Sometimes, the weekend readings do not stir thoughts that are easy to apply to our experience. By contrast, this weekend’s offering is rich with material—enhanced by two feast days that fell during the week. This is the time of year when we are called to reflect on the life of Theresa of Liseux (the “little flower”) and Francis of Assisi (founder of the Franciscan Order).
By contrast, today’s rich reading is from Genesis—and reports one of the TWO creation stories that appear in that first book of the Bible. This is not the story of Adam and Eve, but of God making a man whose rib God crafted into that of a woman. In the Adam and Eve’s story, humans are created after the animals and in both male and female sexes. Here, however, man (male) is created first. Animals were then created to serve him (naming them indicates control over them).
We could spend much time addressing the content of these creation stories, but for our limited time today, it’s worth noting some key points that are important for each of us to internalize and take to heart each day of our lives. Namely, there is no hierarchy within the human race. That is, humankind did not come into existence UNTIL both man and woman were created. The two are of one flesh. As one verse puts it, “Male and female he created them.” One is not beholden to or superior to the other.
Similarly, throughout human history, groups and individuals have asserted that THEIR people are #1—over and above or smarter than all others. In America, we’ve had a history of seeing Indians as non-human and Blacks as inferior to “White” people. When the Ku Klux Klan emerged, they rose to power by hating Jews, Blacks, and Catholics. Today, the KKK has been replaced by a variety of “White supremacist” groups such as the Aryan Nation, Nazis, and a variety of militia groups. Surprisingly, some Catholics identify with these groups and are unaware that they, Catholics, were once the object of racial/ethnic prejudice and hanged.
It is hard to understand how Christians of any denomination can attend church and carry this sort of prejudice. Their own scripture, as in Genesis today, teaches them that humankind was created by God—and that God made one “race”—the human race. There was no mention of skin shade. God created man and woman—“and saw that they were good.” Importantly, Genesis informs us that creation is incomplete without YOU—in your special identity as this male or this female in this place within the garden of Eden that is our home.
Genesis tells its readers that we are to care for this marvelous gift of planet Earth, but you may recall the “Crying Indian” commercial that depicted an Indian looking at polluted lands and rivers. It reflected an Indian criticism of Genesis—Indians saying that Christianity has been killing “Mother Earth” for centuries. Their perspective is not based on an accurate reading of Genesis, but Christian actions have spoken louder than words. Sadly, the example of St. Francis of Assisi has not been able to offset human spoilage of the environment.
Taking this saint’s name, Pope Francis issued the encyclical “LAUDATO SI’, mi’ Signore” – “Praise be to you, my Lord”. (a line from the prayer of St. Francis). He challenged Catholics (and people everywhere) to realize that we are on a course to ecological calamity. With the past couple of years being the hottest globally in recorded history, and with climate disasters occurring with greater frequency than ever, 72% of Americans agree with scientists that global warming is a reality. Fossil fuels have long been a major contributor to “eco-cide” but U.S. politicians from both parties have been financially supported by corporations that place profit over people (and scripture).
NASA was aligned with the encyclical. It reported that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, composed of scientific experts from countries all over the world, concluded that “it is unequivocal that climate change is the result of human activities and that human influence is the principal driver of many changes observed across the atmosphere, ocean, cryosphere and biosphere. Since systematic scientific assessments began in the 1970s, the influence of human activity on the warming of the climate system has evolved from theory to established fact.” However, this reality has been reduced to a popular political position that the issue doesn’t exist.
Just this week, the governor of Florida banned the term “climate change” from State literature and allied himself with other bribed politicians to assert that the issue is something “made up” by their political opponents. All sorts of industries that make trillions of dollars by avoiding regulation were no doubt pleased with the support of politicians allied with this governor. We who claim to have a Gospel identity need take to heart the Pope’s counsel. In listening to speakers on the topic of our environment, we need to realize that Francis speaks on behalf of a Bible that told us to take care of our “common home” and not listen to those who speak on behalf of their wallet.
It is not surprising that this topic has people take sides in the matter (trusting politicians over scientists who actually know what they’re talking about). It seems we live in a time when people will even question if the earth is flat. Well, this week’s readings throw us another topic that could itself be the focus of a workshop: marriage and divorce.
Picture yourself at age 21 coming home and announcing at the family dinner table that you’ve found the person who you love and who you’re going to marry. With a proud smile on your face and hoping to be congratulated by family members, you instead are told by one of your parents: “Love shmuv! You’re going to marry who we’ve chosen for you. Mr. and Mrs. X are respected people whose son/daughter will be a good provider for you and the children you’ll have. You and our family will be much respected by this union.” In the words of a woman who had this experience, “Over time, you grow to love your husband.” Love generally meaning that he was a decent provider for the family.
