Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 140
Reading I
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 then 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.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 128:1-2, 3, 4-5, 6
R. (cf. 5) May the Lord bless us all the days of our lives.
Blessed are you who fear the LORD,
who walk in his ways!
For you shall eat the fruit of your handiwork;
blessed shall you be, and favored.
R. May the Lord bless us all the days of our lives.
Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine
in the recesses of your home;
your children like olive plants
around your table.
R. May the Lord bless us all the days of our lives.
Behold, thus is the man blessed
who fears the LORD.
The LORD bless you from Zion:
may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem
all the days of your life.
R. May the Lord bless us all the days of our lives.
May you see your children's children.
Peace be upon Israel!
R. May the Lord bless us all the days of our lives.
Reading II
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.”
Alleluia
1 John 4:12
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
If we love one another, God remains in us
and his love is brought to perfection in us.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Mark 10:2-16 or 10:2-12
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.
OR:
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.”
Reflection 1
Catholic Daily Reflections
Authentic Love
The Pharisees approached Jesus and asked, “Is it lawful for a husband to divorce his wife?” They were testing him. Mark 10:2
The Pharisees were not interested in the deepest truths of God. They were only interested in twisting God’s truths in an attempt to prove their own self-righteousness. The question they posed to Jesus was a trap, but Jesus doesn’t fall into it. He asks them what Moses taught about the love in marriage and then explains that their understanding of Moses’ teaching was based on the hardness of their hearts and not the original intent of God as was revealed in the beginning.
Our Church’s teaching regarding the indissolubility of marriage flows from the teachings found in the Book of Genesis, subsequently confirmed and clarified by Jesus in today’s Gospel. When a true marriage bond is established by the free and total consent of a man and woman, that bond can only be separated by death.
From a much broader perspective, the marriage bond of which Jesus speaks also reveals to us the depth of commitment that God has made to each one of us and the reciprocal commitment He invites us to make. God’s covenant offered to us is freely given, total, and irrevocable. This is important to understand. God will never change His mind when it comes to the commitment He has made to each one of us. For our part, we must continuously seek to reciprocate that commitment by giving ourselves to the will of God in the same way.
Though much more could be said about this exchange between Jesus and the Pharisees regarding earthly marriage, we must also see in this exchange a common trap that we will encounter in our marital covenant with God and our love of others. Just as the Pharisees used the law of marriage to try to trap Jesus in His speech, caring nothing about the deeper truths that this teaching revealed, we can also use the Law of God in a way that reveals our own hardness of heart. Love, be it that of marriage or the love that is the basis of our union with God, can easily be used as a weapon rather than a source of unity. Regarding others, we can easily fall into the trap of using the precepts of love as a source of manipulation and persuasion. “If you loved me, then you would…” Regarding our love of God, we can often reduce our love into a reluctant following of God’s most basic laws, such as “I have to go to church.”
If love is to be pure and holy, it must rise above erroneous interpretations of love and be lived in the way it was intended to be lived. Pure love is always self-giving. It is sacrificial. It always looks to the good of the other. Love is total and must be irrevocable. Love forges a bond that should never be broken. It must endure everything and is possible only when it is grounded in the love that God has for us.
Reflect, today, upon the way that you love. Does the hardness of your heart lead you to misrepresent the love God wants you to share with others? Do you minimize the requirements of love? Is your love total, irrevocable, and freely given? Is your love self-seeking or self-giving? Reflect upon the pure and holy nature of the love God has offered to you, and recommit yourself to offer this same depth of love to God and to others so that the covenants that result from your love will always endure.
Reflection 2
One Bread, One Body
NO SEPARATION
“Therefore let no man separate what God has joined.” —Mark 10:9
Jesus does not want husband and wife to be separated. Also, He became indignant at His disciples for separating some children from Him (Mk 10:14). Furthermore, Jesus does not want parents separated from their children. Let no overtime, lifestyle, day care, extracurricular activities, school, or other responsibilities separate what God has joined together. Moreover, Jesus does not want family members separated from each other by TV, overwork, communication breakdown, and independent lifestyles. Jesus even refuses to separate Christians from their enemies (see Mt 13:30).
