14 June 2024 - Only By Grace Reflections

#OnlyByGraceReflections #CFC #CouplesforChrist #SolemnityOfTheSacredHeartofJesus

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TOPIC: IS YOUR MARRIAGE COMMITMENT STRONG ENOUGH TO WITHSTAND CHALLENGES?

First Reading: First Kings 19: 9a, 11-16
Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 27: 7-8a, 8b-9abc, 13-14
Alleluia: Philippians 2: 15d, 16a
Gospel: Matthew 5: 27-32

Jesus teaches us how we can prevent sin and overcome marriage infidelity. One of the Ten Commandments is: “Thou shall not commit adultery”. In the Old Testament, adultery is defined as a married woman having sex outside of her marriage. This negates the husband’s control over her and renders void the assurance that any children she gives birth to belong to the husband. On the other hand, a married man having sexual relations with an unmarried woman was not considered guilty of adultery. Today, we reject such a double-standard understanding of adultery. We view men and women as having equal accountability in marriage, therefore, adultery means either one having sex with anyone outside the marriage.

But Jesus magnified the commandment against adultery in another way: He said that a man looking at a woman with lustful desire is already committing mental/emotional adultery. Presumably, He meant to refer to married women and/or married men since adultery, even of the heart, is still about violating marriage. A single man having lustful desire for a single woman is not mental/emotional adultery. This emphasis is already present in the Ten Commandments: “Thou shall not covet thy neighbor’s wife” (or any of his other property). Jesus is not saying anything different from this. His insistence that following God’s will involves our internal emotions and motivations as well as our outward actions is supported by the Old Testament laws themselves.

This is the 1509th installment of our CFC contemplation series focusing on the daily liturgical readings.

[NOTE: As we continue to pray for Bro Bong Arjonillo’s healing and recovery, let us listen to our brother Jess Ferrer, Head of the CFC Migrants Program, as he brings us today's reflection.

All the regular reflections are between 3-7 minutes long, enough time for us to ponder what God's message is for us individually and to pray that we may live them out in our lives. This video is also available on Couples for Christ’s Facebook page. In You Tube, just type ONLY BY GRACE REFLECTIONS]