First Reading
Genesis 2:18-24
The Lord God said: “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a suitable partner for him.” So the Lord God formed out of the ground various wild animals and various birds of the air, and he brought them to the man to see what he would call them; whatever the man called each of them would be its name. The man gave names to all the cattle, all the birds of the air, and all wild animals; but none proved to be the suitable partner for the man. So the Lord God cast a deep sleep on the man, and while he was asleep, he took out one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. The Lord God then built up into a woman the rib that he had taken from the man. When he brought her to the man, the man said: “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.” That is why a man leaves his father and mother and clings to his wife, and the two of them become one flesh.
Second Reading
Hebrews 2:9-11
Brothers and sisters: He “for a little while” was made “lower than the angels, ” that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone. For it was fitting that he, for whom and through whom all things exist, in bringing many children to glory, should make the leader to their salvation perfect through suffering. He who consecrates and those who are being consecrated all have one origin. Therefore, he is not ashamed to call them “brothers.”
Gospel Cycle Cycle B
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.
Today our readings invite us to reflect on marriage, clearly seen in these readings as a union between one woman and one man. In our own time, it is important to point that out because there are so many challenges to marriage on all sides. For us who follow the Lord Jesus, it really is a matter of a deeply held belief that the Scriptures are the inspired Word of God. Sure, there is interpretation of the Scriptures and adaptation, but in our tradition it would be impossible to justify adultery, pre-marital sex or same-sex marriages. So quite often we need to say that as we listen to these readings and then look at the reality of a marriage between one woman and one man and see its ideal—even though many may not be able to live that ideal.
This reading from the Book of Genesis that we have today is about the companionship of marriage. “It is not good for the man to be alone.” How often we see this in older age, when one or the other partner of a first marriage has died and the living partner still finds a need for companionship. How often we see this in the terrible realities of immigration into our country, where one spouse or the other has been left behind in the country or origin. The most normal reality is that we humans need companionship.
There are, of course, many types of companionship. There is the companionship of marriage, there is the companionship of friendship, there is the companionship of working together and many other ways in which we humans form relationships that can be more or less positive and strengthening of our own being.
The companionship of marriage is described in the first reading today as “the two of them become one flesh.” Surely this is a reference to a sexual union but also a reference to the closeness that can be in a marriage. Problems begin to arise when a non-married person seeks this kind of intimacy with someone else. Problems arise when a person who is married seeks this kind of intimacy outside of his or her marriage. Although it is difficult for us to understand what happens, living a lie or living an untruth always damages us humans.
In today’s Gospel, Jesus on repeats this teaching from Genesis. His followers point out that Moses had permitted divorce and remarriage. It needs to be pointed out that Moses permitted the man to divorce the woman. The capacity for a woman to divorce a man was practically non-existent. Today Catholic annulments look to many like a simple Catholic divorce. We need to be clear that divorce is saying that the reality of marriage was there and that now we are breaking that reality. Annulment is a declaration that the reality was never there. So there is a difference, whether it is recognized by everyone or not.
The goal, however, is not annulment! The goal is a functioning, sacramental marriage in which both wife and husband seek God through their relationship with one another and so bless any children born of their union because they are truly born into a relationship that is centered in God while at the same time rejoicing in the sexuality and love and goodness of our humanity.
Let us pray today for those who are married, that they may grow in this awareness of the sacramentality of marriage and its capacity to reflect the love of God into our world in such special ways.