Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate

 

 Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished these sayings, that He departed from Galilee and came to the region of Judea beyond the Jordan.  And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them there.  The Pharisees also came to Him, testing Him, and saying to Him, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for just any reason?"  And He answered and said to them, "Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning 'made them male and female,' and said, '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 then, they are no longer two but one flesh . Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate."  They said to Him, "Why then did Moses command to give a certificate of divorce, and to put her away?"  He said to them, "Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so.  And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced commits adultery."  

 

His disciples said to Him, "If such is the case of the man with his wife, it is better not to marry."  But He said to them, "All cannot accept this saying, but only those to whom it has been given:  For there are eunuchs who were born thus from their mother's womb, and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake.  He who is able to accept it, let him accept it."

 

- Matthew 19:1-12 

 

On Saturday we read that, after Jesus gave a formula for mutual correction in the Church, Peter came to Him and said, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him?  Up to seven times?"  Jesus said to him, "I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.  Therefore the kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants.  And when he had begun to settle accounts, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents.  But as he was not able to pay, his master commanded that he be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and that payment be made.  The servant therefore fell down before him, saying, 'Master, have patience with me, and I will pay you all.'  Then the master of that servant was moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt.  But that servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii; and he laid hands on him and took him by the throat, saying, 'Pay me what you owe!'   So his fellow servant fell down at his feet and begged him, saying, 'Have patience with me, and I will pay you all.'  And he would not, but went and threw him into prison till he should pay the debt.  So when his fellow servants saw what had been done, they were very grieved, and came and told their master all that had been done.  Then his master, after he had called him, said to him, 'You wicked servant!  I forgave you all that debt because you begged me.  Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?'  And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him.  So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses."

 

  Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished these sayings, that He departed from Galilee and came to the region of Judea beyond the Jordan.  And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them there.  The Pharisees also came to Him, testing Him, and saying to Him, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for just any reason?"  And He answered and said to them, "Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning 'made them male and female,' and said, '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 then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate."  They said to Him, "Why then did Moses command to give a certificate of divorce, and to put her away?"  He said to them, "Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so.  And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced commits adultery."  My study Bible explains that the basis of the Pharisees' test is Deuteronomy 24:1-4.  God's condescension, or allowance for human weakness, does not override the original principle of permanent monogamous marriage as revealed in Genesis 1; 2.  With authority, my study Bible teaches, Christ adds His own clear prohibition against divorce here ("So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate . . . And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced commits adultery").  Regarding Christ's last statement here, my study Bible also notes that the permissible reasons for divorce were expanded in the ancient Church.  These included threat to a spouse's or child's life and desertion, in all cases acknowledging the spiritual tragedy of such a situation.  In each of these cases for divorce, it's made clear that marriage can be destroyed by sin.  

 

 His disciples said to Him, "If such is the case of the man with his wife, it is better not to marry."  But He said to them, "All cannot accept this saying, but only those to whom it has been given:  For there are eunuchs who were born thus from their mother's womb, and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake.  He who is able to accept it, let him accept it."  Here my study Bible comments that Christ is steering the disciples toward understanding the holiness of virginity.  This comes not as a rejection of marriage but rather as a special calling for some -- to whom it has been given. Eunuchs were common in the ancient world; they were men who had been castrated -- either by birth defect, disease, or mutilation -- and were frequently employed to guard women of nobility.  Here Jesus is using this term figuratively to indicate those who freely choose lifelong celibacy for the sake of the kingdom of heaven.  This consecrated virginity, my study Bible adds, is not to be confused with self-mutilation, which the Church condemned at the First Ecumenical Council (AD 325).  See also 1 Corinthians 7:7, 25-38 for St. Paul's considerations on this subject.

 

 It seems quite important to understand that when Christ speaks of eunuchs, He does not speak of celibacy for its own sake, for we notice He contrasts "eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men," and "eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake."  It seems quite noticeable that the difference between the two is dedication and purpose: for the kingdom of heaven's sake.  That this discussion (and a type of introduction of monasticism) comes at the end of a discussion about marriage as a holy and sacramental institution is no seeming accident, and gives us pause to consider celibacy in this light.  For celibacy as a matter of purpose and dedication is what Christ is talking about.  Just as celibacy is expected and understood outside of marriage for a married person, so a person (such as a monastic) is dedicated to their purpose of serving the kingdom of heaven with fidelity.  We could say then, that such a type of celibacy indicates a marriage to God and to God's kingdom as the primary bond in life, as husbands and wives are united to one another.  But marriage itself comes under the same bond in this sense, when we are speaking of marriage within the Church and as part of a holy sacrament.  For Jesus puts it in these terms, making it clear that this union is something that God has put together:  As with other teachings He gives, Jesus begins with the Old Testament, quoting from Genesis 2:24:  "For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh."  But adds His own strong prohibition against the breaking of this sacred bond, and making it clear that it is God who creates that bond, not man and wife alone and of themselves:  "So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate."   So two people joined together by God echo the joining of an individual to the kingdom of heaven by God.  Just as eunuchs in historical times served their purposes of guarding palaces, and in particular the women who were a part of royal life, those who would be wives and mothers of dynasties, so the "eunuch" who serves the kingdom of God does so to serve and to protect it, building up through prayer strength, protection, and the spiritual walls of God's kingdom here on earth.  Celibacy plays a role in devotion and dedication, just as fidelity is important in a marriage (and we note that Jesus makes an exception for sexual immorality in the case of divorce).  We can see by their reactions just how astonishing an idea this is for the disciples, that marriage should carry with it the kind of dedication Christ is speaking of here.  But it is in emphasizing that kind of fidelity and chastity that Christ introduces the concept of celibacy for the sake of serving the kingdom of heaven, and so this level of dedication becomes a keystone of the Church through His teaching and even through His view on marriage itself.  There is a sense of commitment that runs more deeply below the usual sense of autonomy in a modern world, a bond that we can assume from Christ's words that only God can create.  Let us consider what it is to build a consecrated life; that is one lived for the kingdom of heaven's sake.  We could consider the prophets of the Old Testament as those who lived this commitment, and John the Baptist most deeply illustrating such a life, for he is the one in whose image the monastic life of the Church was inspired and built.  The holy institution of marriage is sanctified through the Church as one of its mysteries, Christ's first sign in St. John's Gospel being that which took place at a wedding, the water turned to wine of covenant and sacred bond, the beginning of Christ's ministry, so fruitfully brought about at the word and perhaps inspiration of His mother the Theotokos.  In these stories we find bond, commitment, mystery, sacred covenant, and the deep faith that goes into a life of service for the kingdom of heaven.  Let us consider our lives and the covenants that build faith, a deep trust, a way to find who we are through the mysteries of Christ and the consecration He makes possible. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things?

