Jesus loves weddings. His first recorded miracle was at the wedding at Cana (John 2). At the urging of his mother, Mary, he saved the marriage party from shame when they ran out of wine, turning water into wine for them.
Jesus loves marriage, and he defended marriage with a firm, clear teaching. When asked about divorce he flatly rejected it. Jesus explained that Moses had weakened in the face of public pressure when faced with this same question, and Moses allowed divorce. Jesus does not back down, saying,
“Because of the hardness of your hearts he (Moses) wrote you this commandment (Permitting divorce). 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.”
We know that this teaching was hard to accept even by the disciples. Afterward, when they were alone with Jesus in the house they asked him again about divorce. Once again, Jesus did not back down, saying clearly,
“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 Jesus’ teaching on marriage and divorce. This is what the Bible teaches. This is the Church’s teaching on marriage and divorce. There is no other way for Christians to understand marriage and divorce.
While we are on the topic, allow me to address the matter of homosexual marriage. Marriage is a very specific word in history and in most human cultures. Marriage is the union of one man and one woman for the good of the couple and for the procreation of family. This is a sacred responsibility.
The Church’s position on homosexuality is not hard to understand or accept. What other people say is the Church’s position may be difficult to accept, but the Church’s true position is not hard to understand. God loves all men and women. God loves homosexuals and heterosexuals.
The Bible and the Ten Commandments teach that adultery and fornication, sex outside of marriage is sinful. It is chaotic. It creates much havoc and disorder among people. Chastity is the teaching of the Catholic Church.
I was married. I lived a chaste life with my wife. I am a widower. I am now a celibate widower. This is the teaching of our faith. Don’t allow others to distort the truth of Catholic teaching.
This weekend we begin recruiting Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts for our parish Troop 489. In past weeks we have been forming adult Scouting leaders. This will be a safe program for our children because all adult leaders will have taken training that includes protection of children. Now we are ready to launch our program for Hispanic boys. Soon, we hope to have a scouting program for girls. First, we must get the boy’s program launched. Sign up your boy today after Mass. Help us to create a safe program for our children.
Jesus loves children. We must have Christian formation programs in the parish for our children to help them become healthy, successful adults. In today’s Gospel Jesus said,
“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.” Then he embraced them and blessed them, placing his hands on them.
Mark 10:2-16