Martin Jumbam
The Universal Church invites us to celebrate Sunday, October 4, 2015, as the twenty seventh Sunday in ordinary time, year B. In the entrance antiphon we pray: “O Lord, you have given everything its place in the world, and no one can make otherwise. For it is your creation, the heaven and the earth and the stars: you are the Lord of all. Amen.” The Old Testament reading from the Book of Genesis, in the first reading, and the Gospel from Mark talk on the unity of marriage. In a symbolic language, the passage from Genesis speaks of man who was created in intimacy with God and given power over all creation. But man is also a social being and cannot live alone; that is why God creates woman so she can stand at man’s side as an equal and enter into intimate union with him in marriage. They are to live together as one and what God has put together, let no one put asunder. That is the clear message Jesus gives in the Gospel, where he condemns divorce in very strong terms. Taking the cue from our Lord, the Church upholds that genuine Christian faith and living must support God’s intention that marriage should be the lifelong union of one man and one woman. In the second reading, from the Letter to the Hebrews, the sacred writer presents Jesus, the Son of God, as our brother who follows the path of suffering and death so that we may participate in his glory as children of God.
As providence would have it, this Sunday the Holy Father, Pope Francis, opens the Ordinary Assembly of the Synod of Bishops on the family in Rome to run through Sunday, October 25, 2015. The theme is “The vocation and mission of the family in the Church and in the modern world.” We pray during this Eucharist for the success of this Synod. May our Lord give the Church the courage to continue to defend the inviolability of the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony, which has been under attack from people promoting divorce and same-sex marriages. We pray particularly for couples in our Archdiocese who are experiencing difficulties of one sort or another. May they always remember to take their burden to our Lord and Saviour. Amen.
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 hen 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.
V/ The word of the Lord.
R/ Thanks be to God.
Comment
The first five books of the Bible are attributed to one author, Moses. They form a unit known collectively as the Pentateuch (from the Greek word for five books), or as the Torah (the Hebrew word for the Law). The first of these books is Genesis, from where the reading of this day is taken. It deals with the origin of the world, mankind and the people of Israel; the second is Exodus, which gives an account of the escape of the Jewish people from Egypt and how they wandered about in the desert for forty years; the third is Leviticus, which gives the lists of the laws of the priests of the tribe of Levi; the fourth is Numbers, gives a list of the tribes of Israel that left Egypt; and the fifth is Deuteronomy, the second Law laid down by Moses before the Israelites enter into the Promised Land.
The Book of Genesis is divided into two big parts. Part one, from where our reading is taken, gives the account of the creation of the world, the creation of the heavens and the earth followed by the creation of man and woman, Adam and Eve, our first parents. Part two, focuses on the origin and development of the chosen people of God – the Israelites.
The passage of our meditation shows how God continues to take care of man, his creature. His creation is not yet over because he realizes that man needs to be able to live in a full and deep union with another of his kind. So he creates woman, giving her the same body as man. From now it is possible for the human being to communicate. The creation of woman therefore marks the highest point of God’s love for man, who is a social being and needs company and companionship.
Of all of God’s creatures, only the human being receives God’s breath of life and that is what makes man essentially different from the animal: he has a form of life given to him directly by God. This enables man to communicate directly with God and to have a real communion with other human beings. This spirit is man’s soul.
By describing the creation of woman as coming from one of Adam’s ribs, the sacred writer is telling us clearly that man and woman have the same nature and the same dignity, for both have come from the same piece of clay that God shaped and made into a living being. When man recognizes a woman as a person who is equal to him because they are of the same nature, he discovers in her the fit partner God wanted him to have. That is why God himself clearly states that “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him” (Gn 2:18).
Authentic conjugal love requires that the man should have a profound respect for the equal dignity of his wife. Saint Ambrose, the saintly bishop of Milan, who converted Saint Augustine to the faith, says to the man: “You are not her master but her husband; she was not given to you to be your slave, but your wife. Reciprocate her attentiveness to you and be grateful to her for her love.”
In his encyclical, Familiaris consortio, Saint John Paul II says, among other things, that “conjugal communion sinks its roots in the natural complementarity that exists between man and woman, and is nurtured through the personal willingness of the spouses to share their entire life project, what they have and what they are: for this reason such communion is the fruit and the sign of a profoundly human need.”
Marriage, therefore, is an institution confirmed by the divine law. As the Church teaches us, God himself is the author of marriage and has endowed it with various benefits and with various ends in view. Let us pray for our families, especially those experiencing difficulties. “The family” in the memorable words of Pope Francis”, is the place of our initiation – unique, indelible – into this history: to this history of full life, which ends in contemplation of God for all eternity in Heaven, but (which) begins in the family!” May God, the author of marriage, bless and protect our families and bring understanding where there is discord. We make our supplication through Christ our Lord. Amen.