 

 Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name when they saw the signs which He did.  But Jesus did not commit Himself to them, because He knew all men, and had no need that anyone should testify of man, for He knew what was in man. 

There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews.  This man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, "Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him."  Jesus answered and said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."  Nicodemus said to Him, "How can a man be born when he is old?  Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?"  Jesus answered, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.  That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.  Do not marvel that I said to you, 'You must be born again.'  The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes.  So is everyone who is born of the Spirit."  Nicodemus answered and said to Him, "How can these things be?"  Jesus answered and said to him, "Are you the teacher of Israel, and do not know these things?  Most assuredly, I say to you, We speak what We know and testify what We have seen, and you do not receive our witness.  If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things?  No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven.  And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life."

 

- John 2:23—3:15 

 

Yesterday we read that the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.  And He found in the temple those who sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers doing business.  When He had made a whip of cords, He drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen, and poured out the changers' money and overturned the tables.   And He said to those who sold doves, "Take these things away!  Do not make My Father's house a house of merchandise!"  Then His disciples remembered that it was written, "Zeal for Your house has eaten Me up."  So the Jews answered and said to Him, "What sign do You show to us, since You do these things?"  Jesus answered and said to them, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up."  Then the Jews said, "It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?"  But He was speaking of the temple of His body.  Therefore, when He had risen from the dead, His disciples remembered that He had said this to them; and they believed the Scripture and the word which Jesus had said.

 

 Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name when they saw the signs which He did.  But Jesus did not commit Himself to them, because He knew all men, and had no need that anyone should testify of man, for He knew what was in man.  How do we know that Christ's earthly ministry lasted three years?  It is in John's Gospel that Jesus is recorded attending three Passover feasts between His Baptism and His Passion.  The other two occurrences are at John 6:4 and 11:55.  Here John testifies to Christ as the "knower of hearts,"  an attribute of God (see also Acts 1:24, 15:8).

 

 There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews.  This man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, "Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him."   My study Bible says that Nicodemus, this man of the Pharisees, believed that Jesus was from God, but here his faith is still week, as he was afraid of his peers and so therefore came to Jesus by night.  After this conversation, Nicodemus' faith will grow to the point of taking the brave step of defending Jesus before the Sanhedrin (John 7:50-51), and eventually making the bold public expression of faith in preparing and entombing the Lord's body, together with Joseph of Arimathea, another prominent member of the ruling Council (John 19:38-42).  According to some early sources, my study Bible adds, Nicodemus was baptized by Peter and consequently removed from the Sanhedrin, and forced to flee Jerusalem.  

Jesus answered and said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."  My study Bible notes that the term in Greek translated as born again can also be translated as "born from above."  It clearly, therefore, refers to the heavenly birth from God through faith in Christ (John 1:12-13).  This heavenly birth is baptism, and our adoption by God as our Father (Galatians 4:4-7).  The new birth, my study Bible tells us, is just the beginning of our spiritual life.  The goal of this life is the entrance into the kingdom of God.  

Nicodemus said to Him, "How can a man be born when he is old?  Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?"  Here Nicodemus misunderstands, and so questions the possibility of a second physical birth.  Misunderstandings are frequent occurrences in John's Gospel (see John 2:19-21; 4:10-14, 30-34; 6:27; 7:37-39; 11:11-15).  Jesus uses such opportunities to elevate an idea from a superficial or earthly meaning to a heavenly and eternal meaning.  

Jesus answered, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God."   Christ makes clear that to be "born again" (or "from above") is a reference to Christian baptism and the gift of the Holy Spirit given at chrismation; that is, to be born of water and the Spirit.  

"That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.  Do not marvel that I said to you, 'You must be born again.'"   To be adopted as a child of God is not a matter of the flesh, but a matter of the spirit.  My study Bible calls it a spiritual birth by grace, through faith, and in the Holy Spirit.  This is the action in the sacrament of Holy Baptism (see also Titus 3:4-7). 

"The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes.  So is everyone who is born of the Spirit."   This is a play on words used by Jesus:  the Greek word πνευμα/pneuma means both wind and Spirit.  My study Bible comments that the working of the Holy Spirit in the new birth is as mysterious as the source and destination of the blowing wind.  Similarly, the Spirit moves where He wills and He cannot be contained by human ideas or agendas.  This is yet another attribute of God.

 

 Nicodemus answered and said to Him, "How can these things be?"  Jesus answered and said to him, "Are you the teacher of Israel, and do not know these things?  Most assuredly, I say to you, We speak what We know and testify what We have seen, and you do not receive our witness.  If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things? No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven."  According to St. John Chrysostom, my study Bible notes here, earthly things refer to grace and baptism given to human beings.  These are earthly, not in the sense of "unspiritual," but only in the sense that they happen on earth, and that they are given to creatures.  The heavenly things would concern the ungraspable mysteries of the eternal generation of the Son from the Father, and they relate to Christ's eternal existence before all time and to God's divine plan of salvation for the world.  It says that a person must first grasp the ways in which God works among human beings before one can begin to understand the things that would pertain to God Himself.  

 

 "And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life."  Jesus refers to the time during Israel's wandering when Moses lifted up an image of a serpent to cure the Israelites from deadly bites of poisonous snakes (Numbers 21:4-9).  This miracle-working image, my study Bible notes, prefigured Christ being lifted up on the Cross.  As believers behold the crucified Christ in faith, it says, the power of sin and death is overthrown in them.  Just as the image of a serpent was the weapon that destroyed the power of the serpents, so the instrument of Christ's death becomes the weapon that overthrows death itself.  

