PUTTING THE HOUSE IN ORDER.

TWENTY-SEVENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR B.
OCTOBER 8, 2006.
(Gen. 2:18-24) (Hebrews 2:8-11) (Mark 10:2-16)

PUTTING THE HOUSE IN ORDER.

Deep in our hearts we have a constant desire to live in an orderly fashion. However, it is precisely the opposite that be see all around us: Disorder, chaos, conflicts, disagreements are common place in our families, in our nations, in our world.

Now, why is it that we long for order? Because Our Creator created us in order. And this order is manifested in the unity of God Himself. The order of creation is a reflection of God. At the time of creation there is unity between God and man, and unity between human beings.

The readings of this Sunday speak of this unity:
- The unity between God and man (Letter to the Hebrews): "He who consecrates and those who are being consecrated all have one origin. Therefore, he is not ashamed to call them 'brothers'" (Hebrews 2:11). In Christ Jesus, man and God share the same human condition.

- The unity between human beings (Book of Genesis and Gospel): "God made them male and female... 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" (Mark 10:6-8).

- In the gospel the Lord Jesus refers to the relation between a man and a woman; such relationship can certainly be applied to the relations between all human being.

The unity between human beings is the Image of God. Just as God is Trinitarian, so is man communitarian.

Divorce and Separation: The unity and order of creation are broken by what the Gospel calls "divorce" or "separation", with the resulting disorder and chaos.

The presence of this "divorce" is prevalent in all the institutions of our society:
- In our economic system. There is "divorce" between capital and labor, there is conflict and tension between the two: one wants to pay lower salaries, cut benefits; the other wants fair salaries and benefits. There is divorce between seller and buyer: one wants to charge more, the other wants affordable prices. There is divorce between insurance companies and the insured as, again, profit is the goal for the companies.

- In our political system. There is divorce between the rulers and the masses; the rulers protect their own interests, make promises they never intend to fulfill; the masses want choices of candidates and truth in political commitments.

- In international relations. There is divorce between the nations of the world. Powerful countries subjugate and occupy defenseless countries through the use of military force or financial control.

- In family life. There is divorce even before a man and a woman enter into matrimony, as courtship is usually based on selfish, materialist motivations, lies and deceit. And of course, there is the divorce between husband and wife, divorce which is taken and given ever so lightly, and whose consequences are so devastating on the parties and the children in the family(1).

How to bring order into our world, into our nations, into our homes?
We may try two means to bring about order:
1- One of them, the Gospel tells us, does not work: The law. The Lord Jesus says: Moses wrote the law of divorce "because of the hardness of your hearts" (Mark 10:5). In fact, the law does not change the hardness of man's heart, it only norms over it; so that the evil of "divorce" may have a "controlled" damage over the life of human beings. The function of the law is only to norm the external acts of human conduct, but not to norm the inner motives of the human heart(2).

2- The other means does work: It is the Plan of God, which is the plan set forth from the very time of creation; this plan consists in reinstating unity between all human beings, the unity intended by God and broken by man.

Do you believe that it is possible to bring about order in accordance with the Plan of God? Apparently, our modern world doesn't. People would usually say that it is impossible for human beings to live in the unity and order intended by God since creation.

Our pagan world would say that such unity can only exist in the minds and imagination of innocent children who know nothing about the "real world". Well, that is precisely what the Lord Jesus tells us in the Gospel: "Whoever does not accept the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it" (Mark 10:15).

Yes, we must have the open-mindedness and the faith necessary to believe wholeheartedly that we can put our world, our nations, our homes in order.
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Footnotes.
(1) Most problems afflicting the family are, in deed, the result of the "divorce" and chaos afflicting the various institutions of our society, i.e. social, political, economic, educational, etc. In the face of such overwhelming chaos, the individuals in a family find themselves drawn into such chaos and unable to deal with it. The children who see the violence, deception, dishonesty, wars, destruction, abuse and exploitation of the weak in the world, will most likely learn to imitate such maladies or grow disillusioned at the society in which they live; others, hopefully, will develop the longing and ability to look for the means to eradicate the ills of society.
As children grow distrustful of their families in chaos, the citizens of the world will, similarly, grow distrustful of their societies in chaos.

(2) Furthermore, the law is a product of the interests of a specific societal group, and reflects what is convenient to such group. The law in our societal system is, therefore, ill equipped to bring about unity between all human beings.