Homily for the 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B

 

Gn 2:18-24

Ps 128:1-6

Heb 2:9-11

Mk 10:2-16

 

St. Jude Thaddeus Catholic Church, Burkburnett, TX

St. Paul Catholic Church, Electra, TX

Christ the King Catholic Church, Iowa Park, TX

 

Each year the Church in the United States celebrates October as Respect Life Month. So, it is fitting that our readings this first Sunday in October speak to God’s Plan for Marriage.

St. John Paul the Great wrote that every human being – including the first man, Adam – exists separate and distinct from the natural world, from other persons, and from God. However, each person is also created to be in relationship with all of them. Adam and Eve were created to be married. This truth reveals that the most fundamental of all human relationships - that of husband and wife. This first relationship then gives rise to the second most fundamental of human relationships – that of child and parent. The natural bond of marriage existed for thousands of years before Jesus. What makes marriage between two Christians sacramental is that they share in a supernatural bond, not just a natural bond. Christian marriage is the fulfillment and manifestation of God’s will for two people. As such, Christian marriage is not so much based on mere human selection of a spouse, but on human participation in and discernment of God’s selection of a spouse. Because of this, Christian marriage is both a vocation (a calling from God) and a Sacrament (sharing in God’s grace). When a sacramental marriage truly exists as intended, the bond is unbreakable, except by death.

In the Gospel, Jesus was asked about the permanence of marriage. Mosaic law allowed for a man to divorce his wife even on the grounds she burned his dinner! Jesus reminded them and us of God’s perfect intention in the beginning. That first marriage between Adam and Eve by God’s plan was unbreakable and it preceded the introduction of sin into the world! This primordial reality of marriage as unbreakable sheds light on God’s original plan for marriage, despite what Moses permitted due to the Israelites’ hardened hearts.

I sympathize with those in the Church today who are in an irregular situation or live with the reality of divorce. Holy Mother Church does not abandon her children. Obtaining a divorce does not bar a person from Holy Communion. Getting remarried after a divorce without first obtaining a declaration of nullity is what keeps one from Holy Communion. If you are unsure about your situation, please come see me.

Love means willing the good of the other, even if it requires sacrifice. Therefore, in marriage, the husband and wife are called to make sincere gifts of their total selves, neither dominating the other. It is inside the family that a child first experiences love and learns about love. Most of us will or have already learned to practice love in a very special way, first as husbands and wives, then as fathers and mothers. Welcoming the gift of children is a natural part of the mission of Christian marriage. It is no wonder that Jesus grew angry with his disciples for preventing the children from coming to Him. When children are viewed as liabilities that threaten the superficial pleasures of life instead of the gifts they truly are, married couples can be deceived into seeing children as a threat to their freedom, pleasure, and finance. The grave sins of abortion and contraception are opposed to God’s Divine Will. Abortion is such an abomination in the eyes of God that participating in one incurs self-excommunication. If you are suffering this wound, come see me about healing this breach. God wills all marriages be open to the gift of children so they can be brought to Jesus as disciples. Let us not repeat the error of preventing the littlest ones from coming to the Lord.

In the last century we witnessed a slow tidal wave building that is now crashing down upon us. Many diabolic forces are arrayed against Holy Mother Church, hell-bent (literally) on the destruction of marriage and the family. Our Mother Mary warned us at Fatima of this battle between the Church and Satan. In the 1930s, hormonal contraception appeared on the scene. Then Hollywood gave us celebrities, engaging in ‘marriage’ after ‘marriage’ after ‘marriage.’ The 1960s brought the concept of ‘free love’ and promiscuity, then radicalized feminism, and no-fault divorce. The 1970s brought abortion on demand and in-vitro fertilization that demonically separated procreation from the marital act. Now in the 21^st century, we are drowning in a culture that embraces special LGBT ‘rights,’ internet pornography, same-sex so-called ‘marriage,’ and the diabolical deception that a person can pick their gender at will from a myriad of choices. Make no mistake - all of these are deadly errors and spawned by the father of lies, Satan himself.

Standing largely alone in this world, Holy Mother Church teaches and defends the Truth of God unchanged, as she has for 2000 years. We are not backing down! There are fundamental truths about man and woman that originate with God. They are inscribed in reality and elevated by the Sacrament of Matrimony. These truths are to be accepted and embraced by all true Catholic Christians:

·       We are created man and woman. There are no other options, and this truth is coded into our DNA.

·       Men and women are equal in dignity, but complimentary. We are not identical and not the same.

·       Marriage is between one man and one woman. Period.

·       Marriage as intended by God is exclusive, unbreakable, and open to the gift of children.

·       The marital embrace has two purposes: the good of the spouses and to bring forth children. Abortion and contraception violently reject God’s plan and are grave sins.

·       Children require and deserve both a mother and a father who sacrifice for one another and the good of their children.

God’s eternal truths are not popular right now. They are radically inconvenient to the post-modern, post-rational culture in which we live. When we profess God’s truths about marriage and live them in word and deed, we will be persecuted. I will be attacked (maybe even by some of my own flock) for preaching God’s truth about marriage today. I do not care. I love you too much to allow the culture of death to deceive you. I refuse to be silent and allow you go unfed and led to the slaughter! On my last day I will stand before the Lord Jesus Christ to give an accounting of how I shepherded His flock as His priest. I will not be found guilty of standing idle while the wolves feast! Regardless of any persecution you or I face, we will be okay. Genesis is still true. Psalm 128 which we proclaimed today is still true. The Gospel is still true. God’s truth is the same yesterday, today, and forever!

St. Joseph, Defender of Life and Terror of Demons, Pray for Us!