Scripture Scribbles: October 6, 2024
the Gospel
Mark 10:2-16
The Pharisees approached Jesus and asked,
"Is it lawful for a husband to divorce his wife?"
They were testing him.
He said to them in reply, "What did Moses command you?"
They replied,
"Moses permitted a husband to write a bill of divorce
and dismiss her."
But Jesus told them,
"Because of the hardness of your hearts
he wrote you this commandment.
But from the beginning of creation, God made them male and female.
For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother
and be joined to his wife,
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."
In the house the disciples again questioned Jesus about this.
He said to them,
"Whoever divorces his wife and marries another
commits adultery against her;
and if she divorces her husband and marries another,
she commits adultery."
And people were bringing children to him that he might touch them,
but the disciples rebuked them.
When Jesus saw this he became indignant and said to them,
"Let the children come to me;
do not prevent them, for the kingdom of God belongs to
such as these.
Amen, I say to you,
whoever does not accept the kingdom of God like a child
will not enter it."
Then he embraced them and blessed them,
placing his hands on them.
the scribble
“Amen, I say to you,
whoever does not accept the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it."
Like a child.
I’ve been reflecting on this lately in my own life: What does it mean to be like a child?
This Scripture seems to be following me around lately, and I’ve been feeling the invitation from the Holy Spirit to sit with it, to enter deeper into Jesus’s words, and to ponder what they could mean.
I recently welcomed my second and my days have been filled with rich, life-giving moments toddling around with my 21 month old and cuddling up with my newborn. Life feels too good to be true. I am just trying to soak in every moment I have with each of them.
I find it hard to put into words the experience of motherhood for me so far.
It has been life-changing, to say the least.
I watch as they transform slowly yet suddenly before me each day: Pouring out innocent, unadulterated curiosity, love, and wonder. Offering it freely, totally, openly. Receiving without any blocks. Giving without counting the cost.
And I’ve realized that by witnessing this pure love, by being a recipient and giver, and by partaking in this exchange, I’ve come to better know my own self.
It is their openness, their dependency, their trust, their longing to be loved and to give it, that has brought forth my truest identity. Loving them has resulted in me discovering who I am at my deepest core. It has challenged me and strengthened me and, ultimately, brought me fully alive.
I am more present in any moment with them than I have been while doing anything else in my life. And I feel as though it has only just begun. I feel certain that this journey to come to know myself by loving them will only continue as they grow each day–into their own selves.
What an absurdly beautiful experience. Are there any words that can do it justice?
And then I feel the Holy Spirit nudge me to another piece of today’s Gospel:
“But from the beginning of creation, God made them male and female.
For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother
and be joined to his wife,
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."
Unless we become like a child we will not enter the kingdom of God. And how do we come to know children? God intends for children to come into this world through the gift of marriage.
“God who created man out of love also calls him to love–the fundamental and innate vocation of every human being. For man is created in the image and likeness of God who is himself love. Since God created man and woman, their mutual love becomes an image of the absolute and unfailing love with which God loves man. It is good, very good, in the Creator's eyes. And this love which God blesses is intended to be fruitful and to be realized in the common work of watching over creation: "And God blessed them, and God said to them: 'Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it'" (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1604).
The total, free, and open gift of oneself to another in marriage can bear the fruit of little children. By experiencing the love of both marriage and parenthood, we come to know our own selves more deeply and more wholly. We can become who God created us to be. It is purifying and beautiful and wild and hard all at the same time.
Just as it is in God’s free, total, and open gift of Himself, through the willing sacrifice of His Only Son, that we are able to become children of God. We come alive, we come into our truest calling, through this sacrificial love and gift.
Ah, there is so much more to be said on this topic. It is a profound mystery that you could ponder for a lifetime. I am continuing to mull on these words and to allow the Holy Spirit to lead me deeper into them.
Today I invite you to join me in this walk to reflect more deeply on the purpose of marriage as God intended it from the beginning and the invitation for each of us to welcome the kingdom of God like a child.
Today’s devotion was written by Rachel Smith