There is a lot of what we might call "paradox" to contemplate in today's reading.  First of all there is the classic sort of misunderstanding that occurs when Nicodemus hears Christ's "earthly" descriptions of being "born again" or "born from above" in Baptism.  This is the way that we are introduced to this subject through Christ's teachings with Nicodemus in John's Gospel.  This paradox of earthly understanding and what we might call the sacramental understanding contained in the things of the Church and the ministry of Jesus Christ to us in the world becomes the foundation of our faith, and what we experience in our faith.  It is this paradox of spiritual things coming together with worldly things -- the spiritual reality of Christ permeating worldly things to be present to us -- in which we find the practice of our faith.  Thus, Christ uses worldly terms to describe what is a sacramental event, the "washing" of the Holy Spirit in Baptism.  When we are "born again" or "born from above" it is in this sacramental coming together of earthly elements and the Holy Spirit working through them.  This sort of paradox gives us a picture of so much that is a part of our faith, of the birth of Jesus Christ Himself through the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary, so that as Son of Man He is both fully divine and fully human.  As He indicates in today's reading, He is that Son of Man who came down from heaven, so that He is both heavenly and earthly at the same time.  Moreover, Jesus gives us in today's reading a teaching about the final sign that will come in His ministry, His "lifting up" on the Cross.  So, just as Moses was directed by God to lift up the image of the snake for the people to focus on, to save them from the venom of the snakes biting them, so Jesus will also be the life-giving image on the Cross for all of us -- and through this instrument of dreaded death by Roman punishment, He will be the ultimate Liberator from death for all of us.  This paradoxical event is perhaps the greatest paradox for us of all, but it is the way our God comes into the world as one of us, interacting with all that we know, and transforming all of it, even with us in this world.  But just as Christ says in today's reading, it's important to remember that "the wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes."  This power of the Holy Spirit is the power of God at work, as unpredictable to us as where the wind comes from and where it goes, for God works in ways we don't know and don't understand -- we cannot contain nor prescribe the way of God.   "For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord (Isaiah 55:8).  As Jesus says, these things are "earthly things," for Nicodemus as a teacher of Israel surely must know of the working of the Holy Spirit through the events of the Old Testament, God finding ways to be present and active among God's people.  But these are sacramental things, where God comes to work with us, within us, and among us amidst the things of this world.  In our sacraments of the Church, earthly things become vehicles by which and through which God is active in the world -- such as in the sacrament of the Eucharist.  These are mysteries to us, but they are mysteries made for us here in this world, just as the Son of Man has come down from heaven for us as well.  Let us be grateful for the things He reveals, and the gifts of sacrament we are given.  

 

 

 

Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate

 

 Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished these sayings, that He departed from Galilee and came to the region of Judea beyond the Jordan.  And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them there.  The Pharisees also came to Him, testing Him, and saying to Him, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for just any reason?"  And He answered and said to them, "Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning 'made them male and female,' and said, '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 then, they are no longer two but one flesh.  Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate."  They said to Him, "Why then did Moses command to give a certificate of divorce, and to put her away?"  He said to them, "Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so.  And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced commits adultery."  

 

His disciples said to Him, "If such is the case of the man with his wife, it is better not to marry."  But He said to them, "All cannot accept this saying, but only those to whom it has been given:  For there are eunuchs who were born thus from their mother's womb, and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake.  He who is able to accept it, let him accept it." 

 

- Matthew 19:1-12 

 

On Saturday we read that, after Jesus had given a formula for mutual correction and reconciliation in the Church, Peter came to Him and said, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him?  Up to seven times?"  Jesus said to him, "I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.  Therefore the kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants.  And when he had begun to settle accounts, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents.  But as he was not able to pay, his master commanded that he be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and that payment be made.  The servant therefore fell down before him, saying, 'Master, have patience with me, and I will pay you all.'  Then the master of that servant was moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt.  But that servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii; and he laid hands on him and took him by the throat, saying, 'Pay me what you owe!'  So his fellow servant fell down at his feet and begged him, saying, 'Have patience with me, and I will pay you all.'  And he would not, but went and threw him into prison till he should pay the debt.  So when his fellow servants saw what had been done, they were very grieved, and came and told their master all that had been done.  Then his master, after he had called him, said to him, 'You wicked servant!  I forgave you all that debt because you begged me.  Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?'  And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him.  So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses."

 

Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished these sayings, that He departed from Galilee and came to the region of Judea beyond the Jordan.  And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them there.  The Pharisees also came to Him, testing Him, and saying to Him, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for just any reason?"  And He answered and said to them, "Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning 'made them male and female,' and said, '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 then, they are no longer two but one flesh.  Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate."  They said to Him, "Why then did Moses command to give a certificate of divorce, and to put her away?"  He said to them, "Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so.  And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced commits adultery." My study Bible explains that the basis of the test by these Pharisees is Deuteronomy 24:1-4.  God's condescension, or allowance for human weakness, my study Bible says, does not override the original principle of permanent monogamous marriage as revealed in Genesis 1 and 2.  With authority, Christ adds His own prohibition against divorce ("So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate"; "And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced commits adultery").  Additionally, my study Bible remarks that the permissible reasons for divorce in the ancient Church were expanded to include threat to a spouse's or child's life and desertion.  Clearly, although the original intent of marriage as eternal remains, and is therefore a sacrament in the Church, the marriage bond is one that can be destroyed by sin.  In all cases, however, the spiritual tragedy of such a situation must be acknowledged.  

 

 His disciples said to Him, "If such is the case of the man with his wife, it is better not to marry."  But He said to them, "All cannot accept this saying, but only those to whom it has been given:  For there are eunuchs who were born thus from their mother's womb, and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake.  He who is able to accept it, let him accept it."  My study Bible comments here that Christ steers the disciples toward understanding the holiness of virginity, not as a rejection of marriage, but rather as a special calling for those to whom it has been given.  Eunuchs were men who had been castrated, whether by birth defect, disease, or mutilation, and were often employed to guard women of nobility.  Indeed, in empires of the past, eunuchs employed as such a class grew to wield great power.  But Jesus uses this term figuratively for those who freely choose lifelong celibacy for the sake of the kingdom of heaven, devoting themselves to the love of God.  This is a consecrated virginity which isn't to be confused with any form of self-mutilation, which was condemned by the Church at the First Ecumenical Council (AD 325). 

 

What is the value of marriage?   In terms of the Scriptures, the very first relationship established in the Bible between human beings is that of marriage.  It comes second only to the relationship between God and human beings and other creatures.  We should remember that marriage in a Biblical context is a relationship that is mediated by God (hence it is a sacrament in the Church).  It is not simply a union between human beings alone.  In Malachi 2:13-16, the prophet reports that God laments over the abandonment or forsaking of wives; God holds the husband accountable.  My study Bible comments on that passage that, among other things, it shows that marriage brings companionship; that is, an intimate relationship and partnership between spouses.   As such we can look at marriage as the true building block and foundation of community, of society.  Possibly we should say of the kind of society that we want to have.  This is because in a good marriage we have a model and foundation for the types of relationships we wish to spread in the society.  If we keep in mind that it is the Lord also who is a part of this marriage, who mediates marriage and whose reality of love we wish to permeate and grow within the marriage, then we must come to understand that it is the quality of the relationship that makes the great difference here.  We know what abuse causes; we understand that sin of various kinds can destroy a marriage relationship, and that this has been recognized historically by the Church.  But we also must come to see that love itself requires certain standards and norms.  Love is not simply blind devotion, and neither is it the acceptance of lies or falsehoods, abusive ideologies, or power hierarchies.  It is a mutual communion with God as part of that communion, and service to God as part of devotion.  That is, an understanding that we grow in learning this love, in understanding what is good for us and for other human beings.  Neither is marriage a kind of dumping ground for rage, anger, envy, and other kinds of harmful activities directed either at one another, other members of the family, or outward at other people.  For all of these things remain in the context of a marriage as sacrament, marriage as part of covenant with God, where the Lord is present, even as we have recently read Jesus say, "For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them" (Matthew 18:20).  A truly good marriage is on the firm ground of Christ's teaching that all the Law and the Prophets hang on the two commandments to love God, and neighbor as oneself (Matthew 22:36-40).  We begin with the understanding that God is love (1 John 4:8), and therefore if God is the true foundation for marriage, then it is the practice and action of living love, of growing and learning in love, that forms the basis for the society we want, this basic first relationship found in marriage.  From there, we hope that the fruits of marriage, in fact, expand this living love, filling the need to grow in understanding of how to put love into action.  If we begin only with the basic idea that marriage is just two people forming relationship -- without the presence of God as we understand God as love -- then the purpose of marriage no longer holds that important place of separating abuse from love, harm from blessing.  It is within the context of loving communion, the foundation of God who is love, that marriage forms a basis for the whole world, for true community.  Let us consider the mystery of this sacrament.

 

 

For the life of the world

 

 The Jews then complained about Him, because He said, "I am the bread which came down from heaven."  And they said, "Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know?  How is it then that He says, 'I have come down from heaven'?"  Jesus therefore answered and said to them, "Do not murmur among yourselves.  No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day.  It is written in the prophets, 'And they shall all be taught by God.'  Therefore everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me.  Not that anyone has seen the Father, except He who is from God; He has seen the Father.  

 

"Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life.  I am the bread of life.  Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness and are dead.  This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that one may eat of it and not die.  I am the living bread which came down from heaven.  If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give in My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world."

 

- John 6:41-51 

 

In yesterday's reading, Jesus taught the crowds who had wanted to make Him king:  "Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him."  Then they said to Him, "What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?"  Jesus answered and said to them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent."  Therefore they said to Him, "What sign will You perform then, that we may see it and believe You?  What work will You do?  Our fathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'"  Then Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you the true bread from heaven  For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world."  Then they said to Him, "Lord, give us this bread always."  And Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life.  He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.  But I said to you that you have seen Me and yet do not believe.  All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.  For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.  This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all He has given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day.  And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day."

 

 

The Jews then complained about Him, because He said, "I am the bread which came down from heaven."  And they said, "Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know?  How is it then that He says, 'I have come down from heaven'?"  Jesus therefore answered and said to them, "Do not murmur among yourselves.  No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day.  It is written in the prophets, 'And they shall all be taught by God.'  Therefore everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me.  Not that anyone has seen the Father, except He who is from God; He has seen the Father."  Here is an interesting exchange, taking place in Galilee.  These religious leaders know Jesus and His extended family:  the reference once again is to the earthly things they know.  How can Jesus claim such things?  But Christ answers in a most interesting way.  All along, He has spoken about His connection to the Father as Son, the close union of obedience.  Here, He shares something about every human being:  that those who are drawn to Christ are also drawn by God the Father.  He also specifically indicates His particular relation as one who is from God and has seen the Father. 

 

"Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life.  I am the bread of life.  Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness and are dead.  This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that one may eat of it and not die.  I am the living bread which came down from heaven.  If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give in My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world."   Jesus emphasizes the life-giving quality of the bread that He offers, and moreover reveals a hint that He Himself will voluntarily die in the flesh, for the life of the world.  My study bible comments that the eucharistic significance of this passage (and the verses which will follow in Monday's reading) is indisputable.  Jesus' declaration that He is the living bread that gives life is a revelation of the Mystical Supper of the New Testament Church. 

To my mind, there is no statement of greater significance than the one in which Jesus tells us that He will give His flesh "for the life of the world."  This is because, in the collective wisdom of the Church, this statement has come to be understood in every dimension possible.  That is to say that "the life of the world" means the life of the world:  all of creation and everything in it.  I would be remiss if I did not recommend here a wonderful book, which can be read and re-read time and again:  For the Life of the World, by Fr. Alexander Schmemann, who gives so much to our understanding.  The word for "world" in the Greek text is not planet earth, but cosmos/κοσμος, the entire created order.  That means a universe of existence, both seen and unseen, and everything in it.  This event of the Passion and Christ's voluntary human death on the Cross, will not be given only that we human beings may be with Him in that promise of life that is eternal, but for all of the created reality -- and that means all things that are part of it.  Christ's sacrifice will be for the life and renewal of everything and everyone.  What is a world touched by this life?  My study bible speaks of the sacramental (specifically eucharistic) significance of Christ's words.  In the Eucharist, bread becomes "living bread," mystically imbued with life, His Body and Blood.  But in this very sense of sacrament, the whole created order can be returned to Christ to be given this life that He is going to offer, enacted and given through His voluntary sacrifice of His human life, His flesh.   Because of His sacrifice, and the life He offers which transforms the dreaded Cross into an instrument of salvation, anything can become a part of a sacramental life.  We can devote our careers, no matter where they are or what they might be, to Christ.  We can dedicate our entire lives to living His gospel, no matter what events may shape our histories.  We can take a garden in our house and dedicate it to the life of God, seeking in prayer how to make it beautiful, finding a purpose in that cultivation of beauty for the glory of God.  We can teach our children, we can nurture a friend or help a stranger, we can cook a meal, we can pray over anything.  Our prayers mean far more than we think for the renewal and help of those living and who have passed.  The smallest effort is not wasted, and time and space are of no barrier to such sacramental practice.  We just cannot limit the dimensions into which this understanding can be placed, put to use, come to help, to survive and to thrive, and especially to save.  A single word in the right place and the right time can save a life, can give the hopeless hope.  An abused and neglected animal can be shown love.  There is no forgotten corner of the universe that cannot be sprinkled with Christ's transfiguring love and mercy through us, through our prayer, through our compassion, in imitation of and work for Him in faith.  Christ our Creator is the author of all creation; therefore His life is for all creation.   Let us consider what we call the world, for it is so much broader and more deeply expanded than what we can imagine -- and He calls us to use our imagination in this service and this sacrament, His call for salvation.  Let us follow and truly hear all that He offers!

 

 

If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me

Rich Young Man, Armenian Illuminated Manuscript - T'oros Roslin (active 1256-1268) c. 1262, Hromklay.  Walters Art Museum, Baltimore, Maryland

 Then little children were brought to Him that He might put His hands on them and pray, but the disciples rebuked them.  But Jesus said, "Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven."  And He laid His hands on them and departed from there.

