Reflection for Sunday 6th October, 2024

27th Sunday in Ordinary Time

The Sanctity of Marriage and Family (Mark 10: 2-16)

Today’s Gospel is about the sanctity of marriage and the loving care of children. The background is an attempt to trap Jesus by a trick question about divorce: “Is it against the law for a man to divorce his wife?”

Opinions were divided on the complex matter of divorce so the plotters felt that whichever way Jesus answered he would alienate some people. In return Jesus asked what did Moses say. He allowed a husband to draw up a writ of dismissal of his wife and so to divorce. The man then had the right to remarry whereas the woman, who was treated as disposable chattel, was regarded as still married and would be guilty of adultery if she remarried.

 

 

“the family that prays together stays together.”

Obviously, it was men who made those laws. Jesus struck a blow for women’s equality in saying that the man who divorced his wife and married another would equally be guilty of adultery. The same law for men as for women. Jesus went on to say, “But from the beginning of creation God made them male and female. That is why a man must leave father and mother, and the two become one body. They are no longer two, therefore, but one body. So then, what God has united, man must not divide.”

Christian Marriage

Christian marriage is more than a legal contract. It is a sacrament, one of those sacred moments in life when the presence of God is celebrated. In a dialogue on marriage, Jewish Rabbi Abraham Skorka quoted the Old Testament for Cardinal Bergoglio, the future Pope Francis. “A cord of three strings is not quickly torn apart.” (Eccles. 4:12). Two strings will easily unravel. The third string is God whose presence is celebrated in the sacrament. As Father Peyton used to say, “the family that prays together stays together.”

Children touched by Jesus

After the debate about divorce, people were bringing little children to be touched by Jesus. Nowadays Christian parents bring their child to be touched by Jesus in the sacrament of baptism. This touch is not a one-day affair. The parents and godparents are asked if they are accepting the responsibility of training their child in the practice of the faith. Family life has been called a little church where faith is nurtured and passed on. It is in family life more than anywhere else that that belief, prayer, and Christian morals are nurtured.

The Family School

The most important school one can ever attend is the family. It is there, more than any other place, that one takes to heart the skills of interpersonal relationships. This personal schooling begins with self-worth. It expands into responsible relationships with others. And it blossoms in a relationship with God.
The foundation of self-worth is established in the way a child is welcomed into the world. The seeds of trust, reliance on others and confidence are planted in the brain as the infant’s cries and needs are heard and answered. I am wanted and loved in this world. The warm hugs that the child receives are deeply embedded in the subconscious memory. The foundations of a mature personality are set in place.
As the child grows, he/she learns that the world is bigger than ME. It's not all about my rights: others have rights too. "You can't have this, it belongs to your brother." "Shh, quiet, or you will wake the baby." Learning that others have rights will be the beginning of responsibility. It is in the family that we learn the reality of love, trust, sharing, respect for others, and awareness of the rights of others. We absorb the need for gentleness and patience. Very important will be learning how to handle conflict and how to forgive. Pope Francis speaks of three necessary words in any marriage. PLEASE (or may I). THANKS. SORRY.

The cradle of faith

The family is the cradle of faith, handing on the Christian story, telling the story of the crib and cross, teaching the basic prayers. It is said that faith is not so much taught as caught. It is the atmosphere that one breathes in. Jews have a saying that God has no grandchildren. If parents fail to pass on the faith, a whole generation is skipped. Nowadays it is often the grandparents who bring the children to the crib. Jesus spent ten years in family life for every one year in public ministry. That's how important family life is.