Friday in the Nineteenth Week of Ordinary Time, Cycle I
Jos 24,1-13; Mt 19, 3-12
Today we have a truly beautiful Gospel reading which unfortunately we do not appreciate enough. We tend to read it in a certain way in order to justify ourselves or condemn others, very often interpreting it as we want, depending on our political conviction. In other words, we often model the text to suit our convictions and to prove our point rather than allowing the Good News of the Gospel to change us into better persons. In so doing, we often miss the more important and truly beautiful parts of the Gospel, which is, after all where the key to living a good life lies.
After all, this was also the problem with the Pharisees who approached him. As usual they wanted to set a trap for him. They wanted to put him into categories: do you form part of the school of Rabbis who believe this and that or are you part of the school of the other Rabbi who believed this and the other? (Does this sound familiar?)
Far from dodging the questions, Jesus gives a much more comprehensive answer, a much more beautiful response, and which is not directed only to married couples, specifically those with marital problems! The Good News is directed to the whole of humanity and therefore this is how we must receive it!
First, Jesus says, "From the beginning, the Creator made them male and female." This statement is already a bold statement that we tend to overlook. How was it from the beginning? We can look at the First Reading from the Book of Joshua to help our memory. There we read how God has dealt with their ancestors as far back as Abraham. God speaks of God's infinite love, God's tenderness, God's faithfulness to the Covenant with Abraham and to his descendants. We read of the wonders that God wrought of the blessings that God poured upon them and of how many times God delivered them from death at hands of the enemy.
In other words, from the beginning, we we loved into existence by God. The first sign of God's love is that we are created by God, in other words, imagined, thought of planned, and not simply the result of coincidence. This further emphasised by the words, he "Created them male and female." In other words, he created both with the same dignity, the whole of humanity, not one group or class or ethnic race or gender better or superior to the other. It is good to hear these words, especially in these times when even these basic truths seem to be questioned.
Therefore our underlying motivation for our love for each other - whether it is family love, or friendship, or one expressed in marriage - must always be God's constant and unending love for us, even before we were even able to do anything to be loved for in return. Even then, God loved us.
Our response comes from Jesus' reply to the disciples to tell him, "If it is so demanding, then it is better not to marry at all." The disciples, like us like cutting corners. I do what is better for me, what brings me into least trouble, what is less demanding. But there again Jesus directs us to something much higher. He wants to show us that the ultimate good that we must strive for is God himself. Whatever decision one makes in life, especially the life-changing or life-determining decisions, they must be made with God as the ultimate end in sight.
And because we are human, we know that we do not always live up to this ideal. So when we become aware of our failings, we must be humble enough to ask God's help, ask God to purify our intentions and start all over again!
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