J. Brian Bransfield - Human Person

The Human Person

According to John Paul II

J. Brian Bransfield

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Bransfield, J. Brian.

The Human Person: According to John Paul II / J. Brian Bransfield.

p. cm.

ISBN 0-8198-3394-0 (pbk.)

1. John Paul II, Pope, 1920-2005. 2. Theological anthropologyCatholic Church. 3. Catholic ChurchDoctrines. 4. Human bodyReligious aspectsCatholic Church. 5. SexReligious aspectsChristianity. I. Title.

BX1378.5.B76 2010

233.092dc22

2010001471

The Scripture quotations contained herein are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition , copyright 1989, 1993, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

We acknowledge and thank those publishers whose material, whether in the public domain or under copyright protection, has made this work possible. Every effort has been made to obtain all the proper permissions. But if we have inadvertently not obtained a required permission, we ask the publisher to contact the editor for proper acknowledgment and compensation.

Cover design by Rosana Usselmann

Cover art: Leonardo da Vinci (14521519). Study of Human Proportion: The Vitruvian Man . Ca. 1492. Pen and ink drawing. Accademia, Venice, Italy. Cameraphoto Arte, Venice / Art Resource, NY.

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Copyright 2010, J. Brian Bransfield

Published by Pauline Books & Media, 50 Saint Pauls Avenue, Boston, MA 02130-3491.

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To Mom and Dad,

In Loving Memory

Contents

It is a great pleasure to introduce The Human Person: According to John Paul II by Reverend J. Brian Bransfield, a priest of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. This work introduces the reader to the fundamental themes in the teaching of the Venerable Servant of God Pope John Paul II on the identity of the human person, the theology of the body, and the mystery of salvation.

Pope John Paul II responded, in heroic fashion, to societys chronic confusion about the identity and meaning of the human person. In his teaching Pope John Paul II repeatedly emphasized that the identity and vocation of the human person are fulfilled in and through the total gift of self in love. Through detailed analysis and simple explanation, The Human Person: According to John Paul II spells out and makes accessible to the general reader the teaching on the gift of self as contained in the theology of the body. From the vantage point of key thresholds in the mystery of salvation such as creation, the fall, and redemption, Father Bransfield explains in uncomplicated language the meaning of concepts central to the thought of the Holy Father such as original solitude, original unity, original shame, and original nakedness. The reader will find in these pages a way to understand more deeply and to express more effectively the teaching of the Church for which our world hungers.

The pages that follow appeal, in an easily understandable style, to the teaching of the Fathers of the Church, in particular Saint Augustine and Saint Gregory the Great, as well as to theologians of the twentieth century such as Cardinal Henri de Lubac, Cardinal Jean Danilou, and Hans Urs von Balthasar. The author demonstrates in everyday terms that the teaching of Pope John Paul II is a rendition of unique caliber, which, at the same time, inherits the tradition in all of its original depth.

The human person, marriage, and the family are the first targets of the culture of death. The teaching of Pope John Paul II stands as a resounding response that sets forth the clear defense and affirmation of the inviolable dignity of the human person, and the splendor of marriage and family. A graduate of the Pontifical John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family, Father Bransfield serves as Executive Director of the Secretariat of Evangelization and Catechesis, and as Assistant General Secretary of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. He carefully identifies the manner in which the teaching of Pope John Paul II serves the central message of the New Evangelization: the civilization of love will emerge only through the culture of life. I commend this volume as a valuable resource to priests, deacons, seminarians, catechists, and to all the faithful.

Cardinal Justin Rigali

Archbishop of Philadelphia

I am deeply grateful to the many people who have supported my efforts in writing this book. I am most thankful to Cardinal Justin Rigali, the Archbishop of Philadelphia, for his encouragement of my efforts and his gracious willingness to offer the Foreword to this work. I am very appreciative to Most Reverend Donald Wuerl, the Archbishop of Washington, to Most Reverend Gregory Aymond, the Archbishop of New Orleans, and to Carl Anderson, the Supreme Knight of the Knights of Columbus and Vice President of the Washington, D.C. session of the Pontifical John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family, for their kind and thoughtful words regarding these pages.

This book was written while I served as a professor of Moral Theology at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania. I will always be grateful for the invaluable collaboration of my colleagues on the faculty and the attentive support of the seminarians, especially those who participated in the lectures and discussions from which this book arose.

The expert and dedicated staff of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has been a source of constant encouragement. In particular, I acknowledge my brother priests at the Conference, most especially Reverend Monsignor David Malloy, the General Secretary, and my colleagues in the General Secretariat and the Secretariat of Evangelization and Catechesis, in particular Mr. Andrew Lichtenwalner. I thank as well those who have assisted with the editing and preparation of this book, including the Daughters of St. Paul and their staff, in particular Sr. Marianne Lorraine Trouv, FSP; Sr. Maria Grace Dateno, FSP; and Kate Hux. The assistance of Carlos and Elena Tejeda and the generous support of Brian and Joan Gail have gone far to bringing this work to fruition.

On a personal level, I happily express my deep gratitude to the many friends whose support has guided me throughout the preparation of this book. In a particular way, a profound note of thanks goes to Martin and Cynthia Lutschaunig and their sons, Christian, Daniel, and Andrew; to my brother priests Reverend Stephen Dougherty, Reverend Michael Gerlach, Reverend John Pidgeon, and Reverend Eric Gruber; and to Reverend Monsignor Ronny Jenkins for his friendship and example of excellent scholarship.

Lastly, I wish to express my deepest thanks to my family members, to my sister Peggy-Anne and her husband, Michael, my sisters Mary Jane and Paula, and my brother Paul for sharing with me the beauty of family life. Above all, I am forever grateful to my beloved mother and father, who have shared their life and love with me. It is to them and their blessed memory that I dedicate this work.

We wish to express a special word of thanks for the use of the following material listed in this book: