Reflection by Rev. Leonard N. Peterson
If I write or say the word “convention” at this time you can’t be blamed for conjuring up images of noisy political gatherings two of which we just lived through in this presidential election year. But there is another, less often used version of the word, in the sense of “an established custom. It is something that is generally accepted, something that members of society can agree on. Conventions usually develop because they are useful in some way, but after a time they often become restrictive and oppressive.
Such is the case with religious history. There has been a persistent thread of what we could call “puritanism” throughout. It has had names like “Gnosticism and Dualism.” These lead to the idea that the whole purpose in life is to escape from matter, especially sexuality, which ties us down to the material. It is essential for us to know that authentic biblical Christianity, Catholicism for sure, is NOT puritanical.
Bluntly put, there is nothing evil about our bodies, or sex, or sexual longing, or the sexual act. All matter is basically good, because it is created by an all-good God. When Jesus is asked about marriage and divorce, He proposes the context and the ideal for sexual expression in a lifelong union of man and woman. He stresses that this is the divine plan.
That alone is a direct contradiction of what our present-day culture holds as a “convention.” Sex and sexual expression are to be indulged in whenever the impulse strikes, with no acknowledgment of a divine plan. It can be engaged in with a same-sex partner as well as one of the opposite sex. It does not require any approval by an outside source, namely the Church and State. Nor is it to be understood as a holy calling endorsed by the Holy Spirit and one of the seven holy sacraments.
Obviously, with such a widespread “convention” accepted by the majority, one will be held in contempt for holding the opposite. As a result, our Christian belief is made a fit subject for mockery.
The ideal of lifelong marital union clashes with the sad reality of divorce. Our Church understands this and works to help those who may be “trapped,” as it were, in a certain marital relationship. While bound to Christ’s teaching, she may be able to find reasons for such unions not having been sacramental from the start, and she can annul them. But such annulments are not “Catholic divorce.”
Meanwhile, it is incumbent on the older married generation to make sure that the younger generation understands the seriousness of preparing to take marriage vows, all the while setting an example of how to keep them over time. That is a very worthwhile “convention.”
Admittedly people living the marital vocation must face challenges. That’s part of our human condition. But we believers know that we do not face such challenges alone. Christ walks with all of us on our life’s journey. He promised as much… In this context, that is a Christian “convention.”
Here are two less serious but helpful quotes about marriage to end this reflection:
“Marriage is the union of a person who never remembers anniversaries with one who never forgets them.” -Ogden Nash, poet
“Before you marry a person you should first make them use a computer with slow internet to see who they really are.” – Will Ferrel, comedian
God love you and give you His peace.
Rev. Peterson’s Reading & Gospel Summary
Reading I: Genesis 2: 18-24
God makes marriage part of the creation by providing a fitting helper for the man, “bone of his bone.”
Reading II: Hebrews 2: 9-11
Jesus and we share the same Father through our Baptism.
The Gospel: Mark 10: 2-16, or 10: 2-12
Jesus offers His teaching on marriage and conjugal love.