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| “The Marriage at Cana“ by Gerard David, c. 1500 |
Reading 1: Sirach 6:5-17
A
kind mouth multiplies friends and appeases enemies,
and
gracious lips prompt friendly greetings.
Let
your acquaintances be many,
but
one in a thousand your confidant.
When
you gain a friend, first test him,
and
be not too ready to trust him.
For
one sort is a friend when it suits him,
but
he will not be with you in time of distress.
Another
is a friend who becomes an enemy,
and
tells of the quarrel to your shame.
Another
is a friend, a boon companion,
who
will not be with you when sorrow comes.
When
things go well, he is your other self,
and
lords it over your servants;
But
if you are brought low, he turns against you
and
avoids meeting you.
Keep
away from your enemies;
be
on your guard with your friends.
A
faithful friend is a sturdy shelter;
he
who finds one finds a treasure.
A
faithful friend is beyond price,
no
sum can balance his worth.
A
faithful friend is a life-saving remedy,
such
as he who fears God finds;
For
he who fears God behaves accordingly,
and
his friend will be like himself.
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Commentary on
Sir 6:5-17
This selection concludes the
author's first discussion about friendship (started at Sirach 5:15).
The approach is not a theoretical evaluation of friendship, but rather a
series of concrete examples of situations that demonstrate the kind of behavior
one would expect from a friend.
“The thought of a man isolated as
the result of the abuse of speech (v.1-4) suggests the opposite result for one
who guards his speech. He will have many friends. In friendship, however, caution
is the keynote. Sirach stresses the subject of friendship more than any other
biblical author; many years of personal experience are doubtlessly reflected in
his words.” [4]
Types of false friendship are
enumerated; the implication being that true friendship is only revealed through
a test of that bond. Sirach concludes this passage with praise of the “true
friend” using the words “life-saving remedy.” In Greek texts this is translated
literally as “bag of life.” God was thought to preserve the life of the
faithful in a bag (see 1 Samuel 25:29). [5]
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 119:12,
16, 18, 27, 34, 35
R. (35a) Guide me, Lord, in the way of your commands.
Blessed
are you, O LORD;
teach
me your statutes.
R. Guide me, Lord, in the
way of your commands.
In
your statutes I will delight;
I
will not forget your words.
R. Guide me, Lord, in the
way of your commands.
Open
my eyes, that I may consider
the
wonders of your law.
R. Guide me, Lord, in the
way of your commands.
Make
me understand the way of your precepts,
and
I will meditate on your wondrous deeds.
R. Guide me, Lord, in the
way of your commands.
Give
me discernment, that I may observe your law
and
keep it with all my heart.
R. Guide me, Lord, in the
way of your commands.
Lead
me in the path of your commands,
for
in it I delight.
R. Guide me, Lord, in the
way of your commands.
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Commentary on
Ps 119:12, 16, 18, 27, 34, 35
Psalm 119 invites the singer to meditate upon the joys of
following God’s law. It prepares the singer for the psalms that follow. Psalms
120-124 are called the “Songs of Ascents,” they are the psalms sung as pilgrims
approach their goal, the temple of the Lord. Psalm 119 prepares them for the
joy of their arrival.
In these strophes the singer begins by recalling that, to keep
God’s law, one must first know it. They conclude emphasizing that it is only
through God’s mercy that the faithful are allowed to know the Law ("Give
me discernment, that I may observe your law”).
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Gospel: Mark 10:1-12
Jesus
came into the district of Judea and across the Jordan
Again
crowds gathered around him and, as was his custom,
he
again taught them.
The
Pharisees approached him 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.”
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Commentary on
Mk 10:1-12
This passage gives us the
scriptural support for the Church’s view of the durability of the sacrament of matrimony.
The Pharisees' question to Jesus, and their response to his question: “Moses
permitted him to write a bill of divorce and dismiss her," shows that
the Mosaic Law they were referring to (Deuteronomy
24:1) dealt with a contractual relationship. Jesus, in quoting Genesis
(see Genesis 1:27 and 2:24), speaks
instead of the spiritual bond which joins husband and wife. This bond cannot be
broken (“what God has joined together, no human being must separate").
This unbreakable bond is at the
heart of the Church's understanding of the sacrament of marriage and is
distinct from the civil marriage contract (referred to by the Pharisees above).
This passage is also central to the Church's teaching that the sacrament
of marriage is valid only between a man and a woman.
CCC: Mk 10:8 1627; Mk 10:9 1639, 2364, 2382; Mk 10:11-12 1650; Mk 10:11 2380
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Reflection:
Understanding
the reading from the Gospel of St. Mark is critical for us if we are to
understand the Church’s view of the sacrament of marriage. In the past the view
was popularly held that the Church forbade divorce entirely because of the
statement “Whoever divorces his wife and
marries another commits adultery against her; and if she divorces her husband
and marries another, she commits adultery.”
The
historical difficulty here is the clear reference earlier in the passage
stating: “Therefore what God has joined
together, no human being must separate.” The key idea there is that God has
joined them, not man, not a civil contract that can be ratified by a justice of
the peace or a civil judge. What God has joined in marriage is an unbreakable
bond. It is a covenant that includes God the Father, and is seen as a living
symbol of Christ and his bride, the Church. If this bond is present, it cannot
be broken.
Does
this mean that all marriages witnessed by the Church include this sacramental
bond? We do our very best to insure they do, but the sacrament of marriage is a
lived sacrament. The Church does not “administer” the sacrament of marriage as
it does baptism or the Eucharist; it witnesses the proclamation of the covenant
in the presence of God and other members of the faith community.
The
Church, through its marriage preparation programs, tries to insure the
sacramental bond is present. But, it is like a scientist using a very powerful
microscope to look at the molecular structure of some material. Is he able to
see the chemical bonds that hold the material together and make it the compound
it appears to be? No, he cannot see the bonds but, depending upon how the
material reacts under different circumstances (especially when he tries to take
it apart) the bonds demonstrate their existence even though they are invisible
to the human eye.
The
civil contract of marriage can be broken. It is just like any business
contract. There are terms and conditions and there are remedies in civil law.
The only cost is legal fees. If the civil contract is nullified in what was
presumed to have been a sacramental marriage, does that mean the sacramental
bond that was presumed to have existed at the time it was validly witnessed in
a Church was also nullified? No! That is why there is a tribunal in each
diocese, to make sure that the sacramental bond was never present. If present,
it cannot be broken; if not present, the civil bond was all that bound the
couple in the first place.
This
whole view is widely misunderstood, even within the ranks of the faithful, and whenever
we encounter these misunderstandings, we need to correct them. Jesus said; “What God has joined together, no human being
must separate.” Thank God for his unfailing love for us.
Pax
[1]
The picture is “The Marriage at Cana“ by Gerard David, c. 1500.
[3]
The readings are taken from the New American Bible, with the exception of the
psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for
English in Liturgy (ICEL). This republication is not authorized by USCCB and is
for private use only.
[4]
Jerome Biblical
Commentary, Prentice Hall, Inc., © 1968, 33:23, p.544.
[5]
Ibid.
