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Monday, October 5, 2009

Evils of Divorce

Yesterday (4th October) was the 27th Sunday of Year B, and the Gospel reading is according to Mk 10: 2-16. Jesus is speaking about divorce. The celebrant at Stella Maris Church, Rev. Fr. Tony Majiwat reminded the congregation that ‘what God has united, man must not divide’. He also spoke about the evils of divorce that, among others, destroys a family which leads to the sufferings of children through no fault of theirs.

In the western countries with soaring single mother pregnancies, with the sense that youth crime and dysfunction amongst young people is out of control, the UN survey says that our children are the least happy in the world. Despite this our government applies sticking plasters to the symptoms, rather than dealing with the cause, the health of the family.

It is the family that is sick in those countries (including ours), until we address that, our social problems will continue.

(CNS) -- Many children raised by cohabitating, separated, divorced or remarried parents are deprived of fixed points of reference and can suffer from inner conflict and confusion, Pope Benedict XVI told Brazilian bishops.

The traditional family based on a man and woman united in an indissoluble marriage is under attack in today's world, he said.

"There are forces and voices in present society that seem committed to demolishing the natural homestead of human life," the pope said during a meeting Sept. 25 with bishops from the northeastern area of Brazil.

Families in secularized cultures, especially where divorce is legal, seem deeply immersed in uncertainty, he said.

More and more couples build their unions on the fragility and impermanence of cohabitation, which is merely based on an "individual's feeling or subjectivity," he said.

He said as divorces increase and cohabitation is on the rise, the children in these situations are "deprived of their parents' support and become victims of malaise and abandonment, thus spreading social disorder."

Children need concrete fixed points of reference such as having one set of parents who will always be united as a family, the pope said.

He said divorce is sabotaging the traditional sense of an extended family by creating too many "parents," such as stepmothers and stepfathers.

In fact, the majority of children today "who feel like they are orphans are not children without parents, but children who have too many parents," he said.

This situation of a child caught between the different expectations and mixed messages of too many stepparents "cannot help but create inner conflicts and confusion" within the child, he said.

The church must reach out to families and help them base their union on a solid Christian foundation and help them resist becoming "deceived and seduced by certain relativistic lifestyles promoted by films, television and other media outlets," he said.

Pope Benedict also warned the bishops of the "irregular and dangerous situation" of divorced and remarried Catholics. Only the first marriage exists, he said, "there is no husband and wife in a second marriage," rather they are a man and woman living in adultery.

Remarried couples must resolve their situation by seeking the help of a priest who can help all the people involved, he added.

The bishops were meeting with Pope Benedict and Vatican officials for their "ad limina" visits, required of heads of dioceses to brief the pope on the situation in their home territories.

4 comments:

  1. "Pope Benedict also warned the bishops of the "irregular and dangerous situation" of divorced and remarried Catholics. Only the first marriage exists, he said, "there is no husband and wife in a second marriage," rather they are a man and woman living in adultery."
    Amen, this is correct, why aren’t people being warned that only the first marriage exists in the eyes of God? Christians are being lied to who are in second marriages where the first spouse still lives. They have no idea Jesus has said remarriage is adultery against the first spouse because the divorce did not dissolve the original marriage.

    God’s word says this...
    "A wife is married to her husband as long as he lives." 1 Corinthians 7:39
    This is why remarriage is adultery...because a wife is married to her husband as long as he lives.
    In a second marriage they are living in adultery and this is a dangerous situation because 1 Corinthians 6:9 says that adulterers will not inherit the kingdom of God.
    Why is something that God hates so prevalent in our times today?

    It is because people today do not know what the Bible says about marriage, divorce and remarriage.
    "Everyone who divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery and he who marries one who is divorced from a husband commits adultery." ---Jesus Christ

    Because remarrying after a divorce constitutes adultery, we must ask ourselves who are we committing adultery against if we are no longer married? If a divorce makes us single why are we committing adultery AFTER a divorce and if we have no spouse AFTER a divorce then who are we committing adultery against?

    The answer would have to be that it is against the one from whom we are divorced. This would mean that a divorce does not dissolve the marriage bond if we can still commit adultery AFTER the court proclaims that they have dissolved our marriage.

    If divorce truly ended marriage, it would be impossible to commit adultery AFTER divorcing. The fact that Jesus Himself says that the adultery kicks in AFTER a divorce must mean that divorce is powerless to actually end the marriage covenant that God has said is for life.
    "A wife is married to her husband as long as he lives." 1 Corinthians 7:39

    Many, many people today are deceived.
    If a divorce makes us single, why are we then committing adultery while on a honeymoon with a new partner AFTER a divorce? People don’t get it, the divorce didn’t work...Jesus said so.
    The court may declare someone’s marriage dissolved but Jesus does not agree with the court...Luke16:18

    http://www.cadz.net/remarriage.html
    http://www.marriagedivorce.com/mdreform2.htm

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  2. The Bible also said, "You can remarried if your spouse is dead" and your second marriage is valid in eyes of God. Its not easy to be a Catholic and thats why when the King of England want remarried he was forbid by the then Pope and he protested this "marriage" doctrine and as a result he denounced his catholic faith and founded the Prostestant or Anglican church and now Queen Elizabeth's religion. If we read the bible especially the Old Testament, incest, adultery and remarriage between relatives and ancestors and taking 2, 3, 5 or 10 wives was normal but if you argue that its before Christ, the point is we are all the descendant of Adam and Eve which is not a perfect couple and punished by God and banished from paradise.

    The problem of marriage, divorce and remarriage is a global issue. If we look the UN report especially in the US and Africa its an everyday problem. But why not we just focus in our country Malaysia especially in Sabah? As a KDM, the majority is catholic and I agreed what you guys talking as above is also happening here. Its pathetic but what can we do and as I said before we are the descendant of Adam and Eve we are not perfect and inspite of Christ gave us another chance, we still commit sins. So who to blame? The church, the priest or the parents? we have to find out the crux of the problem? Don't just blame, frame, judge and condemned our brothers and sisters who fall in this temptations, we give help, suggestions, motivation and most important prayer instead. If we still fail then only God can judge them. Thats all for now folks, cheerio.

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  3. ...any words mentioned in the Gospel that forbid a man from marrying other women besides his wife?

    King Cup s/o Nche Matahari,
    Gunung Kinabalu

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  4. ...David, a great servant of God, had an exquisite taste for women. He sired many children from various wives and imagine the way he tackled Bathsheba the wife of Uriah whom David killed tactically!

    And so...it is never thru ACTION that put a man right with God. For the gospel reveals how God puts people right with himself: it is thru FAITH from beginning to end, "The person who is put right with God thru faith shall live." (Romans 1.17)

    Again...
    King Cup s/o Nche Matahari,
    Commander of Buhavan Forces,
    Gunung Kinabalu.

    ReplyDelete