Personal temple

The Gospels clearly say that Jesus rose in a human, bodily form. (And that’s important.) The Resurrection wouldn’t have been the Resurrection if Jesus had, say, appeared like Obi-Wan Kenobi at the end of “Return of the Jedi.” Jesus isn’t some disembodied spirit who flickers and glows with a knowing smile and nothing in the way of practical advice. Instead, he walks again among us. In person. In the flesh. There are lessons for us in that choice.

WE’RE THE WHOLE PACKAGE: First of all, it tells us that the human body is sacred. Put more simply, it tells us that the human body is good. That, in turn, tells us that there must be something awfully special about us. After all, if a human body was good enough for the risen Lord to reoccupy instead of coming back as some bigger-than-life figure in the clouds, then our bodies — and everything that comes with them — should certainly be good enough for us.

GOD THINKS YOU’RE A “10”: More than that, it should teach us that we should love what we’ve been given. Funny thing about bodies — we only get one. It’s important to take care of it. Eat right. Exercise. All that. Yes. But it really boils down to loving ourselves for what we are: tall or short, big or small, straight or curly hair. Our bodies are, indeed, temples, regardless of their current condition.

DRESS IT UP AND TAKE IT OUT: The other lesson Jesus’ resurrection teaches us is that there is great value and importance to presenting ourselves to one another physically. We live in an increasingly detached world. Think of the impact if Mary Magdelene had known of Jesus’ resurrection only because his Facebook status had changed. Doesn’t have quite the same oomph. Jesus returned to his friends and his followers. He didn’t just send word. He didn’t appear in a dream. He presented himself bodily … and in doing so encourages us to do the same.

Let’s remember to pay respect to our own temples; let’s love one another without forgetting the “love ourselves” part; and let’s be there for one another … body and soul.

This content comes to you from Our Sunday Visitor courtesy of your parish or diocese.