"In the Beginning..."

" "Have you not read that from the beginning the Creator created them male and female and said, for this reason a man will leave his father and his mother and unite with his wife, and the two will be one flesh?" So it is that they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined let man not separate." They objected, "Why then did Moses order to give her a certificate of divorce and send her away?" Jesus answered, "Because of the hardness of your heart Moses allowed you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so." Mt 19: 3 - 8

Clearly Jesus is saying a lot here. But JP2 focuses on "the beginning". In the beginning, before sin was in the world, everything was perfect. Everything was how God made it to be. What can we learn from this?

I took the verse directly from the book because I thought the italics were Jesus quoting Genesis. That may be true for the first part, but I'd have to check my Bible. Or leave you wondering in suspense until you pick up your own Bibles to find out? Yeah, I think I'll do the second.

But can you picture Jesus talking to people of today, people in a society where about half of marriages end in divorce? His words, the words from 2000 years ago, still apply to us today. There will be more talk on divorce later, but for now I'll just say this. Jesus tells us that the man and his wife become one flesh. And when the flesh is severed through a divorce, what happens? Intense pain. Pain in the family. Pain between the former lovers. Any of you who have been through or know someone who has gone through divorce knows this. Even if the other person is not good, it's hard to leave.

Jesus tells us that "what God has joined let man not separate". For college kids, my age group, how does that apply? We need to be careful who we date. At this point, we need to think "this man (or woman) is someone I could potentially marry." Is that a good thing or a bad thing? Is the person you're with going to love you through sick and suffering? While there is no way to know, if you cannot see yourself marrying the person you're with, get out. Don't date just to date. It's not worth it.

Alright, so I'm done there. Back to the beginning. I'd recommend reading the book of Genesis sometime this week. Time to go all the way back and see what God created... and see how JP2 says it reflects our relationship with God and others.

Lord, help us all have an amazing week. Bless us as we begin our reading, and help us to learn a little more how to truly be human! I'd like to offer a prayer for all those who are victims of divorce, and all those marriages that are really struggling. Bless them, Lord and please help them to discover and want to do your will. Amen

Happy Advent Ya'll!!!