Now behold, one came and said to Him, "Good Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?"  So He said to him, "Why do you call Me good?  No one is good but One, that is, God.  But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments."  He said to Him, "Which ones?"  Jesus said, " 'You shall not murder,' 'You shall not commit adultery.' 'You shall not steal,' 'You shall not bear false witness,' 'Honor your father and your mother,' and, 'You shall love neighbor as yourself.' "  The young man said to Him, "All these things I have kept from my youth.  What do I still lack?"  Jesus said to him, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me."  But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

- Matthew 19:13-22

Yesterday we read that, after Christ's teachings on the "littlest ones" and discipline within the Church (see readings from Friday and Saturday), He departed from Galilee and came to the region of Judea beyond the Jordan.  And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them there.  The Pharisees also came to Him, testing Him, and saying to Him, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for just any reason?"  And He answered and said to them, "Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning 'made them male and female,' and said, '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 then, they are no longer two but one flesh.  Therefore what God has joined together; let not man separate."  They said to Him, "Why then did Moses command to give a certificate of divorce, and to put her away?"  He said to them, "Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so.  And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced commits adultery."  His disciples said to Him, "If such is the case of the man with his wife, it is better not to marry."  But He said to them, "All cannot accept this saying, but only those to whom it has been given:  For there are eunuchs who were born thus from their mother's womb, and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake.  He who is able to accept it, let him accept it."

 Then little children were brought to Him that He might put His hands on them and pray, but the disciples rebuked them.  But Jesus said, "Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven."  And He laid His hands on them and departed from there.  My study bible suggests the comments of Theophan here, that the disciples rebuked the mothers for bringing little children to Christ both because their manner was "unruly" and because they thought that children "diminished His dignity as Teacher and Master."  It notes that Christ rejects this thinking, and sets little children as an example of those who inherit the kingdom of heaven.  Therefore children are invited -- even as possible example to adults -- to participate in the Kingdom via prayer, worship, baptism, chrismation, and (in many denominations, and especially the Eastern churches) Communion.

Now behold, one came and said to Him, "Good Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?"  So He said to him, "Why do you call Me good?  No one is good but One, that is, God.  But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments."  He said to Him, "Which ones?"  Jesus said, " 'You shall not murder,' 'You shall not commit adultery.' 'You shall not steal,' 'You shall not bear false witness,' 'Honor your father and your mother,' and, 'You shall love neighbor as yourself.' "  My study bible comments that this man does not come to test Jesus, but to seek advice from one he considers to be no more than a good Teacher.  Christ's response, "Why do you call Me good?  No one is good but One, that is, God" is not a denial that He is God, but is rather designed to lead the rich man to his knowledge.

The young man said to Him, "All these things I have kept from my youth.  What do I still lack?"  My study bible notes that formal observance of commandments does not make one righteous before God.  This man has an earnest desire for eternal life, and therefore senses that he still lacks something.  Therefore, he continues to press Jesus for an answer.

Jesus said to him, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me."  But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.  My study bible tells us that to be perfect, one must willingly sacrifice all and follow Christ.  It adds that this must be given freely; implying that what is compulsory is not truly helpful.  But the specifics of how each one follows Christ will be different for each.  This man is not simply wealthy, but wealth has a deep hold upon him; in some sense he is enslaved to his possessions.  Therefore, his hope is to sell and give away those possessions and be free to follow Christ.  My study bible cites St. John Chrysostom here, who says that giving away possessions is the least of Christ's instructions to the man.  It is a far more difficult calling to follow Christ in all things.

In yesterday's reading and commentary, we discussed the concept of sacrament in the context of marriage.  In today's reading, there is again a hint about the life of sacrament as given in the Church.  This is a concept in this context not so much about the formal mysteries of the Church and its rites, but the meaning behind them.  That is, in a very simple way of putting things, we seek to live a "sacramental" life by turning to God the things of this world, of our lives, of ourselves all these gifts we have been given, and we receive in return a grace conferred of how we will live in relation to all these things.  In other words, we offer ourselves and all we own or have in our control to God, so that they are given back to us for good use with God's purposes.  That's a rather simple way of explanation, and perhaps some very erudite and well-versed theologians might take issue with how I word it, but it is the basis for our lives in Christ, as well as the practices of the Church.  It is a mirror of the Cross and Jesus' Passion, whereby He gave His life for us and through the love of the Father, and God the Father in return through Christ bestows the capacity for eternal life and communion which includes the whole of the faithful in the body of Christ and the gift of the Spirit.  In today's reading, Christ's request of this man with many possessions is not a selfish request, it's not a punishment, it's not even sacrifice for the sake of sacrifice.  Neither is it simply an instruction that he must share what he has with the poor.  (He already follows the commandments -- which include loving neighbor as oneself and presumably commands for practicing charity, and we are given to understand his innate goodness of character and conduct.)   What is asked of this young man is a willful giving up of the things which keep him from fully and freely following Christ.  His possessions act as a kind of stumbling block, something to which he is chained and because of which he is not truly free.  They hold him back from becoming the person he can be, from the promise of eternal life in Christ.  Let us note that by suggesting he sell those possessions and give to the poor, it is not simply helping the poor, but it is also ridding himself of possessions which in a real sense tie him down and make him not free -- Christ does not simply suggest giving them away but even selling them first and then distributing to the poor, a double emphasis on truly parting from the possessions themselves and not even retaining the money to purchase again.  This is for the purpose of being more free to follow Christ, and who knows what would come out of such a life of freedom?  Perhaps he may have become someone once again with wealth to control, perhaps in service to the poor or to the Church or both.  The point is that whatever blessings we have in some sense belong to God in the first place, and through a sacramental life we return those things to God for God's purpose and goals and guidance.  This is also the idea of leading a prayerful life, which places all things in the hands of God, and seek to live life in a way pleasing to God.  We do not know what purpose God will find for us or for the things we have been given in life.  But we do know that in God's hands, and through that transformational power of the Cross, even the hard and difficult things in life may be transformed into blessings and benefits.  A difficult experience of hardship may be returned to us through a prayerful life as compassion for others, an ability to help or even to pray for others as needed.  Think about the power of making such a sacrifice as was asked of this young man put into the hands and leadership of Christ.  When we do that -- and if this man had done so -- there is no telling what might have come out of such a tremendous gesture combined with the potency and help of grace.  Mark's Gospel, in fact, tells us that Jesus loved this man (Mark 10:21); therefore, His subsequent directive to sell all he had and give to the poor was a commandment given in love.  When we face our own lives and take stock, of all that we are, all that we have, and all that we have been given in life -- both the good and the bad -- let us consider how we can free ourselves through putting all of it in the hands of God.  Giving up a debt (possibly in the form of a hurt or sin against us) is also practicing forgiveness -- putting even the harmful things in life in the hands of God.  This is how we are taught to live both through Jesus' example and teachings, and especially in the Cross, in His Passion.  It is what marks us, and also what sets us free.  The example of the children takes us to the humility entailed in such freedom, through the gesture of letting go of all that defines us, so that we find ourselves in Him.

Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for just any reason?

