Organ Doner?

[DesiringMore]

This may seem like a stupid question, but i am asking it anyway. Do Catholics believe in being an organ doner? this question brings me to yet another question of when we die, do we raise body and soul, just soul, etc. what does the Catholic church believe?

[Pontifex]

Dear Desiring More,

Being and organ donor is a wonderful thing. It is a great way to give of self. I think the hesitancy that we may have toward something like this resides in our tendency to limit God by our human standards. But let us ponder this, if God is able to raise the dead, he is certainly not limited by our lack of full presence in the grave.

Peace,

Fr. Pontifex

[BLAZEr]

There is also an great image in the Old Testament of what the resurrection will be like.

Ezekiel 37, vs 1-3 (4-10) 11-14:

The hand of the Lord came upon me, and he brought me out by the spirit of the Lord and set me down in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. He led me all around them; there were very many lying in the valley, and they were very dry. He said to me, "Mortal, can these bones live?" I answered, "O Lord GOD, you know." [Then he said to me, "Prophesy to these bones, and say to them: O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. Thus says the Lord GOD to these bones: I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live. I will lay sinews on you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and you shall live; and you shall know that I am the Lord."

 

So I prophesied as I had been commanded; and as I prophesied, suddenly there was a noise, a rattling, and the bones came together, bone to its bone. I looked, and there were sinews on them, and flesh had come upon them, and skin had covered them; but there was no breath in them. Then he said to me, "Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, mortal, and say to the breath: Thus says the Lord GOD: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live." I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood on their feet, a vast multitude.]

 

Then he said to me, "Mortal, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They say, `Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are cut off completely.' Therefore prophesy, and say to them, Thus says the Lord GOD: I am going to open your graves, and bring you up from your graves, O my people; and I will bring you back to the land of Israel. And you shall know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves, and bring you up from your graves, O my people. I will put my spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you on your own soil; then you shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken and will act," says the Lord.

As you can see there weren't any organs on the dry bones that Ezekial prophesied over, but the flesh came back to them. I think this is what it will be like at the resurrection. God has no limitations.