god's plan for you

Church Teaching / Sexuality / Teens

Are you confused about feelings, relationships, sex? Everbeen disillusioned about marriage and family life—and maybe life itself? Thisbook will give you the answers you need!

God’s Plan for You, based on John Paul II’s Theology of the Body, reveals a pathleading to a full life and hope for your future. Author David Hajduk makes JohnPaul II’s magnificent vision of the human person accessible—and exciting—fortoday’s youth. Discover the purpose of existence and the answers to your mostdeeply held questions about life, relationships, and sexuality.

In each chapter:• Insight from God’s Word • Wisdom from Pope John Paul II • Reflection questions for everyday life • Suggested reading from the Catechism of the Catholic Church

“The anecdotes and examples anchor the truths of faith in life. A timely and most wel-come book!”

— Most Rev. Arthur J. Serratelli, Bishop of Paterson, New Jersey

“David Hajduk puts the beautiful teachings of our Church and the words of John Paulthe Great in terms that all can understand. Young people today are struggling to hear andlive the truth. This book boldly and lovingly lays out God’s truth.”

— Tony Melendez, composer and musician

“I am inspired by this book, knowing the power that it has to change lives. An indispen-sable resource!”

— Steve Angrisano, youth minister, singer and songwriter

$16.95

ISBN 0-8198-4517-5

aulineBOOKS & MEDIA

gods plan cover 4/11/06 4:02 PM

ContentsAcknowledgments ix

Foreword xiii

Chapter 1The Cosmic Prequel 1

Chapter 2The Key to a Rich Life 11

Chapter 3A Striking Similarity 19

Chapter 4The Best of Both Worlds 31

Chapter 5Lessons in Loneliness 41

Chapter 6A Match Made in Heaven 49

Chapter 7God Is Pro-Life! 57

Chapter 8Gone Fishing 67

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Chapter 9The Great Divorce 79

Chapter 10Fashion Statements 89

Chapter 11Hearts Too Hard to Love 101

Chapter 12The Divine Do-Over 111

Chapter 13Tools of the Trade 125

Chapter 14A Model Marriage 143

Chapter 15Body Language 159

Chapter 16A Family Affair 175

Chapter 17The Final Chapter 195

Notes 205

Bibliography 206

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11

C H A P T E R 2

The Key to aRich Life

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth,where moth and rust consume and where thievesbreak in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treas-ures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust con-sumes and where thieves do not break in and steal.For where your treasure is, there will your heart bealso.”

— Matthew 6:19–21

Life’s Most Important QuestionsThe movie It’s a Wonderful Life starring JimmyStewart brings a tear to my eye every time I watchit. If you have never seen it, don’t worry—it’s on TVat least a hundred times from Thanksgiving toChristmas. It tells the story of George Bailey, a manof duty and charity who meets hard times. Hestands to lose his reputation, family welfare, andbusiness because his archrival, a heartless andcrooked old miser named Mr. Potter, wants to ruinhim. Unlike George, Mr. Potter has no concern forthe hardworking men and women in town andviews them solely as a means of profit. Desperate,

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12 God’s Plan for You

George begins to think that he is worth more deadthan alive and that everyone would be better off ifhe had never been born. Well, through the interven-tion of a second-class angel trying to earn his wings,George gets the chance to see what life would havebeen like had he never existed, and he realizes allthe wonderful things he has done with his life. Themovie ends at George’s house, as all the people thatGeorge had helped rally together to help him in histime of need. George’s brother, Harry, shows up andproposes a toast: “To my brother, George Bailey—the richest man in town!”

Everyone wants to have a rich life. Everyonewants to “store up treasure for themselves.” How-ever, the real question is: What makes a person rich?At some point in life, everyone will have to answerthis question for him or herself—and the answerwill ultimately determine how full his or her lifewill be.

At its core, the question “What makes a personrich?” inquires into the meaning of life and the pur-pose of human existence. In a sense, it asks two sep-arate yet related questions: “Who am I?” and“What’s life all about?” Our life hinges on these twoquestions—the most important questions that anyhuman being can ask. Somehow we know that ourpersonal happiness depends on finding theanswers; that if we only knew what life was reallyabout, then we would have the roadmap to fulfill-ment in our lives. That’s why we have a natural


inclination to search. However, we often search inall the wrong places. We can go the way of Mr.Potter or the way of George Bailey.

People have been asking “Who am I?” and“What’s life all about?” ever since Adam and Eve.Because so many people before you have wrestledwith these questions, you can benefit from theirhard work. Of all the great thinkers, however, thefamous Greek philosopher Aristotle said it best.

