October 4, 2015
Gospel: Mk 10:2-16
The Pharisees approached Jesus and asked, "Is it
lawful for a husband to divorce his wife?" They were testing (1) him. He said to them in
reply, "What did Moses command you?" They replied, "Moses permitted (2)
a husband to write a bill of divorce and dismiss (3) 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 (4) against her; and if she
divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery."
And people were bringing children to him that he might
touch them, but the disciples rebuked (5) them. When Jesus saw this he became indignant (6)
and said to them, "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.
The difficult words
(1)To test means to challenge someone, or
to try to trick him.
(2)To permit means to allow, to give
permission.
(3) To commit adultery means to be unfaithful to your
husband or your wife, to break the promises of marriage.
(4) To rebuke means to correct harshly.
(5) Indignant means angry about something
unfair or wrong.
This week’s spotlight
Why do we get married in the
church?
Perhaps you have heard of people getting married
outdoors, or at the city hall, or in their own homes. Why do Catholics get
married inside a church building? Catholics exchange their marriage vows in
church because Christian marriage is a sacrament. This means that when a man
and woman say “Yes” to spending their lives together as husband and wife, God
himself unites them and gives them the grace they need to be loving and
faithful to each other throughout their lives.
The beauty of marriage
A sacrament is a sign of God's grace and love.
Marriage is a sacrament because the love
between a husband and wife is a sign of the perfect and infinite love of God
for each one of us. A man and a woman give
themselves entirely to each other; freely, as Christ gave his life out of love for us and
as he gives us his body each Sunday during communion. We ane the Church and
Christ gives himself to each one of us - this is why we say that the Church is
Christ's bride.
Reflection
Loving for ever
"Let's be friends for ever!" Have you ever
said these words to a special friend? Something inside all of us wants love to
last for ever. When a man and a woman love each other and get married, they
give their word that they will be faithful to each other until death. They make
a serious promise! Even though most things in this world are temporary, they
want their love to last for ever. Sometimes, unfortunately, people stop loving
each other. Jesus knows this very well. He knows that keeping our promises is
difficult, sometimes almost impossible. That's why Jesus loved us even when it
meant dying on the cross. He wanted to show us what true love looks like. Even though
love may seem to die, Jesus can raise it up again. His love makes it possible
for us to love for ever. The sacrament of marriage transforms the love of bride
and groom into the very love of God. God never wants us to suffer with broken
hearts. He too wants love to last. That's why he forbids divorce in today's
Gospel. You are too young to get married, of course. But now is a good time to
learn how to love and to keep your promises!
Discussion questions
1. What does Jesus say about the marriage relationship in today's Gospel?
2. According to Jesus’s teaching, is it allowed to divorce?
3. The disciples question Jesus further about this teaching. Why do you
think they ask Jesus about this again?
4. In the second part of today’s Gospel, whom did they bring to Jesus?
5. What did the disciples do?
6. What did Jesus say to the disciples?
7. What did Jesus do for the children?
Praying after Communion
After
receiving Holy Communion,
you can say this prayer silently to yourself. If you
have not yet
received your First Communion, you can still say this prayer because of your desire to
receive Jesus.
Father, through Jesus, in
communion with the whole Church, I thank you for coming into my heart. You
inspire us to love our parents, our family, and our friends. Help us to love
them more and more each day. May this communion with the body and blood of your
Son help us to be faithful to you and to all the people we love.
Puzzle
http://usccb.org/bible/readings-audio.cfm