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Embodied Magazine

A magazine that witnesses to what is true, good, beautiful.


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Recognizing the other

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I loved Jessika Santulli’s post about wanting to be seen, really seen as a person. It highlighted that one of the impacts of my learning Theology of the Body is getting better at seeing others as persons. What does that mean? I know it sounds silly, because like most of us I’ve always understood that people are made in God’s image. However, that didn’t always impact how I reacted to them.

But as TOB truths have gradually sunk into me, I find myself sometimes acting differently.

Here’s an example. I had to call our health insurance company the other day to find out if my husband and I have coverage for the shingles vaccine. (I think I’m more afraid of getting shingles than Covid. I’ve heard horror stories!) I looked online but because we are new this year to Anthem, I had trouble finding the info myself online. Still learning their site.

It took an entire hour on the phone to get the information I was looking for. On hold multiple times for-ev-er! Old me would have been irritated with the customer service person and frustrated the rest of the morning. Newer me (I’m a work in progress) was able to think about the woman on the other end of the line (who seemed to be somewhat new at this job). Instead of focusing on my irritation at why it took this much effort to find out a simple answer, I opted to just put the phone on speaker and continue doing my own work. I even thanked her at the end and admitted I’m glad I’m not the one trying to figure out the minutia of hundreds of people’s insurance benefits every day. “No problem, that’s why I’m here!” she breezily said.

I hung up feeling…content. Not irritated.

Family at Fountain SquareOne more quick example. A few years ago for my husband Greg’s birthday the family decided to do a scavenger hunt downtown in our city of Cincinnati. We met up on Saturday morning at Fountain Square and I wanted to get a family photo, but there weren’t a lot of people around just yet. Except there was this one man sitting at a table nearby. I certainly didn’t know him or his story, but labels such as homeless, addict or bum easily could have been assigned. I went right over to him and asked if he would take our photo and handed him my iPhone while ignoring the “Are you crazy?!” look from my son.

We got the photo, I thanked him as I would anyone else, and we went on our way. But I’ve not forgotten that impulse of mine to see him as worthy of taking our picture. Because he was.

What do you see with new eyes thanks to the Theology of the Body?

 

Please pray with us, for us!

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The Embodied team has spent months working to build a solid groundwork for a successful launch and growth. And we do have a bold vision!  

We will only succeed with the Lord’s blessing. He has already done amazing things to help our efforts, and we now ask you to join us confidently in prayer for the funds needed to successfully launch! 

Novena starting May 1 

My concentrated efforts to establish this magazine began right around the time Pope Francis declared the Year of St. Joseph, so I immediately began asking for his intercession. What a perfect saint for this project as he is known as The Worker and built things, both as a carpenter and as the head of the Holy Family.  

But I also was recently introduced to the wonderful Novena to Our Lady of Good Remedy, and the story behind that prayer convinced me to use this particular novena at this particular time. 

Setting captives free 

Image via https://abbey-roads.blogspot.com/2015/10/our-lady-of-good-remedy.html

John of Matha was a Christian saint of the 12th century and founder of the Order of the Most Holy Trinity (the Trinitarians). At the time in medieval Europe there was often warfare between Christians and Muslims, and the threat of capture or kidnapping was high. The redemption of captives was included as a corporal work of mercy, and several orders (including St. John’s) were founded to do that work. 

His priests would go to the slave markets, buy the Christian slaves and set them free. To do this, they needed large sums of money and turned to the intercession of the Blessed Mother for their fund-raising efforts. Her prayers did not disappoint. Because of her miraculous help, St. John gave her the title, Our Lady of Good Remedy. The Trinitarians freed thousands of people, returning them safely home. 

Captives of the culture 

Embodied is being created to remind readers who they are as beloved sons and daughters of the Creator. This profound truth is lost to many in today’s individualistic culture. They are slaves of another type, and Theology of the Body can bring them new freedom. But we need donors and supporters to provide the funds necessary to get started. 

Help launch Embodied with your prayers! Please join our team in asking the intercession of both St. Joseph and the Blessed Mother through this novena beginning on the feast of St. Joseph the Worker – May 1. 

 

 Novena Prayer to Our Lady of Good Remedy 

O QUEEN OF HEAVEN AND EARTH, Most Holy Virgin, we venerate thee. Thou art the beloved Daughter of the Most High God, the chosen Mother of the Incarnate Word, the Immaculate Spouse of the Holy Spirit, the Sacred Vessel of the Most Holy Trinity.  

O Mother of the Divine Redeemer, who under the title of Our Lady of Good Remedy comes to the aid of all who call upon thee, extend thy maternal protection to us. We depend on thee, Dear Mother, as helpless and needy children depend on a tender and caring mother.

Hail, Mary…

O LADY OF GOOD REMEDY, source of unfailing help, grant that we may draw from thy treasury of graces in our time of need. 

