There's nothing like a good shepherd

Bishop Robert Baker of Charleston (rumored to be soon moved to the long-vacant diocese of Birmingham) has written a diocesan pastoral letter on the application of Pope John Paul II's Theology of the Body.

The I've found the Theology of the Body to be incredibly rich, both in my growth into union with my new husband and as a framework within which Christ's full donation of himself to his Bride, and ours back to him, can gleam with light and depth.

Here's a taste. If you like it, you can read the whole thing here.

A central tenet of the Theology of the Body is that faithful, self-donative love, and the communion which results from the giving and receiving of that gift, is the creative dynamic which reflects the inner life of the Holy Trinity. Self-donative love is the gift of self on behalf of another person. It is the life-giving love of the Trinity at creation. It is the love of Jesus Christ, especially at Calvary. It is the love which inspired the martyrs of the Church, and it is the love which is the heart of the marriage covenant. From this generous gift of self for the other flows the whole of the Gospel.