Love, passion, fidelity and forgiveness

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today touch our lives in the areas of love, passion, fidelity and forgiveness. The description from the Book of the Prophet Ezekiel of the Love of God for Israel who is chosen by God from those rejected at birth and nurtured like a wife is described by one Biblical commentator as “not suitable for children”. The prostitution of the wife in the passage from Ezekiel is, according to FriarJude Winkler, the decision of Israel to become so infatuated with its own beauty and political skill that it decides to ignore God and the Covenant of Love and to welcome and accept the life styles and worship of the gods of the world around them. The overwhelming statement of God through Ezekiel is the desire to re-establish the Covenant with Israel. The “faithless bride” is forgiven and God desires the restoration of an even deeper love with those who have moved away from intimacy with the Divine. The Gospel passage from Matthew addresses the challenge of maintaining the union of male and female described in Genesis as a procreative Covenant wherein the partners continue the life giving creation in intimacy with God. Friar Jude comments that the rabbinic responsibility, at Jesus time, included determination of which unions could be ended in divorce. Jesus challenges His disciples to consider accepting the special model of Covenant intimacy which cooperates in Creation with God. The challenge is to decide, like the ‘eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven’ (Matthew 19:12) that the model of procreative Genesis marriage is to be celebrated and presented as inspiration to the people of the Kingdom. The ‘fairness’ of a special recognition of this marriage state is a question raised by modern society. Those who have set themselves apart, as noted by Jesus in the Gospel, (Friar Jude mentions priests, religious, those without annulment and those who are not heterosexually oriented) have decided to live in witness to faith in Christian marriage as a great mystery of love, commitment and life giving which is at the foundation of continuing Creation.