The idea that the human body is fundamentally good is an important tenet of the authentic Christian faith, and has a long history in scripture and theology. It begins with the very first book of the Bible, in Genesis 1:1-25, God creates the material universe, and repeatedly looks upon His creation and sees that it is good. But after God creates human beings, the text says: God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good. (Gen 1:31) So the creation of human beings, including their bodies, is viewed as very good.
This goodness is not based on any merit of humanity itself, but on the fact that we are created in the Imago Dei, that is, in the image and likeness of God (see Genesis 1:27). The Vatican II document Gaudiem et Spes, (The Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World)
explains this idea further:
Man, though made of body and soul, is a unity. Through his very bodily condition he sums up in himself the elements of the material world. Through him they are thus brought to their highest perfection and can raise their voice in praise freely given to the Creator. For this reason man may not despise his bodily life. Rather he is obliged to regard his body as good and to hold it in honor since God has created it and will raise it up on the last day.
For Christians, the clearest sign of the body's goodness is the Incarnation: the fact that the Second Person of the Trinity took on a human flesh and a fully human nature. Because Jesus' body was the means by which his death could bring salvation to the world, it's clear that the human body is to be held in highest esteem. Sacraments like baptism and the Lord's Supper also confirm that the elements of the material world like water and bread as well as our bodies themselves are not barriers to holiness but vehicles of grace.
Christianity throughout its long history has had to fight to preserve this belief in the fundamental goodness of the human body. The Gnostics, the Manicheans, the Albigensians and other heretical groups have denied the goodness of the human body and argued that it is inherent evil or sinful. Some heretic groups even maintained that there were two gods, one who created good and one who created evil, and therefore we were not responsible for our sinful actions. Church theologians combated these ideas vigorously as being contrary to authentic Christianity.
One biblical text which I find particularly inspiring is First Corinthians 3:16-17:
Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy that person. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.
These verses of Sacred Scripture of course have some other implications as well, but for now, copy them out on a piece of paper or an index card and tape them to the fridge. Make them the background to your smart phone or the banner on your Facebook page. Put them on the wall above the bathroom scale and in the corner of the mirror. Tuck them into your Bible or your prayer book, and live with them for awhile. When you get back to this blog, I'll have some further reflections on how we can begin to love our bodies in the way God intends.
Be assured of my continued prayers for your health and happiness.