Why the Body Matters
Or why Jesus probably had six-pack abs.
If you’re not a theist or into Jesus, feel free to stop reading now and peruse my ample archive of secular writing. But if you believe in an all-powerful, all-knowing, all-loving God as I do, if you believe God sent Jesus to spark a holy revolution, to demonstrate the glory, beauty, and majesty in all of us, I want to present some ideas to consider —ideas that could possibly deepen your connection to God and be good for your health, to boot!
First, I’ll start with some reasonable assumptions about what most Christians claim to believe:
That God created everything: you, me, the earth, cosmos, etc.
That humans are made in the image of God (imago dei).
As Godly beings, we believers are charged as stewards of the earth and its myriad lifeforms—something that’s tough to dispute in the so-called anthropocene era we’re living in.
That Jesus is God made flesh. He was basically Heaven’s Top Model. To be Christ-like is to be the holiest, best, and highest version of ourselves.
These assumptions point to an unassailable conclusion: how we relate to the physical world is how we relate to God. The food we put into our bodies, the gas we burn in our cars, the single-use plastic wrapper we throw in the trash or on the side of the road…it’s all God. And when we desecrate the physical world—misusing, abusing, and wasting God’s bounty—we shit on, and erode our connection with God. Today’s pitiable state of human and planetary health is a direct reflection of our broken relation with God.
Despite the intrinsic divinity of all physical creation, I do not see mainstream Christians as exceptionally healthy or particularly good stewards of the environment. If anything, mainstream American Christians seem less healthy and environmentally responsible than many secular folk. These mainstreamers are prone to conflating unhealthy eating, driving environmentally ruinous vehicles, and guns with Jesus (this conflation’s relation to Imperial control will likely get its own post in the near future).
To be loving stewards of our bodies and the world is not done in the interest of aesthetics, though aesthetics are often a byproduct of stewardship because things tend to look better when they’re taken care of. No, the body is an instrument for communicating with God and fulfilling our divine purposes. Like all instruments, bodies require maintenance and tuning. I have a hard time hearing God and/or doing God’s will when I’m tired, sick, weak, constipated, and so forth. Conversely, when I’m rested, healthy, strong, and regular, God’s communication is clear and my capacity to respond, easy.
This is why I believe the best first step in developing a relationship with God is getting our physical health in order. If I may, I’ll extend this suggestion to unhealthy environmentalists. If we cannot achieve and maintain health and balance in our bodies, how can we do it for others or the planet?
If Jesus’ life proved anything, it was that genesis of transformation occurs in and through the body. Ignore that body at your own peril.