It is not possible to overstate the importance of
marriage and family for individuals, the church and our society.
Our Judeo-Christian heritage, rooted in sacred Scripture,
proclaims the supreme value of marriage and family with the
reality that the fourth commandment, the first one following the
initial three that concern our relationship with God, commands
us to honor our father and mother. We have classically
understood this commandment to encompass all the rights and
obligations connected to family life. After God, family is
the most important reality on earth.
Furthermore, the story of creation in Genesis chapter two,
provided in our first reading today, addresses the very meaning
of our existence. The fact that we are made by God, in his
trinitarian image and likeness, reveals that we are made to be
in relation to others. Immediately after fashioning man,
God states that it is not good for man to be alone. That
may be the understatement of the year. Then the Lord
fashions a brand-new creature, a woman, from the side of man,
suggesting a wonderful intimacy. She is a suitable partner
for the man. When the man sees her, he exclaims three
times, “this one.” “This one, at last, is bone of my bones
and flesh of my flesh.” She is the one to complete him and
partner with him through life.
The Lord goes on to grant to this man and woman a mission.
“That is why a man leaves his father and mother and clings to
his wife, and the two of them become one flesh”. Their
union of life is to be a visible, human expression of the union
that exists within the Holy Trinity. When the love of
husband and wife is real, truly rooted in the truth and love of
God, and returns regularly to God’s mercy and wisdom, then the
two become one flesh in a bond that leads to the fullness of
life for themselves and their children (the second half of their
mission).
We know how hard it is for spouses to be faithful to this great
call from God. We know how our sins greatly impact
marriage and chip away at that unity. Sin creates division
everywhere. It creates division in our walk with God. It
creates division with those around us – family, friends and
neighbors. Sin creates division deep within our own soul,
sucking out of us our sense of peace, self-worth, hope and
purpose.
Thanks be to God for the gift of his Son Jesus. The mercy
of God poured out so generously through Christ, particularly in
the sacrament of penance, reconciles us to God and begins to
restore and heal broken relationships. Additional grace
from God, poured out in the Eucharist, in personal prayer and in
the service of our neighbor provides strength to turn away from
sin, build a life of virtue and learn to live Christlike
lives. This commitment to living the Gospel way of life
breathes new life into marriage, enabling a man and a woman to
build a house for God in this world.
In the Gospel for today, the Pharisees mention the idea of
divorce and use it to test Jesus, citing the fact that Moses
permitted a husband to write a bill of divorce and dismiss his
wife. Our precious Lord shocks his followers once again
with his response. He replies that “because of the
hardness of your hearts he (Moses) you this commandment”.
Next, Jesus quotes the book of Genesis: “God made them male and
female. For this reason, a man shall leave his father and
mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one
flesh.” Then Jesus concludes this admonition with a
brand-new statement of his own: “Therefore, what God has joined
together, no human being must separate.”
Jesus’ new law, the law of love, fulfills the old law of
Moses. In this instance, the law of Christ abrogates or
revokes the law of Moses. Everything that Jesus came to do
– redeem the world from sin, renew the brokenhearted, show us
the face of the Father, and reveal the path to genuine happiness
– would necessarily involve a renewal of marriage and
family. This would include empowering Christians with the
commitment to the permanence of marriage as well as the capacity
to heroically live it out.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us pray for those marriages
and families that are broken and hurting. May Jesus pour
out his abundant, healing grace upon them. Let us pray for
our nation that it may be restored through a renewed zeal for
the supreme dignity of marriage, family and life, especially at
its weakest moments. Let us pray for ourselves, that we
may be a part of the solution by the conversion of our hearts,
the renewal of our minds, and the commitment to live
sacrificially and generously in imitation of Jesus and the
saints.