Saints Joachim and Anna, parents of the Virgin Mary, 17th century, Russia

Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished these sayings, that He departed from Galilee and came to the region of Judea beyond the Jordan.  And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them there.  The Pharisees also came to Him, testing Him, and saying to Him, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for just any reason?"  And He answered and said to them, "Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning 'made them male and female,' and said, '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 then, they are no longer two but one flesh.  Therefore what God has joined together; let not man separate."  They said to Him, "Why then did Moses command to give a certificate of divorce, and to put her away?"  He said to them, "Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so.  And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced commits adultery."  His disciples said to Him, "If such is the case of the man with his wife, it is better not to marry."  But He said to them, "All cannot accept this saying, but only those to whom it has been given:  For there are eunuchs who were born thus from their mother's womb, and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake.  He who is able to accept it, let him accept it."

- Matthew 19:1-12

On Saturday we read that, after Jesus gave a formula for mutual correction within the Church, Peter came to Him and said, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him?  Up to seven times?"  Jesus said to him, "I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.  Therefore the kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants.  And when he had begun to settle accounts, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents.  But as he was not able to pay, his master commanded that he be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and that payment be made.  The servant therefore fell down before him, saying, 'Master, have patience with me, and I will pay you all.'  Then the master of that servant was moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt.  But that servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii; and he laid hands on him and took him by the throat, saying, 'Pay me what you owe!'  So his fellow servant fell down at his feet and begged him, saying, 'Have patience with me, and I will pay you all.'  And he would not, but went and threw him into prison till he should pay the debt.  So when his fellow servants saw what had been done, they were very grieved, and came and told their master all that had been done.  Then his master, after he had called him, said to him, 'You wicked servant!  I forgave you all that debt because you begged me.  Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?'  And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him.  So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses."

Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished these sayings, that He departed from Galilee and came to the region of Judea beyond the Jordan.  And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them there.  The Pharisees also came to Him, testing Him, and saying to Him, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for just any reason?"  And He answered and said to them, "Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning 'made them male and female,' and said, '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 then, they are no longer two but one flesh.  Therefore what God has joined together; let not man separate."  They said to Him, "Why then did Moses command to give a certificate of divorce, and to put her away?"   My study bible tells us that the basis for the Pharisees' test of Christ regarding divorce is Deuteronomy 24:1-4.  At the time of Christ, easy divorce for men was the practice (a Jewish woman could not initiate divorce).  But this was a source of debate among the Jewish religious leadership, with the Pharisees generally agreeing with Jesus in limiting easy divorce for just any reason.   It says that the condescension of God -- God's allowance for human weakness, does not override the original principle of permanent monogamous marriage as revealed in Genesis 1; 2.  With His authority, Christ adds His own clear prohibition against divorce, in verse 6 here, and following below in verse 9.

He said to them, "Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so.  And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced commits adultery."  My study bible explains that in the ancient Church, the permissible reasons for divorce were expanded to include threat to a spouse's or child's life and desertion.  In all cases, however, the Church acknowledges the spiritual tragedy of such a situation.  In other words, it is sin that abuses and breaks relationships sanctioned and made holy by God.

His disciples said to Him, "If such is the case of the man with his wife, it is better not to marry."  But He said to them, "All cannot accept this saying, but only those to whom it has been given:  For there are eunuchs who were born thus from their mother's womb, and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake.  He who is able to accept it, let him accept it."  My study bible says that Christ steers the disciples toward an understanding of the holiness of virginity in the context of devotion to God, not as a rejection of marriage, but as a special calling for those to whom it has been given.  Eunuchs were men who had been castrated, possibly by birth defect, disease, or mutilation.  Until relatively recently historically speaking, they were frequently employed to guard women of nobility, and we might be surprised at what power they wielded in various empires.  But here, Jesus uses this term figuratively, for those who freely choose lifelong celibacy for the sake of the kingdom of heaven, devotion to the service of God.  This consecrated virginity, my study bible says, isn't to be confused with self-mutilation,  which was condemned at the First Ecumenical Council in AD 325.

If we pay close attention to Jesus' words regarding marriage, there are at least a couple of things that are very certain here.  First of all, marriage is sanctified, given within the context of God's grace and the Church.  It is a holy institution.  Taking a look at Malachi 2:13-17 (and particularly the Septuagint translation), we see that in the Old Testament as well, there is emphasis on the companionship of marriage, sanctioned by God, and the importance of understanding relationship in this context.  Verse 16 instructs men, "Do not forsake her," and the entire section on marriage likens discarding an aged wife to an act of injustice or violence.  In 1 Corinthians 7, St. Paul also speaks of marriage and in a very pragmatic sort of way, suggesting that all are awaiting the dispensation of the Kingdom, but marriage must be viewed in the context of what is truly serving God.  Let us consider that in recent readings in Matthew, Jesus has emphasized the unity of relationships in the Church, including mutual correction and forgiveness, and care of the "littlest ones," the authority the disciples will have and how they must use it to serve all -- and become like "little children" to be the true servants of the Kingdom.  All of these passages -- the teachings from Malachi, the beginnings of marriage as found in Genesis, and Jesus' words -- bear witness to the power of relationship as sacrament, within the holiness and sanctification given by God.  How do we relate to one another?  How do we love one another?  Patristic commentary on marriage frequently centers on the fact that in the Gospel of John, the first public sign performed by Christ is at a wedding (John 2:1-12).  This points to marriage as sacrament, holy and sanctioned by God.  A sacrament means that we take the things of the world, and turn them back over to God, for God's purposes.  What we have, then, in Scripture -- and especially in this passage -- is a picture of marriage within the context of God's love and the practice of that love, and marriage as companionship.  In the Eastern Church, marriage is frequently referred to as that which teaches holiness in the context of relationship, as one learns sacrifice one for the other.  Indeed, in the day to day workings of the marriage relationship, one will continually go through transformation and change, having at each stage a new way to know and to love one another.  In this sense, marriage also involves the Cross, a giving up of past expectations or desires, an acceptance of the reality of sacrifice and love, a mutual cherishing.  In this model, marriage is not a question of hierarchy and conformity, but the opposite:  a mutual complementarity with each cherishing and complementing the other, and a relationship from which that love can extend to both the blessings of children and to others, especially in the context of faith in the One who is at the true center of marriage.  Abuse, as a form of sin, kills relationships -- and thus is divorce a spiritual tragedy.  This would include desertion and abandonment.  Let us consider the ways in which marriage is beloved of God, and may be strengthened in love through prayer and rooted in God who is love.   Given in the same context are Jesus' words on virginity, sanctioned as a special consecration and calling to serve God.

