The definition of a human being is the intricate union of body (the material part) and soul (the immaterial, spiritual, immortal part). The body we have in common with animals, but the immortal soul that is able to choose between good and evil is exclusive to human beings. Soul and body, though distinct, are not separate; they are both essential parts of our human nature, that are fundamentally integrated in order to function as a living human being. While the soul gives life and motion to the body, the body in turn is required, in this life, for the proper functioning of the soul. Another way of putting it is that the soul animates the body and the body influences the soul. A crucial consequence of this is that, if the soul wants to grow in virtue, which is essentially a habit of goodness which produces good fruit, the soul cannot be content with just thinking about or even desiring virtue or goodness; thoughts and desires must be followed up by actions which can only be carried out by the body. So when you perform actions with your body that are ordered towards the good, your soul grows in the accompanying virtues. The virtues adorn your soul like precious jewels adorn a crown and, on a practical level, help you excel in still other virtues. Likewise, bad actions create bad habits called vices which disfigure the original plan God had for your soul. These are not just pious allegories. Growth in virtue is a reality that is imprinted on the soul. If you wish to grow and become strong in virtues such as modesty, prudence, chastity, etc. and find it easier to practice virtue, you have at your finger tips the means of doing so, namely, performing the acts of those virtues. Therefore, the way we act with our body has a direct effect on our soul, and vice versa. Sadly, modern idealism has led many to imagine that all that matters is what they think with their minds, and so it doesn’t make any difference what they do with their bodies. This is false; it is a devastating error that has left so much spiritual ruin in the landscape of our modern world. What we do with our bodies shapes our very soul and makes it either good or bad, virtuous or vicious. For example, when we kneel, bow or make the sign of the cross, these external signs and gestures, when fostered in a proper way, prepare internal changes that form internal dispositions in our soul. When a person tells lies or cheats or performs acts of impurity, they become a liar, a cheater, impure. The more one completes good or bad actions, the easier the good or bad actions become to perform: in this way a person becomes good or becomes evil. The same goes 19
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