Marriage is a Gift from God

10-03-2021Weekly ReflectionFr. Anthony Okolo, C.S.Sp

Marriage forms the theme of today’s liturgy as both the first reading from the book of Genesis and Mark’s Gospel have something to say on the sacrament of marriage. Jesus in His response to the question “Is it lawful for a husband to divorce his wife” put to him by the Pharisees, refers them to the original intention of marriage at creation: a man leaves his father and mother and joins his wife and they form a union making them one body and not two and what God has joined together no person has power to separate.

It could be that the Pharisees wanted to test Him to see if He would contradict the teaching of Mosaic Law which He did, or maybe to get His view so that they can put Him in enmity with ruling class who have been involved in all manner of marriage issues. It may also be that they sincerely wanted to get His view on marriage. Whatever may be their reason the truth remains that the question of divorce was a burning issue during the time of Jesus. One of the main reasons divorces was a burning topic during the time of Jesus was the interpretations given by Rabbi on what constituted ground for which a man can divorce the wife. Some schools of thought claim that a man could divorce the wife if the woman is objectionable to him while others claim it is only on the ground of infidelity. A woman may be divorced with or without her will, but a man only with his will. A woman can only divorce a man if the man was a leper. The different opinions by scholars accounted for much of the debate on marriage and divorce during the time of Jesus. However, Jesus comes with a new teaching that makes marriage a relationship of equality ordained by God from creation.

Jesus in a very gentle way directed the attention of His listeners away from the topic of divorce to the concept of marriage as something from the beginning of God’s creation meant to be indissoluble. He exalts the status of women among the male dominated Pharisees of His time who do not consider women as equal to men, but see women as instruments to be used. Since God has created them male and female then, the question of a man divorcing the wife for any reason should not arise. Jesus was building a wall of defense around the institution of marriage as something sacred and not something one goes into for selfish reasons. He wants his listeners to know that those who sought marriage only for pleasure must be reminded that marriage involves also some form of responsibilities. Again, those who regarded marriage simply as a means of satisfying the physical passion must know that there is also the level of spiritual unity involved in marriage.

As it was in the time of Jesus where divorce and marriage are burning issues, so also today it is in our society. Marriage is faced with similar situations not only with increasing rate of divorce, but even more with a new definition of marriage. The book of Genesis says in the beginning God created them male and female and that is why a man leaves his father and mother and joins to his wife and they become one flesh. This concept of marriage as union between a man and woman is under threat by some ideologies who define marriage on the contrary. Nevertheless, Jesus in today’s gospel defends the sacredness of marriage as something that has being ordained by God at the moment of creation to be union of male and female in an equal capacity. We are called to safeguard this institution through prayers, commitment to value of marriage and above all as a union of male and female. The Catholic Church teaches equally that marriage is a vocation which one enters with the hope to continue God’s reign on earth and is indissoluble where children are welcome as blessing from God.

We pray for our families that the grace of God will continue to keep their union together.