The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath. Therefore the Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath

 Now it happened that He went through the grainfields on the Sabbath; and as they went His disciples began to pluck the heads of grain.  And the Pharisees said to Him, "Look, why do they do what is not lawful on the Sabbath?"  But He said to them, "Have you never read what David did when he was in need and hungry, he and those with him:  how he went into the house of God in the days of Abiathar the high priest, and ate the showbread, which is not lawful to eat except for the priests, and also gave some to those who were with him?"  And He said to them, "The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.  Therefore the Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath."

And He entered the synagogue again, and a man was there who had a withered hand.  So they watched Him closely, whether He would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse Him.  And He said to the man who had the withered hand, "Step forward."  Then He said to them, "Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?"  But they kept silent.  And when He had looked around at them with anger, being grieved by the hardness of their hearts, He said to the man, "Stretch out your hand."  And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored as whole as the other.  Then the Pharisees went out and immediately plotted with the Herodians against Him, how they might destroy Him.

- Mark 2:23-3:6

In yesterday's reading, we were told that Jesus went out again by the sea; and all the multitude came to Him, and He taught them.  As He passed by, He saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax office.  And He said to him, "Follow Me."  So he arose and followed Him.  Now it happened, as He was dining in Levi's house, that many tax collectors and sinners also sat together with Jesus and His disciples; for there were many, and they followed Him.  And when the scribes and Pharisees saw Him eating with the tax collectors and sinners, they said to His disciples, "How is it that He eats and drinks with tax collectors and sinners?"  When Jesus heard it, He said to them, "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.  I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance."  The disciples of John and the Pharisees were fasting.  Then they came and said to Him, "Why do the disciples of John and of the Pharisees were fasting.  Then they came and said to Him, "Why do the disciples of John and of the Pharisees fast, but Your disciples do not fast?"  And Jesus said to them, "Can the friends of the bridegroom fast while the bridegroom is with them?  As long as they have the bridegroom with them they cannot fast.  But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast in those days.  No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; or else the new piece pulls away from the old, and the tear is made worse.  And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; or else the new wine bursts the wineskins, the wine is spilled, and the wineskins are ruined.  But new wine must be put into new wineskins."

Now it happened that He went through the grainfields on the Sabbath; and as they went His disciples began to pluck the heads of grain.  And the Pharisees said to Him, "Look, why do they do what is not lawful on the Sabbath?"  But He said to them, "Have you never read what David did when he was in need and hungry, he and those with him:  how he went into the house of God in the days of Abiathar the high priest, and ate the showbread, which is not lawful to eat except for the priests, and also gave some to those who were with him?"  And He said to them, "The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.  Therefore the Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath."  In yesterday's reading, we were told that Jesus and His disciples were eating and drinking at table with tax collectors and sinners, at the home of Levi (Matthew), who had also been a tax collector when he was called by Christ.   We also read that Jesus' disciples did not fast like John the Baptist's did.  All this is cause for concern, questioning, and criticism.  Today we have another incident in which Jesus' disciples are raising criticism because they eat -- or rather they "work" to eat -- they pluck the heads of grain.  Jesus cites David's act of sharing the showbread with his tired and hungry men, something that was reserved for the priests.  In a commentary on this story in Luke's Gospel, St. Ambrose writes that the Son of Man shares with everyone the food that was once reserved for only the priests, the food of the Lord of the Sabbath.  This is the new covenant alluded to in yesterday's reading, when Jesus spoke of "new wineskins."  We note also the healing quality and emphasis here yet again as has so consistently been the case of Mark's Gospel.  The grain on the Sabbath is part of God's gracious care of man, out of which the Sabbath itself was given.

And He entered the synagogue again, and a man was there who had a withered hand.  So they watched Him closely, whether He would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse Him.  And He said to the man who had the withered hand, "Step forward."  Then He said to them, "Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?"  But they kept silent.  And when He had looked around at them with anger, being grieved by the hardness of their hearts, He said to the man, "Stretch out your hand."  And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored as whole as the other.  Then the Pharisees went out and immediately plotted with the Herodians against Him, how they might destroy Him.  To modern ears, it's hard to understand why healing a man's hand would be unlawful on the Sabbath.  But to understand what happens here, there are several factors at play to take into consideration.   In addition to the Law given by Moses, there were traditions built up by the scribes and Pharisees around the Law.   In such tradition, healing was considered work, and therefore not permissible on the Sabbath.  My study bible says, "They believed they served God by zealously keeping these peripheral traditions, but this legalism made them insensitive to God's mercy."  What we have to understand also is the zealousness by which they seek to guard their places;  if we look at Mark's Gospel carefully, Jesus' fame and popularity is widespread and is happening very quickly.  To heal on the Sabbath is another extension of Jesus' saying above:  "The Sabbath was made for man."  It is also in keeping with everything about Christ's ministry, and the Eucharist to come.

Food and mercy are intertwined somehow in our readings.  It's a good thing to think about during Lent (although, for much of the Eastern Church, Lent will not begin for another few weeks).  What does it mean to be fed?  We must think of Christ's work as healing and, in particular, nurturing to everything that we are and can be.  The image of the showbread as prefiguring the giving of the Eucharist tells us so much that we need to understand about His mission into the world -- even, indeed, its sacramental quality of giving our lives back to us in the fullness of His Incarnation.  The nurturing of healing, the nurturing of feeding, the nurturing of the wedding banquet:  all of these things are "made for man."  God's gracious love and care is something we can never forget.  So, in the light of Jesus' words about the Sabbath, what can we think about that puts us on the right track here?  Even fasting as religious practice is meant to be done in service to mankind:  the capacity to say "no" teaches us about our own capacity for transcendence, self-discipline, choice.  To learn that "man does not live by bread alone" is perhaps one of the best things that we can learn in life, if we are truly to learn what is of greatest value in life, and to focus on that.   When we pray for our "daily bread" in the Lord's Prayer, it's important to note that this isn't only about ordinary meals, but the bread of the Lord, the Eucharist.  In the Greek, the word for daily can be more literally translated as "super-substantial," a kind of bread that is more than ordinary bread.  So, in this context, the Sabbath is made for feeding, for nourishing, for giving us all the things we need for a truly healthy life on every level:  physical, mental, spiritual.  In the ministry of Christ, none of this is separable from one another.  Indeed, the statement that man does not live by bread alone is meant to say that to separate the material from the rest is a false misunderstanding of what we truly need for a healthy life.  If a human being has imperfect health, a birth defect, a disfigurement or loss of limb through accident, is afflicted with illness such as depression, through any sort of personal imperfection, they are not exempt from this wholeness.  That sort of thinking is materialistic to the exclusion of what the fullness of life really holds, to the potentials for life in Christ.  St. Paul teaches, in fact, that in our weakness God's strength is made perfect.  Jesus' Sabbath is meant for wholeness and healing; the Sabbath made for man is part of God's care of us.  In the understanding of sacrament, all this gift of the world that God gives us is returned with thanks and blessings to God -- who in turn, and through Christ's mission and ministry to the world, His life, death, and Resurrection, returns it to us in the fullness of what life truly is.  That is nourishment indeed, something to think about, the gift of real wholeness, completeness.  It is the fullness of His joy. 

Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for just any reason?

Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished these sayings, that He departed from Galilee and came to the region of Judea beyond the Jordan.  And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them there.

The Pharisees also came to Him, testing Him, and saying to Him, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for just any reason?"  And He answered and said to them, "Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning 'made them male and female,' and said, '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 then, they are no longer two but one flesh.  Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate."  They said to Him, "Why then did Moses command to give a certificate of divorce, and to put her away?"  He said to them, "Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so.  And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced commits adultery."

His disciples said to Him, "If such is the case of the man with his wife, it is better not to marry."  But He said to them, "All cannot accept this saying, but only those to whom it has been given.  For there are eunuchs who were born thus from their mother's womb, and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake.  He who is able to accept it, let him accept it."

- Matthew 19:1-12

On Saturday, we read that Peter came to Jesus and said, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him?  Up to seven times?"  This was after Jesus had taught about forgiveness in the Church.  Jesus said to him, "I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.  Therefore the kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants.  And when he had begun to settle accounts, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents.  But as he was not able to pay, his master commanded that he be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and that payment be made.  The servant therefore fell down before him, saying, 'Master, have patience with me, and I will pay you all.'  Then the master of that servant was moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt.  But that servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii, and he laid hands on him and took him by the throat, saying, 'Pay me what you owe!'  So his fellow servant fell down at his feet and begged him, saying, 'Have patience with me, and I will pay you all.'  And he would not, but went and threw him into prison till he should pay the debt.  So when his fellow servants saw what had been done, they were very grieved, and came and told their master all that had been done.  Then his master, after he had called him, said to him, 'You wicked servant!  I forgave you all that debt because you begged me.  Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?'  And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him.  So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses."

Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished these sayings, that He departed from Galilee and came to the region of Judea beyond the Jordan.  And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them there.   Jesus leaves His "home country" of Galilee, where He's spent most of His ministry, and come closer to Jerusalem, into Judea.  No doubt His popularity there, with "great multitudes" who follow Him, attracts the attention of the leadership in Jerusalem.

The Pharisees also came to Him, testing Him, and saying to Him, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for just any reason?"   The Pharisees come to Jesus with a test; in this case, the test is on the legality of divorce.  Pharisees were experts in the Mosaic Law, and this question requires interpretation of Deut. 24:1-4.  But Jesus will give His own answer, and His own perspective.

And He answered and said to them, "Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning 'made them male and female,' and said, '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 then, they are no longer two but one flesh.  Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate."   My study bible says, "The yearning of a husband and wife for one another was planted in human nature by God before the Fall.  The harmony of Adam and Eve with God and with each other was a great virtue.  Adam considered Eve a part of himself (Gen. 2:23).  When he cut himself off from the love of God, that harmony was broken.  Jesus restores the marriage relationship to its original state, giving it a spiritual dimension."  The essence of Jesus' answer is about love, about the bonding that occurs between two people that goes so deep they become one new entity.  In His clear interpretation, this bond is the work of God.

They said to Him, "Why then did Moses command to give a certificate of divorce, and to put her away?"  He said to them, "Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so.  And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced commits adultery."   My study bible says that "divorce is permitted only for sexual immorality, which destroys a marriage -- a teaching held also by the stricter school of the Pharisees.  The reasons for divorce were eventually increased in the ancient Church to include threat to one partner's life, desertion, and forced prostitution."  It notes that while the Church may grant divorce, it regards it as a spiritual tragedy requiring great pastoral care.  Let's note also that in this question and answer between the Pharisees and Jesus, the perspective is regarding a man divorcing a woman.

His disciples said to Him, "If such is the case of the man with his wife, it is better not to marry."  But He said to them, "All cannot accept this saying, but only those to whom it has been given.  For there are eunuchs who were born thus from their mother's womb, and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake.  He who is able to accept it, let him accept it." At Jesus' time, of course, eunuchs were commonly men who were castrated in order to serve in some royal capacity, such as guard of the bedchambers (chamberlain).  Under various forms of autocratic rule, it was possible for eunuchs to hold high authoritative or administrative positions, or to wield influence with nobility.  But Jesus uses this word as analogy, referring to elective celibacy.  My study bible says that "eunuchs are lifelong celibates.  Jesus praises those who have made themselves eunuchs, that is, those who are celibate by free choice and according to God's will for them.  Jesus does not endorse mutilation but the putting away of wicked thoughts.  The first Ecumenical Council (A.D. 325) rejected willful mutilation."

Jesus begins His answer to today's question by the Pharisees with an emphasis on love, on the bonds between people.  We have to remember that it wasn't possible for women to initiate divorce; Jesus is speaking strictly to the case of a man divorcing a woman.  So immediately we must understand the social hierarchy at play.  Women were dependent upon men socially and economically.  A divorce wasn't merely a separation of persons but meant something much greater.  In spiritual terms, however, Jesus focuses on the bond that God creates between people, marriage as a sacrament, and this is also essential for us to keep in mind.  Over and over again, in the recent readings in Matthew's Gospel, Jesus has focused on community:  the importance of the little ones and the strays, the importance of forgiveness and mutual correction.   Here the bond in marriage becomes a core piece of community as Jesus envisions it.  It is important to understand the focus on male and female because it gives us a sense of social hierarchies, and once again the emphasis on the use of power in this community.  Jesus speaks of the ease with which a man could get a certificate of divorce as attributed to the "hardness of your hearts."  It is once again a case of the socially dependent being cast off by the more powerful in the community that He condemns as hardness of heart.  But Jesus' antidote to this is the emphasis on the bond of love that is more powerful than even the family ties the man may have to his own parents, another important indication about wealth and power, as family ties (particularly father and mother) are easily the source of both.  Sexuality, then, serves God's purposes -- in Jesus' perspective -- of love, the bonds created by God.  When He speaks of eunuchs, it's also the case of a voluntary celibacy meant to serve community, "for the kingdom of heaven's sake."  We may have all kinds of questions regarding this teaching and modern life, wherever we may live.  But Jesus' emphasis on the bonds of love and the sacramental nature of marriage still holds its strong message of spiritual purpose to human lives.  It also contains messages here about what we sacrifice for that higher purpose, the calling of a purpose of a real community defined by God who is love.  The Teacher goes back to the purpose and function of creation, the higher capacities of human beings for love, as well as giving us teaching here on what destroys that purpose and love.  How do you define community?  What has God placed in your life in the bond of love?  What is the worth of a sacrament and how do we care for that?  These remain essential questions, even 2,000 years later.