Our readings this week
speak to each of our domestic churches — the little churches that we call our
families. They bring us back to the very beginning of time and call us to
restore what God had intended for each of us.
The First Reading from the book of Genesis takes us to the beginning of
creation when God made man and woman. God said, “It is not good for the man to
be alone. I will make a suitable partner for him.” And out of man, woman was
created.
When Adam sees the woman he says, “This one, at last, is bone of my bones and
flesh of my flesh; this one shall be called ‘woman.’”
We can almost hear the longing, gratitude, and appreciation in Adam’s voice
when he meets Eve as he says, “at last.” She was a gift because she was an
equal partner to him.
This was before the fall of man, meaning sin had not entered the world. Adam
and Eve only viewed each other in total acceptance and love.
Our Gospel brings us to life after sin had entered the world — a time that is
familiar to us. As the Pharisees questioned Jesus about divorce, He expressed
that Moses permitted it because of the hardness of man’s heart. However, Jesus
was calling them to deeper holiness. He was calling them to restore the
original plan God had intended for marriage, “A man shall leave his father and
mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.”
Jesus’ words still apply to us here and now in each of our domestic churches.
It is the task of families to tirelessly work to restore God’s original plan
for marriage and family life — homes filled with gratitude, acceptance, and
love. It is a beautiful request and yet extremely difficult because sin and
temptation surround us.
It takes a daily commitment to live out our call to holiness to restore our
families to this beautiful image.
To recognize the gifts God has bestowed on us through the members of our
families, we need to remain close to our Gracious Giver. Just as Adam and Eve
“walked” with God in the Garden before their fall, we too are called to walk
with God in our day-to-day moments. This is primarily done through prayer and
action.
As Genesis reminds us, God created woman as a partner for man and He desires
that they become unified. It is in this union of marriage that man and woman
work together to bring their family to Heaven. This is the mission that our
families must be united in.
We must ask ourselves, how are we living out that mission? It should be the
very heart and soul of our families.
It is done through individual, spousal, and family prayer. Simply by praying
before meals, attending Mass together, going to confession, praying a decade of
the Rosary, or even a simple Hail Mary, Our Father and Glory be together each
evening that we become more aware and united on our mission to Heaven.
It’s also done through action — how we treat each member of our family. How we
respond to one another in our day-to-day moments, support and challenge one
another on this road to sanctity, and humbly choose to serve each member that
our families will be transformed.
Restoring our families to what God had intended them to be takes work, but it
doesn’t need to be complicated. All we need to do is take one step closer to
Him.
As we think about our families this week — whether it be a single household or
a family of 10 — let us find small ways in which we can live out our mission to
bring our families to Heaven.
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