Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it. Have you ever heard this saying? It seems to make sense. If mistakes were made once upon a time man has an opportunity to learn from those mistakes and take corrective action. However, if no lesson is learned and no mistake corrected, we are doomed to repeat those mistakes over and over again.
Parents sometimes will teach their children lessons based on mistakes they may have made as a child. Businesses may develop their training manuals based on past mistakes and lessons learned.
As people of faith, we are called to learn from our mistakes(sin) and follow the teachings of Jesus and His Church!
Today our Gospel reading appears to be tailor made for the beginning of the Synod on the Family in Rome. Here we have Jesus teaching definitively about marriage, divorce and hardness of heart. You see during the time Christ walked the earth the Jewish culture just about destroyed the institution of marriage. What was that about history repeating itself? Surely our culture today has failed to learn lessons from this Gospel. Convenient interpretations of the Mosaic law made it incredibly easy for a man to "put away" his wife with a bill of divorce. The woman's offense could be as silly as cooking a not so tasty meal or not cleaning the house to the husband's satisfaction. The Pharisees in todays Gospel know this all too well so they hope to ask Jesus to try and resolve a problem believed to be unresolvable. This challenge is nothing for Jesus, He knows exactly how to answer the question and uses the opportunity to teach. And what does He teach? This is an important question. You know in the various and sundry cultural deviances we deal with today the secular world tells us that Jesus said nothing about things like denying communion for divorced and remarried Catholics and again nothing at all about so-called same sex marriage. Really?
This is exactly what Jesus says: "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. Ambiguous language, confusing verbiage, a little wiggle room; absolutely not. No doubt about, Jesus expects marriage, which He elevated to the dignity of a Sacrament(CCC1601), to be between one man and one woman, forever and indissoluble. Why? Because it's all about the covenant. Jesus right here is teaching those who hear him, whether it be when these words were first spoken or when we hear it today, He is teaching that God Himself has a plan for marriage. What is that plan? The plan is a permanent and exclusive union of a man and a woman who share equally in the dignity of being created in the image of God! How beautiful is that? And this is why the Church cannot, will not condone, endorse or provide for so called same sex marriage, or even Catholics deciding to get married under a tree or in Vegas, or for divorce just because.
Since marriage is a Sacrament we should mention here that Matrimony is one of two Sacraments of Service; the other being Holy Orders. What exactly is a Sacrament of Service? Quite simply the other 5 Sacraments are ordered for the salvation of self while the two Sacraments of Service are ordered for the salvation of others. In Holy Orders, the other is the people of God; for Matrimony, the other is the Spouse! I tell every couple at every wedding that I have witnessed and preached at; your #1 responsibility in a loving, sacramental marriage is helping your spouse to their ultimate destiny: eternal happiness with God in Heaven!!
The Church is not interested only in our physical well being and happiness. She too is concerned, like a mother for her child, about our eternal well being and happiness. She has no animosity or hatred for those who persist in wrong thinking and sin. She wants to help save those people too. A Catholic, having been previously married, and living the faith, should always consult a Priest or Deacon, or someone at the Office of Families at the Archdiocese, before getting married again. And just a word for our families and friends who persist in living with one another before marriage; kind of a let's take the car for a spin before I buy. This too is sin. It must stop. Listen, the call to chastity is not reserved for so called same sex couples, no; it is a call to all. And if you find yourself living in sin, come and talk to a Priest or Deacon, I assure you, we will work to help you; if help is truly what is desired.
Yes brothers and sisters, the Synod is now underway. Pray for the Fathers of the Synod, for wisdom and courage and strength, to listen to the promptings of the Holy Spirit; to defend and uphold the teachings of Jesus Christ and His Holy Church. Encourage our young Catholics that may be approaching marriage to embrace the Sacramental characteristics of matrimony. Pray for our young people discerning the vocation of marriage. And never, ever be afraid, in all Christian charity and unity, to defend the teachings of Holy Mother Church.
Marriage is the foundation of our society and Marriage is the union of one man and one woman, permanent, exclusive and indissoluble! Pray for and celebrate Marriage!
May we learn from history and not be doomed to repeat it!
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