Theology of the Body Blog

[pakosloski]

Greetings in Christ,

recently I have become very zealous when it comes to promoting the Theology of the Body. Christopher West’s commentary has been very fruitful in my life and has brought me closer to Christ.
Anyway, I just want to share this love of the TOB with many more people.

I started a blog in which I am posting my own reflections on the TOB and how it impacts our view of the world.

Here is the address for all those interested
inflatedtires.blogspot.com/

The title of the blog, “Inflated Tires” comes from a great analogy Christopher West uses to explain the Theology of the Body.

 

[Seatuck]

Good Work .

We could use you around here too. Maybe you could pitch in when I am floundering miserably trying to explain to folks that what they do with their bodies has a meaning to it especially when they are engaged in the marital act.

I got the “inflated tires” thing right away.

 

[pakosloski]

thanks a lot!

I will try my best. I know it certainly isn’t the easiest thing to articulate correctly!

 

[Verbum_Caro]

Hi pakosloski, welcome to the forums!

I want to commend you on your desire to contribute to the Catholic “blogsphere”, especially tackling issues of sexual morality and the even deeper notions which a theology of the body would address.

I have a question for you, though. While I understand your (and presumably Christopher West’s) distinction between animalistic and angelistic world views, I question your application of it to historical liturgies and arts.

For instance you said this:

pakosloski:

During the Middle Ages in particular, but also up to the present, there was a tendency to put a lot of emphasis on the way churches looked. Now churches indeed are the “Domus Dei,” or the “House of God,” but what happened was that all the ornamentation, embellishments and “excesses” became ends in themselves. Church leaders were highly tempted to hoard all of the money of their parishioners in order to build grandiose churches not for the sake of God, but for their own sake and glory. They wanted to express their wealth and see all their achievements made material. In a sense, all the statues, and decorations became exactly what they weren’t supposed to be: idols. Lay people were also affected by this extreme emphasis on the external realities and were highly tempted to worship what was in front of them instead of what those things were meant to represent.

I am curious how you know, exactly, what was in the minds and hearts of the artists, patrons, and faithful?

Also, does Christopher West himself criticize medieval art and architecture as too *animalistic? *Or is this your own application of the idea?

Please don’t take the above as criticism for criticism sake. I genuinely look forward to your valuable contributions here and on your blog, and I think you are off to an excellent start. I just want to discuss the ideas you’ve put forth so far.

Thanks, and welcome to the forums again.

VC

 

[pakosloski]

Verbum Caro, thank you for your criticism. I will be honest and say that in my application of angelism and animalism to art and architecture; it is totally my own material. Christopher West, as far as I know, doesn’t directly apply those concepts to what I did. That said, I don’t pose myself as a superb interpreter or an expert in any way. My own thoughts may be very erroneous and so I don’t want to say that they are free from error.
I admit, I am in no way able to be inside the hearts and minds of those in the Middle Ages. I probably should have qualified what I typed and I will go back and revise what I said.

I believe while I was writing I was thinking of myself and my own tendencies/temptations. Also, I was taking the externals of the time going a little too far by imposing it as an internal thought. I probably shouldn’t have done that.

Anyway, my main point in criticizing certain art and architecture and labeling it to be too “animalistic” is not to say that it dosen’t have any worth or value; I am mainly saying that sometimes it can go “over the top.” I am trying to express that certain extremes when it comes to traditional art and architecture are not entirely good. I mean this in reference to becoming so obsessed with externals and forgetting about the internal/spiritual. I know this in my own life and so I assume that some people may have the same tendencies/temptations.

thank you for your criticism. I will revise my post and my future posts will hopefully not be so assuming.

 

[pakosloski]

I have revised and edited my post on the subject. I think it is a lot better than before. Thank you, Verbum Caro for helping me on this. I need to make less broad assumptions that I am in no place to make.

inflatedtires.blogspot.com/

 

[Verbum_Caro]

pakosloski,

I think it reads a bit better now, those were good edits, and it seems a bit more even handed.

From my point of view, the last thing I think when I enter a magnificent medieval cathedral is that these folks were animalistic, or too carnal or too sensual. Rather, it seems to me, that the sublimity of the art and architecture elevate the mind *to *spiritual realities.

Thank you for taking my constructive comments in the spirit they were intended. I look forward to more of your posts here (and on your blog).

God bless you!
VC

 

[pakosloski]

I definetly agree. Traveling around in Rome and Europe, one begins to realize that these chuches indeed are wonders to behold and truly “Gates of Heaven” that lead us to something beyond ourselves.