The Lord does not want sexual relations separated from marriage (see Col 3:5). In addition, Jesus, the Author of Life (Acts 3:15), does not want sperm and egg separated through contraception or sterilization. He does not want marriage separate from childbearing, nor childbearing separated from making these children disciples for Jesus. The Lord abhors the separation of a newly created human being from the womb of its mother. Let no one separate by abortion a baby from its mother.
Finally, let no one separate Christians from one another. The Lord has joined us to Him and to one another in Baptism (1 Cor 12:13). We are brothers and sisters in Him. We must live in real Christian community and not in worldly isolation and individualism (see Heb 10:25). Let nothing separate what God has joined.
Prayer: Father, by my life may I never choose separation from You forever (see Mt 25:32).
Promise: “Indeed, it was fitting that when bringing many sons to glory God, for Whom and through Whom all things exist, should make their Leader in the work of salvation perfect through suffering.” —Heb 2:10
Praise: Praise the Risen Jesus, Whose death and Resurrection has made us one.
Reflection 3
Shared from God's Word
Marriage in its original nature is indissoluble. It cannot be dissolved without sufficient grounds. Jesus presents two such grounds: stubbornness of human heart and adultery. Stubbornness is a major block in the unity of the sacrament of matrimony. Adultery is a serious threat to its holiness. In both these cases man forgets his genuine need to have a partner in his life, and acts out of selfishness. Such selfishness breaks the communion with the community. It is in the presence of the community that marriage is consecrated. Hence it cannot be dissolved without the proper permission of the community represented by the Church. Another requirement to maintain the sanctity of marriage is suffering. The husband must be ready to suffer for the sanctification of his wife just as Jesus did for the salvation of the Church. Which elements of modern society threaten the unity, indissolubility and sacredness of marriage?
Prayers
Lord of the Covenant, Your love is perfect. It is pure, it is selfless, self-giving, total and irrevocable. Please help me to love You with this same love so that I can share in the divine marriage covenant to which I am called. May this holy love also overflow into every relationship so that You will be the foundation of those holy bonds. Jesus, I trust in You.
Lord Jesus Christ, your call to holiness extends to all in every state of life. Sanctify our lives - as married couples and as singles - that we may live as men and women who are consecrated to you. Make us leaven in a society that disdains life-long marriage fidelity, chastity, and living single for the Lord.
Daily Reflections on Divine Mercy
Reflection 279: Your Inner Conviction
You must seek to hear God speak to you through an inner conviction within your soul. At times you may sense that God’s Voice is loud and clear, and at other times it may seem faint and confusing. There are many things that can compete with the Voice of God but if you are open, you will come to know His Voice with familiarity. This is important for your spiritual life. Learning to hear Him speak and coming to recognize His Voice allows you to more easily walk in His ways throughout your life. Seek to know this inner conviction that His Voice presents to you. And as you learn to discern it, grow in confidence at His commands of love. Daily obedience to Him in this way must become the foundation of all that you do in life and it will become an abundant source of His outpoured Mercy (See Diary #1383).
How familiar are you with the Voice of God? You most likely will not hear Him speak to you in an audible way. His Voice often comes as a strong sense that we ought to do this or avoid that. He speaks by influencing our will even more than our mind. We may be attentive in our mind to what we sense, but the conviction God gives us is a spiritual sense. Though God may speak to each person in a unique way, this inner conviction is a common experience of God’s communication. Reflect, today, upon God speaking in this way and if you struggle with this goal, recommit yourself to listen. Through this habit you will discover the abundant Mercy that God has in store for you as He guides you day by day.
Lord, I desire to hear Your Voice speaking to me in the depths of my conscience. Please do speak and fill my will with a sense and a conviction of Your holy and perfect Will. May I learn to be attentive to You every day and follow Your gentle commands as the guiding light of my life. Jesus, I trust in You.
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