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Gospel Reading for February 28, 2025 – Mark 10: 1-12
TRULY UNFAIR
Jesus came into the district of Judea and across the Jordan. Again crowds gathered around him and, as was his custom, he again taught them. The Pharisees approached him 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.”
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The topic of divorce has long been debated upon by our lawmakers in the Philippines. In a country where majority are Christians, it is indeed an uphill battle for lawmakers who favor divorce. Perhaps, even if the issue will be put to a referendum, most Filipinos will still choose not to allow divorce in the Philippines. As Jesus said, “what God has joined together, no human being must separate.” This is what makes the Sacrament of Matrimony sacred. It is God who joins the couple together. It is God who created male and female, who leave their parents and become one flesh.
What is important is not to allow divorce but to make sure that those who wish to unite in the Sacrament of Matrimony truly love one another, have the capacity to be in a lasting and fruitful relationship, and have the desire to make the union grow until death parts them.
Family is not like a dress that can be altered if it does not fit, or can be discarded when one no longer wants it. Family is a PERMANENT INSTITUTION that has its own unique life, with its members having their unique relationship with one another. This is why divorce brings about more problems, especially with the children who unfairly suffer. It is TRULY UNFAIR because the children did not have a choice of being born into a family and did not have a choice of parents. According to studies made in 1991, 1992 and 1998, “Parental divorce is a consistent (if modest) predictor of delinquency and other externalizing behaviors during childhood and adolescence.” Naturally, because children are very insecure as they are growing up. They need identity and need assurance of being loved by their parents. When their parents separate, they conclude that they are not loved because their parents are not willing to make sacrifices and make their union work. They become victims of collateral damage.
In the Philippines, legal separation already causes problems in children, which become worse as they go through adolescence. It will be worst when the separation is made permanent and exchange of partners is allowed.
Lord Jesus, send your Spirit upon our lawmakers, so they may be enlightened and understand why divorce should not be legalized in the Philippines. Enlighten also, those contemplating marriage, and those who are having problems with their spouses.
