Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 140
A reading from the Holy Book of Genesis
Gn 2:18-24
We are in the book of Genesis in the second creation account. The first one went through the seven day scenario. That one, Genesis 1:1, begins with the words, "in the beginning, when God created the heavens and the earth". At this point in the second creation, God has already created the man and is now creating for him a partner.
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.
Many express confusion at this point, because in the 1st account, the animals are created before the man. Whereas here, it appears that the man is created first and then the animals.
Personally, I believe two "realms" have been created. The first, is the natural realm. Described in Genesis 1. This describes creation of the universe to the point when the earth was completed including all the creatures which would remain wild and apart from mankind.
I believe this second realm is the Paradise which God created for man. These animals which are named by Adam, God has taken from those animals which He previously formed from the earth. And they represent the domesticated animals which we know today, such as cattle, sheep, chickens, dogs. These domestic specimens all represent the wild versions of the same animals.
In short, what I'm saying is that God is here depicted creating certain domestic species of animals for Adam.
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.
Although all these animals have become our partners throughout history. None quite satisfied the man, Adam. They each served their purpose, but they did not fill the emptiness in Adam's soul. Of course, this is all a prelude to the creation of Eve, the first woman. There are a great many jokes written about this, so I can't help myself. Here's an excerpt from YUKSRUS. Many of the jokes are irreverent so I don't recommend you go to the website and that's why I didn't provide a link. Here are the "Top Ten Reasons Eve Was Created".
10. God was worried that Adam would frequently become lost in the
garden because he would not ask for directions.
9. God knew that one day Adam would require someone to locate
and hand him the remote.
8. God knew Adam would never go out and buy himself a new fig leaf
when his wore out and would therefore need Eve to buy one for him.
7. God knew Adam would never be able to make a doctor's, dentist, or
haircut appointment for himself.
6. God knew Adam would never remember which night to put the garbage
on the curb.
5. God knew if the world was to be populated, men would never be
able to handle the pain and discomfort of childbearing.
4. As the Keeper of the Garden, Adam would never remember where he
left his tools.
3. Apparently, Adam needed someone to blame his troubles on when
God caught him hiding in the garden.
2. As the Bible says, It is not good for man to be alone!
1. When God finished the creation of Adam, He stepped back,
scratched his head, and said, "I can do better than that!"
Yeah, well, I have a fallen nature too. Anyway, back to the Scripture reading.
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.
Pope John Paul II spoke beautifully about this in his General audiences on the Theology of the body.
I won't go into that much detail.
1. Sleep in Scripture frequently means "death". For instance:
Deuteronomy 31:16
King James Version (KJV)
16 And the Lord said unto Moses, Behold, thou shalt sleep with thy fathers;....
Mystically speaking then, Adam gave up his life in order to bring Eve into creation.
2. God took out of the man a rib to form the woman. The rib, again mystically or spiritually speaking, is very near the heart and surrounds the "breathing" or "respiration" aparatus of man. The root word of respiration is the word "spirit" which means life or breath. Therefore, the foundation of the woman was taken from the heart and soul, literally the life of man.
3. This, of course, is a paradox. Since Eve is the only human being ever born from a man. In the future, all human beings would be taken out from their mother's womb. The first man circumscribed the woman. All the rest of women, circumscribed the man.
4. The point which is frequently missed here is that God did all of this and continues to do it to this day:
Psalm 139:13
King James Version (KJV)
13 For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother's womb.
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.
The funny thing about this, is that it isn't so. At least, as far as I know in Scripture, the woman generally leaves her father and mother and clings to her husband.
EXCEPT for one man. Jesus Christ.
Jesus Christ left His Father in heaven and His mother on earth and became one flesh and body with His wife, the Church:
1 Corinthians 12:11-13
King James Version (KJV)
11 But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.12 For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ.13 For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.
Ephesians 5:23
King James Version (KJV)
23 For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body.
So this is a prophecy of the coming of Christ.
Responsorial Psalm Ps 128:1-2, 3, 4-5, 6
Response. (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.
Dr. Scott Hahn said it beautifully. The two shall become one flesh. And then they will give that flesh a a name and it will begin to walk around. He also said that faithfulness in matrimony is accomplished by doing the little things. Coming back home every evening after work. Doing the cooking, helping with the chores. The little things. Another person who mentioned doing the importance of doing the little things was St. Therese Lisieux.
A Reading from St. Paul's epistle to the Hebrews
Heb 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.
Jesus Christ was born to die for us and our salvation.
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.
If Christ was made perfect through suffering, what makes some men think that we are not supposed to suffer?
He who consecrates and those who are being consecrated
all have one origin.
Therefore, he is not ashamed to call them 'brothers.'
Christ was born of flesh, as we are.
We are born of Spirit, as He is.
A reading from the Holy Gospel according to St. Mark
Mk 10:2-16
The Pharisees approached Jesus and asked,
"Is it lawful for a husband to divorce his wife?"
They were testing him.
The Pharisees knew that Moses had permitted them to divorce their wives. But somewhere in their conscience, they knew that this was wrong. But they couldn't figure out why. So they used this question to test the Christ.
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."
Moses is the lawgiver. Therefore if they knew that Moses permitted divorce, why did they ask this question. One reason is that Scripture also says:
Malachi 2:16
King James Version (KJV)
16 For the Lord, the God of Israel, saith that he hateth putting away: for one covereth violence with his garment, saith the Lord of hosts: therefore take heed to your spirit, that ye deal not treacherously.
"Putting away" means divorce. And God hates it.
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.
You've heard of "rebooting". Jesus here rebooted the entire Jewish understanding of a man's relationship to his wife. He brought an end to the sinful practice of polygamy and of divorcing wives and marrying another.
So they are no longer two but one flesh.
Therefore what God has joined together,
no human being must separate."
And therefore the Sacrament of Matrimony was born. Previously, men did not treat matrimony as a Sacrament from God. A Sacrament is a mystery which is accomplished even though we don't see it. In some mysterious manner, man and wife become one being.
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."
This is very plain speaking. Note that those religions who have permitted divorce and remarriage, beginning with the Anglicans, have normalized sin. And they have done a great disservice to their communities. Because adulterers will not enter the Kingdom of God:
1 Corinthians 6:8-10
King James Version (KJV)
8 Nay, ye do wrong, and defraud, and that your brethren.9 Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,10 Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.
but the disciples rebuked them.
I am constantly rebuking Protestants and their teaching, it seems. But in this case, they are the ones who tell us not to bring children to Christ in Baptism. But throughout the Gospels, we see parents bringing their children to Christ for blessings and for healings. And Christ does not refuse 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."
Note that Christ rebuked the Apostles for doing this. Then He explained that anyone who wants to get into His Kingdom must approach God as a little child, with complete faith and resignation.
Then he embraced them and blessed them,
placing his hands on them.
Then Jesus embraced the children and blessed them.
Or
Alternate reading from the Holy Gospel according to St. Mark
Mk 10:2-12
Its the same reading but omits the last four stanzas. So, I'll reproduce it without comment.
"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."
Sincerely,
De Maria
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