Gospel Mark 10:2-16
The Pharisees approached Jesus and asked, “Is it lawful for a husband to divorce his wife?” They were testing him. He said to them in reply, “What did Moses command you?” They replied, “Moses permitted a husband to write a bill of divorce and dismiss her.” But Jesus told them, “Because of the hardness of your hearts he wrote you this commandment. But from the beginning of creation, 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. So they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, no human being must separate.” In the house the disciples again questioned Jesus about this. He said to them, “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her; and if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery.”
And people were bringing children to him that he might touch them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this he became indignant and said to them, “Let the children come to me; do not prevent them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Amen, I say to you, whoever does not accept the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it.” Then he embraced them and blessed them, placing his hands on them.
Homily
The root cause of most marriage failures and divorces is a struggle for power within the marriage relationship. The desire to bend others to our will; to have them do what we want, often without regard for the likes or dislikes of the other leads to all sorts of problems, hurts, disappointments and general unhappiness. This of course is not the most appropriate atmosphere for happy family life. In the time of Jesus, male dominance in families was very high and women could be made to accept what today would be considered serious domestic abuse. The preaching of Jesus, the scripture scholars tell us, always addressed these issues. A case in point was the practice of divorce, a subject that the readings for the Eucharist of this weekend treats.
The opponents of Jesus have no doubt heard of Jesus’ opposition to divorce and so they try to gain points over him by reminding Him that Moses allowed the Israelite men to divorce their wives. Jesus’ reply is instructive; “Because of the hardness of your hearts he wrote you this commandment. But from the beginning of creation, 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. So they are no longer two but one flesh.” Deut. 24, 1 – 4 tells us.
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The vagueness of the phrase “something indecent” as grounds for divorce had led some authorities to include reasons as frivolous as poor cooking. In his response Jesus calls his listeners back to the beginning. Jesus shows his opponents the way in which woman was created. After the creation of all the animals, Adam found no one suitable to be his helpmate. God then puts Adam into a deep sleep and takes one of Adam’s ribs and formed woman from it. In his delight when he wakes’ Adam exclaims, “This one, at last, is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; this one shall be called ‘woman, ‘ for out of ‘her man’ this one has been taken.”
It is this delight in the other which must be sustained and which guards against frivolous interpretations of the law and which ensures that the unity signified by the use of Adam’s rib to create woman is maintained. Jesus’ response to his opponents must be seen therefore as a defense of women who suffered because of this very lenient interpretation of the law.
In the world in which we live, there is much talk of the Mercy of God and rightly so, but there is often a misinterpretation of the Mercy of God, which says that God will forgive any and everything. The need for us to be vigilant against laxity in the interpretation of the law and laxity in our own observance of the law is not seen to be important.
The response of Jesus in this matter of divorce is a call to authenticity in our discipleship. While all of us are human and we all fall short of the glory of God, our protestations of “Love of God” are all hollow unless we truly make the effort to be authentic. Authenticity guards against laxity. Where married life is concerned, authenticity calls us to live the selfless love which characterizes, the “One Flesh” which is truly the image of God. We must remember that Genesis tells us: “God created humanity. In his image and likeness God created them male and female.” (Gen.5; 1&2) The Image of God is Man and Woman united in love. St. Paul later takes this image and refers it to Christ’s love for the Church. WHAT A VOCATION FOR MARRIED COUPLES! Yet this can only be lived if couples can renounce the power struggles and live the selfless love of Christ for the Church. When this happens, there is never a hint of domestic abuse. There is only the effort to do whatever is necessary for the good of the other. This effort then creates the atmosphere for fruitful family life in which the family becomes a school of authentic discipleship and the vocation of parents to generate authentic members of the Kingdom is fulfilled. May God grant to all Christian families the grace to be faithful to their vocation.
Prayer
All powerful and ever-loving God, You call your people out of the chains of selfishness and power struggles to live in the freedom and happiness of those who truly love. Help Christian couples to come to a deep awareness of their vocation. Help them to pattern their lives on the selfless love of Jesus your son so that their homes may be schools of authentic Christian living; so that their children may be other Christs in the world. We ask this through the intercession of Mary, our mother and Jesus your Son. Amen
