Twenty-seventh Sunday

Twenty-seventh Sunday Ordinary
October 8, 2006

"This one at last is bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh." (Genesis 2: 18-24) "But from the beginning of creation, God made them male and female... the two shall become one flesh" (Mark 10: 2-16)

Genesis offers this beautifully poetic description of the beginning of the human race. God creates the first human and then realizes how lonely and isolated he is among all the other dwellers of the earth. The "suitable partner" can only be another of the same species, another human being: Sometimes when we experience the many differences between male and female we can forget that these differences are intended to be complementary. Human nature requires both male and female energies, thought processes and spiritualities. From the beginning neither was intended to dominate or be superior to the other. Neither is complete without the other. No wonder that this principle is the key to successful relationships of all kinds, but especially to marriage. Male and female do well together when each affirms and supports the strengths of the other rather than trying to "convert" the other into something neither was meant to be.

In the Gospel Jesus does not Institute marriage as a sacrament because it existed from the beginning of creation. Instead he brings it under the new rules for all relationships in the kingdom of God. The disciples were understandably puzzled because this contradicted Moses' law on divorce. Jesus' hard teaching about it expresses how radical our relationship with God should be. From now on marriage will express the inseparable relationship between us and God. The bond between married couples is as intimate and permanent as the bond between God and all creation. "What God has joined together, no human must separate". No other human relationship has the capacity to express this reality as clearly as marriage.

We know, of course, that in spite of all our best efforts, we sometimes are not able to live up to Jesus' teaching on divorce. He often, and with equal force, cautions us against passing judgment on those who for one reason or another have not been able to adhere to this teaching. It is possible to obey the letter of the law and let the spirit die by staying technically married in a lifeless and mutually destructive relationship. We all need to adapt to the changes in our intimate relationships which inevitably occur as aging and unforeseen events occur. Anyone who has endured the pain of marital separation and divorce will know that it is among the worst of life's experiences, the death of a dream which brings a harvest of guilt, sadness and anger. The healing process often takes many years, and depends on how well we avoid passing judgment. Our place is to reach out to one another across the gulf of loneliness, alienation and isolation, without judgment or condemnation.