Sexual Difference: Dual Unity

Blessed Pope John Paul II, in his The Theology of the Body, talks about “dual unity” or the “double unity.” He said that in creation, God created the unity of two beings, male and female, and this unity lay in the identity of human nature. He said that based on this identity, there exists a duality that demonstrates the masculinity and femininity of created man.

Unity refers then to the common humanity of us all and a common dignity. Although men and women are united in a common humanity, they are irreducibly different. They are two different ways of ‘being a body’ that is proper to human nature. For John Paul II, the sexual encounter between a man and a woman allows them both to unite in a fruitful manner.

This “unity-in-difference” (two sexes within a shared humanity) allows for a personal encounter in a fruitful union of the whole person – physical, emotional, spiritual, and psychological.

You can read more on this by logging on to: www.marriageuniqueforareason.org

About Deacon Bob

Moderator: Deacon Bob Yerhot of the Diocese of Winona-Rochester, Minnesota.
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