Unlike American culture, peoples globally—since earliest times—regarded marriage as an institution that was arranged by parents (and not their child). It was thought that marriage was too important a decision for a young person to make. We might fantasize “falling in love,” but in their study of cultures around the world, anthropologists pretty much define marriage as “an economic transaction uniting two groups.” No warm embraces with that cold statement! From time to time, you’ll read the story of a girl’s family killing her for not abiding by the marriage custom of her people—marriage being serious “business”—literally.
In the modern era, 41% of first marriages, 60% of second marriages, and 73% of third marriages end in divorce. Such is the state of marriage in 21st-century America. It has not always been this way. Customs change, e.g., 19th-century America saw MANY first-cousin marriages.
In the time of Jesus, Israelite culture held that just as children cannot choose their parents, so too children could not choose their spouse. God chose one’s parents, and through one’s parents God chose one’s marriage partner. And so it was that Jesus stated a cultural truism, i.e., “What God joined let no one separate.” If marriages dissolved, such things as shame, feuding, and bloodshed could result. Thus, the “Marriage bond” needed preservation at all cost. It was NOT a decision made by a couple kissing affectionately. It was, rather, a “social contract” that involved a community that would be bound together in all sorts of activities because of the “marital bond.” Modern America pretty much lets a couple decide their fate going into or out of marriage. Cultures everywhere saw broader ramifications to a union, e.g., the couple living with his family for a period, or hers, or their own—with obligations of various kinds. America largely lets young people do what they wish.
As is obvious in the Gospels, Jesus was one who brought people together and healed people whose minds, hearts, and bodies were broken in one way or another. His role was to encourage the union of people and couples. His efforts were not aimed at dissolving the marriage pact but to help it be a stabilizing force within communities. That same strategy is what the Church tries to implement 2000 years later. However, early in Church history, the Christian community had to address problems that arose with marriage—problems that seemed to have no positive resolution. Hence was born the Pauline and Petrine privilege that granted a couple’s release from the marriage contract under certain circumstances. In our time, you might know someone who was granted an “annulment” which allowed them to marry. Some Protestant groups reject these Catholic teachings and do not allow divorce based on today’s scripture. As stated, the topic is a sensitive one still—and not limited to the fallout noted above within Israelite culture of the first century. This is why the matter requires sensitivity on the part of a marriage tribunal, parishioners, and anyone dealing with people caught up in these circumstances.
Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi
Most High, all-powerful, all-good Lord, All praise is Yours, all glory, all honour and all blessings. Praised be You my Lord with all Your creatures, especially Brother Sun,
Who is the day through whom You give us light? And he is beautiful and radiant with great splendor, Of You Most High, he bears the likeness. Praised be You, my Lord, through Sister Moon and the stars,
In the heavens you have made them bright, precious and fair. Praised be You, my Lord, through Brothers Wind and Air, And fair and stormy, all weather’s moods, by which You cherish all that You have made. Praised be You my Lord through Sister Water–So useful, humble, precious and pure.
Praised be You my Lord through Brother Fire, through whom You light the night and he is beautiful and playful and robust and strong. Praised be You my Lord through our Sister, Mother Earth, who sustains and governs us, producing varied fruits with coloured flowers and herbs. Praise be You my Lord through those who grant pardon for love of You and bear sickness and trial.
Blessed are those who endure in peace, By You Most High, they will be crowned. Praised be You, my Lord through Sister Death, from whom no-one living can escape. Blessed are they She finds doing Your Will.
St. Theresa of Liseux
“When I have been lonely, depressed or ill, I’d often repeat to myself a line of poetry which brought peace and strength back into my soul. It says: “Time is just a ship that bears us. It is not our home.” “When we cannot rise above our difficulties, we should pass through them or beneath them with trust in God.”
“Our Lord does not come from Heaven every day to stay in a golden ciborium. He comes to find another Heaven, the Heaven of our mind and heart–is where he most loves to stay.”
“When it comes to his closest friends, the Lord tests them by keeping them waiting for a miracle. He allows Lazarus to die when Martha and Mary have sent warning that he is sick. At Cana of Galilee when his mother tells him the host has run out of wine, he tells her that his time has not come yet. Why shouldn’t our Lord treat me the same way, by keeping me waiting first, I savor God all the more because in his own time he satisfies the deepest wishes of my heart?”
“In God’s garden, there are big flowers and little flowers. Not all of us can be big lilies and roses. Some of us have to be content to be little daisies —and God loves those little daisies just as much as he does those big lilies and big roses.”