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.”
V/ The word of the Lord.
R/ Thanks be to God.
Comment
The Letter to the Hebrews is one of the most imposing and important books in the New Testament. It was written principally to show the superiority of Christianity over the Old Covenant. It focuses on the idea that Christ's priesthood and sacrifice are superior to those of the priests of old. The author clearly indicates that the Law of Moses is not capable of saving mankind which has fallen through Adam’s sin. Christ has therefore, through his cross, abolished and replaced the Old Law with the new Law of the Gospel, which is the law of grace, freedom and interior challenge. The sacred writer uses this teaching as the basis for encouraging us to persevere in our faith despite the difficulties we may face in our Christian life. The Letter to the Hebrews is therefore a word of exhortation to steadfastness in faith, which is not always easy especially in moments of difficulty.
In the passage we are meditating on this day, the author explains how Christ is different from the angels. He is their superior because he is the Son of God, yet for a while he is lower than them because he humbled himself by becoming man and submitting to death. The one who saves is one with the men he saves because he freely takes on the depths of man’s condition by suffering and dying.
What do we learn from the fact that Christ lowers himself for our sake? It is a lesson of humility that we take from his suffering and dying for us. Through his passion Christ is exalted and glorified for our benefit. His cross is no longer an instrument of humiliation but rather one of salvation. As the Church prays during the Liturgy of the Hours, “In the cross is victory, in the cross is power. By the cross every sin is overcome.”
Through his death, Christ has been crowned with glory and honour. His death and glorification bring about our own glorification and salvation. We give thanks to Christ our Saviour, who suffered and died on the cross that we may have eternal life and have it in abundance. Amen.
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.
V/ The Gospel of the Lord.
R/ Praise be to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
Comment
In today’s Gospel, we see the Jewish authorities confronting Jesus over a real social issue, which was as prevalent in his day as it is in ours: that of divorce. This is a scene that occurs quite often in the Bible as the Jews search for evidence to use against Jesus. Here they want to trick him to go against the Law of Moses but Jesus, Messiah and Son of God, has perfect understanding of the Law. He tells them that Moses permitted divorce because of the hardness of that ancient people: women had no say among them and so Moses permitted divorce to protect women’s dignity against the abuses of the society.
Jesus reminds them of God’s original intention when he created man and woman and put them together. “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. So they are no longer two, but one. What therefore God has joined together let no one put asunder.” Christ could not be any clearer in his rejection of the practice of divorce that was very common in his days. Through the rejection of divorce, Christ restores the dignity of man and woman to its original dignity as instituted by God at creation. Divorce is therefore not what God had in mind when he created man and woman and put them together to help and protect each other. Homosexuality was therefore never in God’s plan. As someone has put it: “God created Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve.”
So what should we do if difficulties arise in our marriage? Jesus teaches that failure in married life as a result of misunderstandings and problems are no excuse for couples to break up. Jesus’ life too was full of difficulties and suffering even to death on the cross. It is only through suffering and apparent misfortunes that we can ultimately reach the way of glory with Christ.
As Pope Francis reminds us, “Life is often wearisome. Work is tiring; looking for work is exhausting. But what is most burdensome in life is a lack of love. It weighs upon us never to receive a smile, not to be welcomed. Certain silences are oppressive, even at times within families, between husbands and wives, between parents and children, among siblings. Without love, the burden becomes even heavier. I think of elderly people living alone, and families who receive no help in caring for someone at home with special needs.»
There is no one without faults or weaknesses. So Christ is calling on married couples to learn to forgive and accept each other, and this should be a life-long process. Without compromise, no peace or harmony can be safeguarded. Experience shows us that things do go terribly wrong. People do make mistakes. Infidelities do happen. Spouses do become victims and oppressors. Broken marriages leave in their wake numerous casualties. However, as Saint John Paul II says, in his encyclical Familiaris Consortio, “It is a fundamental duty of the Church to reaffirm strongly the doctrine of the indissolubility of marriage. … Being rooted in the personal and total self-giving of the couple, and being required by the good of the children, the indissolubility of marriage finds its ultimate truth in the plan that God has manifested in his revelation: he wills and he communicates the indissolubility of marriage as a fruit, a sign and a requirement of the absolutely faithful love that God has for man and that the Lord Jesus has for the Church.”
May the Lord Jesus Christ visit all the families of our Archdiocese today. In those home where there is misunderstand, Lord instill love, trust and harmony. Amen.
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