful responses/actions, through our body, when we do not live in the Spirit.

Readings

The works of flesh (Gal 5:16.19-21): What the flesh desires is opposed to the Spirit […] Now the works of the flesh are obvious: fornication, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, anger, quarrels, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these. I am warning you, as I warned you before: those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

Bodies of sin (TD 79): “Our bodies are so corrupt that they are referred to by the Holy Spirit as bodies of sin, as conceived and nourished in sin, and capable of any kind of sin. They are subject to a thousand ills, deteriorating from day to day and harbouring only disease, vermin and corruption. Our soul, being united to our body, has become so carnal that it has been called flesh. ‘All flesh had corrupted its way’. Pride and blindness of spirit, hardness of heart, weakness and inconstancy of soul, evil inclinations, rebellious passions, and ailments of the body – these are all we can call our own. By nature we are prouder than peacocks, we cling to the earth more than toads, we are more base than goats, more envious than serpents, greedier than pigs, fiercer than tigers, lazier than tortoises, weaker than reeds, and more changeable than weather-cocks. We have in us nothing but sin, and deserve only the wrath of God and the eternity of hell”.

Comment

Paul and Montfort bluntly tell us that, often, our response to the graces bestowed on our body takes the negative form of “abuse” and makes it capable of any sin. But the truth is that responsible of sin is not so much the body but our mind and heart. Most of the times, our body is wiser than we think: through its symptoms, it warns us of the pushy and unhealthy decisions of the mind, especially in matters of performance, nutrition and appearance. But its voice is hardly heard.

Hence, in our examination of conscience, before naming the sins we commit “with” our body we should perhaps confess our sins “against” the body. The ultimate culprits of the sins of our flesh are our weak intentions harboured within and carried out by our will. True, then the body joins the plot, too; in fact it takes most of the blame, when in reality it is the victim.

So, following the advice of Jesus, if we want to get rid of the “works of the flesh”, we need to challenge the immaturity of our mind and heart. Addressing the scribes and Pharisees, champions in the intrigues of the mind, to the discredit of the body, Jesus says: “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you lay heavy burdens on the shoulders of others, but you yourselves are unwilling to lift a finger to move them” (Mt 23:4). And talking about the responsibility of the heart, he continues: “It is from within, from the human heart, that evil intentions come: fornication, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, folly. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person” (Mk 7:21-23).

Personal Reflection and Sharing

I imagine my body in a dialogue with my mind and heart. How are they relating with one another?

How do I account for the mistakes and sins I’ve committed with my body? In what ways do I need to blame my mind and heart?

[2-4] CALL RESPONSE COMMITMENT PRAYER