Touch the hearts of sinners, that they may seek reconciliation and forgiveness. Bring comfort to the afflicted and the lonely; help the poor and the hopeless; aid the sick and the suffering. May they be healed in body and strengthened in spirit to endure their sufferings with patient resignation and Christian fortitude.

Hail, Mary…

DEAR LADY OF GOOD REMEDY, source of unfailing help, thy compassionate heart knows a remedy for every affliction and misery we encounter in life. Help me with thy prayers and intercession to find a remedy for my problems and needs, especially for adequate funding to launch Embodied Magazine (add your own special intentions here).

On my part, O loving Mother, I pledge myself to a more intensely Christian lifestyle, to a more careful observance of the laws of God, to be more conscientious in fulfilling the obligations of my state in life, and to strive to be a source of healing in this broken world of ours. 

Dear Lady of Good Remedy, be ever present to me, and through thy intercession, may I enjoy health of body and peace of mind, and grow stronger in the faith and in the love of thy Son, Jesus.

Hail, Mary…

V. Pray for us, O Holy Mother of Good Remedy,
R. That we may deepen our dedication to thy Son, and make the world alive with His Spirit. 

One simple gift

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I’ve mentioned earlier that I am partial to the little changes that I have seen in people’s behavior after letting theology of the body sink in a bit. Here is one example that just happened in my own life this week.

The other morning I noticed a car pull up across the street in front of Socks’ house. [Socks is the nickname we long ago gave a rather reclusive neighbor after seeing him repeatedly cut his grass wearing shorts paired with rather long socks, a look our kids found amusing.] This was unusual because we don’t often see Socks himself come and go, and it was even more rare for anyone to visit.

Then I watched as Socks came out of his house and gingerly made his way down the walk toward the car using a walker, and I saw his left foot was in a boot. An elderly women helped him get in and off they went.

Maybe this moved me because I had a major foot surgery two years ago where I was completely non-weight-bearing on that foot for three months, and then in a boot for almost three more. I immediately felt sorry for Socks, and more so because he lives alone.

Next thing I knew I was across the street leaving him a note to let us know if he needed anything. Well, that was after I figured out his name because I wasn’t going to address the card to Socks! I dug through the junk drawer in the kitchen where I found a crumpled, stained, years-old piece of paper listing all of the neighbors on our block. Aha! Socks was Michael.

I left a note tucked into his door explaining I saw him leave and wanted him to know that if he needed me to run any errands for him I would be glad to do that. I also offered up my husband, Greg, to cut his grass if it would help. And I went on with my day.
That evening I received the following voicemail:

“Yes, hello, this is Michael from across the street. I just got your note, thank you ever so much, that is very, very sweet of you! I actually just got home from having outpatient ankle surgery and I’m going to be laid up for probably at least six weeks at a minimum…..So, um, your note kind of made my day. I might need some help, and again that was very, very nice and so neighborly. Take care.”

Text thread

So now we text. And, yes, Greg has already cut the grass.

Not an unusual or remarkable story, I’ll grant you that. But we have lived here 28 years – yes, 28! — and I have never reached out to Michael. When we moved in, we knew he lived with his elderly mom and aunt, but they have long since passed away. As I said, he keeps to himself and that’s OK, but 10 years ago I would not have done this.

Ten years ago I would have watched him maneuver his way toward the car with his walker, and while I would have felt that same compassion, it would have ended there. I would have a litany of reasons in my head to justify keeping to myself (i.e., it would be way too awkward to reach out now, we don’t even know each other, I’m sure he has other people who are helping him, he might be creepy, and so on).

But I’ve changed. Learning more about TOB has changed me. I always knew and believed that each person has dignity and is created in God’s image. But that didn’t always impact how I treated people. I was definitely too selective in my encounters.

I find it much easier now for me to engage with people I would not have in the past, even if it is just a simple hello or thank you to strangers I pass. It feels natural, not forced, and I know this us from a change in my heart, in my being. I didn’t have to talk myself into reaching out to Michael; it just felt like the right thing to do and I did it.

I’m not expecting a friendship with Michael, unless he wants that. But for now, he knows we are here if he needs help.

 

Update: Two years later, Greg and I are still in fairly regular contact with Michael. He will text to ask Greg to look at something that might needs fixed at his house, or come join me on my porch if he sees me out there. I’ve learned he is Jewish, and have challenged him to try to get me interested in opera, something he very much loves. No progress on that front, but we consider ourselves friends…so that’s a win!

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How has Theology of the Body impacted you? Do you have a witness to share – big or small? We want to hear your stories! Contact us.

The power of witness

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Embodied will not be an intellectual publication exploring the various themes and plumbing the philosophical depths of the Theology of the Body (TOB). There could be a need for that, but this girl is not the one to do it!

