One Sunday in August my family and I decided to go for a walk on Lakeshore Blvd. near the Exhibition grounds and BMO field.
As we were making our way towards Lake Ontario we noticed a gathering of fancy sports cars in front of a building. It appeared to be some kind of fundraiser. Car enthusiasts with classic American muscle cars like 67 Corvettes and Mustangs to modern marvels of engineering such 2020 McClaren P1s, Ferrari La Ferraris and Porche 918 Spiders lined Lakeshore Blvd.
They were all in immaculate condition. Not a scuff. You could be blinded by the sunshine reflecting off their surface. I remember telling my wife how afraid I would be to drive one of those cars. I’d be terrified of getting a small scratch on them or someone hitting it in a parking lot. There was no doubt about it; the owners of these cars treated them like their own children…. Maybe even better.
Body and Soul Unity
Similar to a state of the art supercar our God-given bodies have a value that is greater than any material thing in this world. The dignity of our bodies are not defined by dollar signs, but by their source and designer, God.
Not only did God design us, His Holy Spirit also dwells in us. In today’s reading St. Paul writes, “Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?…For God’s temple is holy, and that temple you are.”
Our bodies are not merely outer casings for our souls. God created both our bodies and souls; therefore, there is an inseparable connection between the two. We are not merely our bodies, nor are we merely our souls, in the same way a car shell alone is not a car, nor is an engine alone a car. A car is a sum of all its parts.
This unity of our body and soul is the dwelling place of God’s Holy Spirit. For this reason, you and I have an inherent dignity that is greater than anything else in this world. Do not look down on yourself. Treat yourself with the same dignity and respect you would treat a loved one. God demands it.
Let us pray,
In the name of the Father…
I invite you to make this prayer your own.
Father God. Thank you for creating me. You envisioned every intricate detail about me before bringing me into existence. I’m sorry for the times I looked down on myself. Help me to see myself as you see me. The perfect temple for your Spirit. I pray this in your holy name. Amen.
In the name of the Father…
