First Reading Commentary
One's interior life can be measured by how
one responds to the first four words of this Reading. Certainly when God speaks everything else
should be put aside because the Almighty is bigger than all the troubles and
worries that are brought to prayer. In
the Mass Christ is present in both Word and Sacrament and thus demands our
undivided attention.
This Reading reveals God's will for man to
have a partner. The word "man"
in Scripture often has more than a single meaning. It can sometimes mean all of humanity, both
male and female; and sometimes it takes on a prophetic meaning and speaks of
Jesus Christ. In this Reading all three
understandings are communicated.
The psalmist writes about the man whose
will is in the law of the Lord (cf. Psalm
1:1-2). Certainly this is a
universal call to holiness for all of humanity; but one cannot overlook the
prophetic edge by knowing that no one is more attuned to the will of the Father
than the Son.
In the New Testament, the Holy Spirit
returns us to the Old Testament prophetic meanings through the unlikely
instrument of Pontius Pilate when he says at Christ's trial: "Ecce Homo – Behold the Man" (John 19:5).
In this Reading from Genesis man chose his
suitable partner and calls her "woman" who is to be his wife and the
two become one flesh. Christ and His
Bride, the Church, is the model for God's will for indissoluble unions. The Church exhibits the oneness with her
Bridegroom because the Church is the extension of Christ on earth. And as woman is formed from the side of man
as he slept, the Church was formed from the Side of Christ as He slept on the
Cross (cf. John 19:34).
Man's privilege to
name all the animals is an intimation of God's plan for man (all of humanity)
to have dominion over them. And in the
God-Man, Jesus Christ is the remarkable encounter with the created dominion and
the Eternal Dominion; that is to say, He Who is Eternal but also was created in
the womb of the Blessed Virgin and is both Ruler and the Icon of obedience. In Jesus Christ we behold the Covenant Maker
and the Covenant Abider, the Creator and the Created, the King and the Servant,
the Priest and the Victim, He Who died and He Who defeated death.
Second Reading Commentary
In this Letter to the Hebrews the author
writes specifically about Christ. In the
Old Testament, the psalmist writes about man being made "a little less
than the angels" (Psalm 8:6). Certainly in this Letter to the Hebrews the
writer makes us aware of that prophetic verse coming to fruition in Jesus
Christ; but one cannot ignore that the psalmist is also pointing out humanity's
dominion over all other creatures. In
these Scriptures that reflect on both Christ and humanity, one should marvel at
the boundless love God has for us; so much so that He would even become one of
us in order to be closer to us. Since so
much of Almighty God is a mystery, we'll have to wait until we get to heaven to
fully appreciate how humble is the act for the One, Perfect God to clothe
Himself in Flesh.
In Jesus Christ's Human Nature, He was made
lower than the angels and tastes death. The
mystery of God and Man in one Person really comes into play in this
Reading. He Who cannot die, dies. He Who has myriads of angels at His call is
lower than the angels. He through Whom
all things exist becomes one among a lowly existence and brings many children
to eternal glory, which only the Most High God can do; but this lofty, salvific
act is done through the servile means of human suffering.
The Second Person of the Blessed Trinity is
Man which enables man to call Him "Brother." Our Brother gave us the privilege to address
the First Person of the Blessed Trinity as "Father." And from the Cross she who is called "Woman"
by our Brother, is given to us to be our "Mother" (cf. John 19:27).
To even come close to grasping the intimacy
all this suggests by being God's family, it would likely require a soul to have
progressed to the unitive way of Christian perfection; that is, those who have
advanced beyond any hunger or desire for temporal things and have surrendered
themselves exclusively to the Peace that the world cannot give.
Gospel Commentary
Whenever the Christian soul approaches
Jesus to ask Him something, it is usually a request for a personal need or a
prayer offered for someone else's needs.
It is never done with the intent to trip Him up as the Pharisees are attempting
to do in this Gospel. Perhaps in our
darkest despair we may ask Christ to prove Himself by relieving our
misery. But moments such as these are
offered from turbulent emotions and not from faith.
The Pharisees are asking about the
lawfulness of divorce knowing that Moses permitted it. The question suggests that the Pharisees
already had some inkling that Jesus is against divorce. Jesus uses hardness of hearts as the reason
that Moses allowed divorce. The Church
begins each day of her prayer with the plea: "Today if you hear His Voice,
harden not your hearts" (Psalm 94
[95]:8 – Divine Office/Liturgy of the Hours). The Mosaic Law stated that a man may divorce
his wife if she became unpleasing to him because of some uncleanness (cf. Deuteronomy 24:1-4). While most Jews accepted the law regarding
divorce, there were many disputes as to what constitutes "some
uncleanness." At the time of the
Mosaic Law only the husband had the right to initiate a divorce. In Christ's day, Roman law granted the
husband and wife equal rights in dissolving a marriage (cf. J. Bonsirven, Le Divorce dans le Noveau Testament). The Mosaic Law inherits a primitive form of
marriage as implied in the Book of Genesis (cf.
1:27 & 2:24). What Jesus is
instituting in marriage is a sacramental bond, which, being divinely instituted
produces or causes grace in the souls of the husband and wife.
The Sacrament of Marriage or any sacrament
cannot be reversed by man because man has no power over divine grace. Your baptism can't be taken away. The grace of the Eucharist cannot be
reversed. Because we are sinners, we may
need Confession frequently but that doesn't mean that previous absolutions are
null and void. Even when a priest is
laicized because of immoral conduct, an indelible priestly mark remains on his
soul. Being laicized makes it illegal
for him to exercise the priestly ministry.
Therefore, with this understanding it becomes clearer as to why Jesus
says: "What God has joined together, no human being must separate." While such teachings are not always popular,
one must surely feel a sense of security and a sureness of standing on solid
ground when realizing and grasping the power of grace.
Jesus proclaims that the Kingdom of God
belongs to those that are like children.
Those of us who are adults have surely over the years had our minds
polluted with things that are not so innocent; thus our behavior at times can
be questionable. Once again, though, we
can turn to the grace of the Sacrament of Confession to restore our innocence. God embraces us and blesses us in that
sacrament and welcomes us back to His family much like the parable of the
prodigal son (cf. Luke 15:11-32).