Instead, Embodied will follow the lead of St. John Paul II by evangelizing through witness. We will tell the stories of those who are living the truths of TOB in the hopes of reminding readers who they are and inspiring them to also live their lives from a place of self-giving love. This I can do because I’ve done it before in the natural family planning (NFP) arena as director of marketing and communications for the Couple to Couple League (CCL).

CCL was the first NFP organization to fully immerse its teaching in TOB principles, and the results were remarkable. We had already been teaching NFP for over 30 years, but over time the student couples were increasingly unimpressed with the message of Humanae Vitae and the Church’s teaching that both the unitive and procreative dimensions of marital sexuality need always be present. “Because the Church says so” was not convincing anyone to forgo contraception.

Then in the early 2000s we had several board members enthusiastic about TOB, including the late Rev. Richard Hogan, co-author of “Covenant of Love.” With their help, CCL completely rewrote its entire program to present NFP through the lens of TOB. Out from the class (but not from all of our work!) were the documents with Latin names and quotes from popes, and instead the class was centered around the witness of the teaching couple. The first experience of the student couples became hearing the real story of the man and wife standing before them, sharing how their marriage and relationship was before they learned NFP, and how it changed for the better after they adopted NFP. That led into classes focused on explaining the amazing beauty written by God in our bodies through the gift of fertility, and how to manage that fertility while also respecting it.

The increased receptivity to NFP among the student couples was impressive. It’s easy to argue with Church teaching, but it’s hard to argue with someone’s lived experience. In this case, it was hearing that experience that opened the couples to giving NFP more consideration.

With Embodied, I’m taking that lesson learned and bringing it to bear on my desire to get more people excited about TOB or even to take notice of it for the first time. We will bring you stories of people who have gained new insight on a teaching they had struggled with, who have found joy in serving others, who have learned to find God where they hadn’t before…because they had learned something about TOB and let it sink into their heart.

There will be both big stories and little ones. I personally love the little ones, because a thousand little stories of God’s love have more widespread impact than one or two big ones. Plus, the stories of everyday people drive home the truth that we are all called to be witnesses and evangelizers.

Get ready to be inspired!

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Do you have a TOB story to tell? Is there any particular new insight about the faith you have gained through learning TOB? How do you now understand self-gift? What do you see differently through your TOB lenses?

I look forward to hearing from you! Use this form and perhaps you can be a part of Embodied Magazine!

Here’s a great idea: Launch a new print magazine!

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Believe me, I’ve questioned myself untold times in the last few years when I’ve felt God leading me toward launching a magazine based on St. John Paul II’s Theology of the Body. Amidst this time of the “print is dying” narrative, it’s certainly a venture that needs to be questioned.

But even in the face of supposedly daunting odds of succeeding with print, my heart kept telling me it had to be. In my admitted non-theologian opinion, an electronic Theology of the Body magazine would be, frankly, bad theology.

One thing the Theology of the Body shows us is that we were made to share in God’s creative nature. A magazine is a creative work of art, be that the work of talented writers, editors, designers, artists, even the press operators. TOB actually helped me better appreciate that my own work as a writer – when done really well – is akin to the work of an artist. And while you can read the very same words on both a screen and a piece of paper, TOB is also very much about our created world – all the things we can see and touch and experience with our God-given senses – and those words cannot be experienced the same way from cyberspace.

There’s something about a magazine that feels like an invitation. An invitation to slow down and unplug. An invitation to get lost in its pages. An invitation to discover your better self.

With so much coming at us digitally these days, print magazines are becoming a treasure we savor. We save them for the next quiet moment, to be read with a hot drink and a hot bath. We take them to the front porch or backyard. We pass them on to a friend who will surely appreciate them.

And the very best magazines go beyond recipes and organizational tips. They speak to the soul, which is my goal with Embodied.

Doing my homework for this dream of mine, I have been encouraged by what the numbers actually say regarding the viability of print magazines. Some of the stats I’ve found:

  • In 2019 there were 228.7 million magazine readers in the United States over age 18. That was an increase of 4 million from the previous year, and the highest figure since 2012 [Statista.com].
  • 94 percent of people under age 25 read magazines [2020 MPA Magazine Media Factbook]. Shocking, right? This confirms an allure to sit and savor, to enjoy a mental break without annoying pop-ups.
  • 73 percent of adults prefer print on paper for reading [2020 MPA Magazine Media Factbook]. They report it is less distracting than reading on screens, they retain more and they love those tactile experiences of underlining, dog-earing, tearing out recipes or articles to keep.

I am forging ahead! There is much to do, which I will keep you up-to-date on, but I am finding much enthusiasm for Embodied and have heard from many who would love to contribute in some way. While I continue the organizational start-up, and pray and trustfully await God’s solution for funding, let me know if you have a TOB story to tell! Is there any particular new insight about the faith you have gained through learning TOB? How do you live or understand self-gift? What do you see differently through your TOB lenses?

I look forward to hearing from you! Comment here or use the form at embodiedmag.org.