Wonderfully Made

Painting by Mary Grace Thul, OP

One can find a lot of negative theology.  It focuses on what we shouldn’t be, shouldn’t do, shouldn’t have, as though we could sloth off this mortal flesh. I was reminded of it again when reading Jean-Nicolas Grou’s meditation this morning: It is evident that all our spiritual strength ought to be employed against ourselves, against our own inclinations…” He has quite a long list of all the things we should be against, and they all spell one thing…human.

I once accepted these negative concepts. The spiritual life was all about war against the flesh. I forgot, Jesus was flesh. And as if to remind us, he gave us this flesh to eat.  As if to correct our thinking and let us know it is not our enemy unless we make it so.

There is another spirituality, one that seeks to unite instead of divide. That spirituality works with, not against. That spirituality would have us remember psalm 139:15 which says: I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Wonderful are Your works, And my soul knows it very well.

That is not the cry of someone battling the human, but one praising God for it.