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Christianity throughout the ages has been beset by ambivalence about the body. On the one hand, we have the insistence both on a proper respect for the body, which ‘is worth more than the raiment’ (Matthew 6:25), and on Christ’s resurrection having been bodily rather than purely spiritual. This kind of appreciation of the physical is displayed in a great deal of religious art, which often glorifies the body, perhaps sometimes to an extent too voluptuous for modern taste (as in some altarpieces of Rubens). On the other, there are far too many saints (notable St Rose of Lima) who seem to have won their halos because of their extreme austerity. Reaching a balance has always proved problematic, and many Christian women have found this particularly difficult ......

My Body My Self - Contents

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