Receiving Love
Why is it that many Christians find that the women in their churches tend to be more "spiritual" than their husbands? Are they truly more spiritual or are their husbands just quiet?
I believe that many women are closer to God or farther from God than men. Most of us don't stand in the middleground of "doing ok" with God.
Why?
God gives everyone love in equal measure, but women can receive it more easily. We're designed to receive. Our physical bodies are stamped with the ability to receive love from our husbands, which is also a part of our invisible, spiritual natures.
Receiving comes with more striving to men, who are given the earthly role of initiating love, penetrating, and discovering. The role they play in representing on earth the heavenly relationship between God and man is different than our role.
I think of it like a symbolic play, where humans are the symbols playing out the greater meaning of the relationship between God and man.
We're on stage with all of creation watching. The husband initiates the courtship. "We love because God first loved us." The woman reciprocates the love. The result of God's love was the Creation - our creation, our world, sunsets, animals, stars, and more. The result of the love between men and women is also creation - the creation of children.
God loved his Son and the product of love was life. Men and women love and the product of their love is life (this is the primary basis for the Catholic stand on abortion and contraception). Life is to be appreciated and loved as a magnificent gift.
An interesting point here is that God is Triune (1 God with 3 parts). He is One and yet separate, and created the marriage relationship to show us how this could be true. A husband and wife are separate and distinct beings, yet they are "one flesh". The procreative act is more appropriately called by Catholic mystics the "one flesh union". For it is at that moment that God is present most powerfully in our marriage relationship.
Chew on that for a while!! I'll write more on that tomorrow. It took me a little while to not be weirded out by the fact that God is present at that most intimate moment. At first, it felt like an invasion of privacy.
I believe that many women are closer to God or farther from God than men. Most of us don't stand in the middleground of "doing ok" with God.
Why?
God gives everyone love in equal measure, but women can receive it more easily. We're designed to receive. Our physical bodies are stamped with the ability to receive love from our husbands, which is also a part of our invisible, spiritual natures.
Receiving comes with more striving to men, who are given the earthly role of initiating love, penetrating, and discovering. The role they play in representing on earth the heavenly relationship between God and man is different than our role.
I think of it like a symbolic play, where humans are the symbols playing out the greater meaning of the relationship between God and man.
We're on stage with all of creation watching. The husband initiates the courtship. "We love because God first loved us." The woman reciprocates the love. The result of God's love was the Creation - our creation, our world, sunsets, animals, stars, and more. The result of the love between men and women is also creation - the creation of children.
God loved his Son and the product of love was life. Men and women love and the product of their love is life (this is the primary basis for the Catholic stand on abortion and contraception). Life is to be appreciated and loved as a magnificent gift.
An interesting point here is that God is Triune (1 God with 3 parts). He is One and yet separate, and created the marriage relationship to show us how this could be true. A husband and wife are separate and distinct beings, yet they are "one flesh". The procreative act is more appropriately called by Catholic mystics the "one flesh union". For it is at that moment that God is present most powerfully in our marriage relationship.
Chew on that for a while!! I'll write more on that tomorrow. It took me a little while to not be weirded out by the fact that God is present at that most intimate moment. At first, it felt like an invasion of privacy.
posted by Terri | 7:38 AM
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