| OUR BODIES ARE WONDERFUL GIFTS By Brad Wilcox, Associate Professor, Brigham Young University Some religious groups see our physical bodies as a burden, a problem a temporary hindrance from which we will one day be free. They see the body as ugly, sinful, or bad. Latter-day Saints know that is not true. Joseph Smith said, "We came to this earth that we might have a body and present it pure before God in the celestial kingdom. The great principle of happiness consists in having a body. The devil has no body and herein is his punishment" (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1976], 181). God the Father and Jesus Christ possess perfected, glorified, tangible, resurrected bodies. Our bodies were created in God's image. Some of the greatest tests, challenges, and lessons of our lives are associated with our bodies, which have appetites and needs that are new to our spirits. These bodies serve as temples for our spirits during mortality and will be ours forever in the Resurrection. What a wonderful gift! President Gordon B. Hinckley recently said it this way: "[Our] bodies are the creation of the Almighty. What a miraculous, wonderful, and beautiful thing is the human body." (Gordon B. Hinckley, "Great Shall Be the Peace of Thy Children", Ensign, Nov. 2000) We have something Satan and his followers will never have. No wonder it is so important to take care of our bodies. (See 1 Cor. 3:16-17.) Caring for our bodies is a sacred stewardship and duty. We are commanded to avoid tobacco, alcohol, and drugs. At the same time, we must give our bodies the food, rest, physical exercise, and recreation they need. That's why the Church "was the first religious organization to construct halls adjacent to or adjoining chapels for the formal promotion of... games and sports, music, drama, speech, and dance" (in Daniel H. Ludlow, ed., Encyclopedia of Mormonism, 5 vols. [New York: Macmillan Publishing, 1992], 3:1081). By practicing good hygiene, living the Word of Wisdom, and being physically active, we show respect for ourselves and we show appreciation to God for giving us each such a wonderful gift. From "Gems for Youth." Original Source: Growing Up: Gospel Answers About Maturation and Sex by Brad Wilcox (Bookcraft, 2000), pp. 45-46. |