A Season for the Spirit: Every Carbon Atom in My Body was Formed in a Star when 3 Helium Nuclei Collided in One Spot in Less than a Millionth of a Sec

Origen said that we have within us the sun and the moon and also the stars. It is literally true. "Every constituent of our bodies has had a million other lives in the seas, in plants, in animals."

To most, the idea that we are so connected to creation is going to seem heretical. Why? Because we have been unfortunately taught by over zealous churches and secular agendas that our bodies stand as enemies of God. We have been born into sin, sexuality is something to never discuss in church, we are unique to the rest of the created order and therefore stand at odds with it, the heart is evil, and we have dominion over fallen creation.

But what if we internalized the reality that our heart, when converted to mercy will, "burn for all creation, for humankind, for birds and animals and demons and for every creature" we realize that we can never truly love God's world without first loving the world that is summed up in our own body.

The most important thing that I have learned in this study is that God is reconciling the many things within my heart. The heart is filled with unfathomable depths and it part of God's creation. Therefore, God seeks to reconcile all of creation and thus reconcile the many fears, passageways, chambers, reception rooms, hidden closets, and trap doors that are within our complicated heart.

And this is not about the gratification of the senses of our body. This provides no ultimate healing for any of us. But neither are we to stand in front of the mirror with suspicion of our senses and that they are enemy territory for God. Rather, we must "examine the way we fail to use our bodies and powers of touch to bless and help others through tenderness. It risks venturing into precarious areas, like my fear of sickness and death. It turns us outward to the world, and gets me to ask for grace day by day to delight in my senses and use them to stay alert, connected, and appreciative."

May our bodies through worship, service, and the sacraments result in being deeply integrated into the one, true holy one Jesus Christ.