The Way to True HappinessThousands of years ago, in his work NicomacheanEthics, Aristotle said that the meaning of life is to behappy, and that ultimately happiness isthe thing that everybody is searchingfor. However, Aristotle meant some-thing very specific by happiness. ForAristotle, “happiness” means “fulfill-ment.” Understood this way, happinessrefers to an internal condition whoseopposite is emptiness—not sadness, suf-fering, or pain as many might think. Happiness is adeep sense of peace and contentment in one’s soul.This means it can actually co-exist with sadness, suf-fering, and pain. Your world could be falling apartand you could be enduring great trials, yet you canstill feel content and peaceful in your heart becauseyou are fulfilled. True happiness, therefore, doesn’tcome and go; it is enduring. And this is precisely thehappiness that everybody longs for. Those who say

13The Key to a Rich Life

The word Aristotleused for happiness,eudemonia, trans-lates more literallyas “fulfillment.”

WORDto the WISE


things like, “I’ll only be happy if I get that car, go tothat college, or get that girlfriend or boyfriend,” or“I’ll only be happy if my lousy circumstanceschange,” sadly don’t understand what true happi-ness is and are only setting themselves up to be dis-appointed. True happiness happens from the insideout, not the outside in. This is why Aristotle saidthat there are three main ways in which people tendto seek happiness. Mr. Potter exemplifies the firsttwo, and George Bailey the third.

The first is the way of pleasure. This way prom-ises fulfillment by pleasing the senses and avoidingpain at all costs. It involves lots of eating, drinking,and sex; always looking toward the new andimproved “high.” It looks no farther than the nextparty. Aristotle called those who seek fulfillment inthis way “vulgar” and “animalistic.” He wasn’t try-ing to be mean—he was simply stating that thosewho live this life lower themselves to the level ofanimals. Aristotle concluded that such people willnever find the fulfillment they seek. If you look atpeople who seem to have all the pleasure they want,yet still seem unhappy and empty inside, you’ll seethat Aristotle was right.

The second is the way of power. This way prom-ises fulfillment from being popular and havingmany possessions. It’s all about stardom and stuff.In the eyes of the world, these things make a personpowerful. They unlock the door to all the fine food,strong drink, hard drugs, sex, and material posses-




sions that one could possibly imagine. In this sense,the life of power merely provides the means to thelife of pleasure. Like those who seek the life of plea-sure, those who seek the life of power don’t find thefulfillment they seek either. Popularity evaporates,here one minute and gone the next. It depends onothers’ opinions of you, after all, and you cannotcontrol that. Money can run out; the stock marketcan crash; thieves can “break in and steal.” Whatthen?

The third is the way of virtue. This way promis-es fulfillment from living a morally good life. Theword virtue comes from the Latin word vir, meaning“man.” So, virtue literally means “manliness” or“humanliness.” Virtue is human perfection. Beingvirtuous means being human. Think about those wehonor in history as great people,as opposed to those we revile asscoundrels. Isn’t virtue the crite-rion? We call them great peoplebecause they represent the bestthat humans have to offer,because they exemplify every-thing we aspire to be.

So, what was Aristotle’s con-clusion? Human fulfillment results from being fullyhuman. If you want to be happy, then you’ve got tobe human. Only then will you be truly rich.

Now, you may ask, “What does it really mean tobe human?” The first lesson that Jesus teaches us from

Notable Quotable“ ”

“...Virtuous activities and their opposites are

what constitute happiness or the reverse.”

— Aristotle


The Cosmic Prequel answers this great question. Jesusknows that we can’t even begin to understand whathuman love, human sexuality, marriage, and familylife are all about—let alone find fulfillment inthem—until we first understand what being humanis all about.

Let’s go back to the beginning with Jesus anddiscover what God had in mind when he created us.The key to a rich life is just around the corner!

In His Own WordsHappiness is being rooted in love.

(GA, 1/30/80)

Things to Ponder and Share

1. Look at your life and the world around you. Do you know someone like George Bailey?

2. If you were asked to give your “Life Motto”—a phrase that sums up who you are and what your life is about—what would it be and why?


JOHN PAUL II


3. How did Aristotle understand happiness? How do many people today understand it? What’s the difference?

4. According to Aristotle, what are the three different types of lives that humans can lead to try to find fulfillment? What was his conclu-sion? Do you agree? Why or why not?

5. When have you pursued happiness in pleasure, popularity, or possessions? How did it turn out in the short term? In the long term?

6. Who do you think are the great human beings in our world’s history? What made them great?

Read theCatechism of the Catholic Church

nos. 27, 1718, 1723, 1803



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