Thursday 9th February 2023. Read Genesis 2:18-25, Ps. 128:1-5, Mark 7:24-30
“Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile, since it enters, not the heart but the stomach, and goes out into the sewer? … It is what comes out of a person that defiles.” (Mark 7:18-20)
Today, we come across the aspect of the creation story that tells us how the first woman was created from the rib of a man in a bid to find a helper most suitable for him. We are told that as soon as the man saw the woman, he exclaimed: “This, at last, is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh…”
There was no courtship, no introduction, no traditional rites; it was marriage instantly. The only explanation for this immediate attraction is Love and not just any love, but love at first sight.
Even at creation, God had the family in mind. This is why God did not create another man to serve as a companion, but a woman whose body is capable of procreation unlike that of the man. At the heart of the attraction between man and woman is love and this love not only produces a family but sustains it.
Take away love from the family and what is left is a bunch of animals trying to survive at the expense of each other. Love not only binds the man to the woman, it also binds them to their children. And because of love, they are willing to make sacrifices to each other.
An example of the love that sustains family is what we see in the Gospel passage when a woman was willing to swallow what seemed like an insult just for the sake of the healing of her daughter. She so loved her daughter that she was just not ready to take “No” for an answer. If this kind of love exists in our families, the world would be a much better place.
How many parents today are willing to sacrifice their personal ego and self-esteem for the sake of their children? How many couples today still love each other and remain faithful to one another? Love is the heartbeat of any family. We must pray that nothing ever cuts short our love for one another no matter the challenges we face.
Let us pray: Heavenly Father, may
your love for me reflect in my love for others. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. God bless you. (Thursday of week 5 in Ordinary Time. Bible Study: Genesis 2:18-25, Ps. 128:1-5, Mark 7:24-30).
@Rev. Fr. Evaristus Abu
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