Lasting Love
Today divorce and remarrying are the norm. More marriages end in divorce than in Jesus' day. Back then, it was a form of abandonment.
He left that place and went to the region of Judea and beyond the Jordan. And crowds again gathered around him; and, as was his custom, he again taught them. Some Pharisees came, and to test him they asked, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?” He answered them, “What did Moses command you?” They said, “Moses allowed a man to write a certificate of dismissal and to divorce her.” But Jesus said to them, “Because of your hardness of heart he wrote this commandment for you. 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, let no one separate.” Then in the house the disciples asked him again about this matter. 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.” People were bringing little children to him in order that he might touch them; and the disciples spoke sternly to them. But when Jesus saw this, he was indignant and said to them, “Let the little children come to me; do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs. Truly I tell you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it.” And he took them up in his arms, laid his hands on them, and blessed them. - Mark 10:1-16
When a man divorced his wife in the time of Jesus, the woman could take with her only what she was wearing. This is why women wore many articles of jewelry, including coins and headgear.
The woman had no standing in the law, so she could not divorce her husband, unless she had a male relative stand up for her and lay charges against the husband.
So, to divorce a woman meant sending her out into the world with only what she could carry, and since she could not easily find work, she would probably wind up destitute, unless a son or family member would take care of her.
No wonder Jesus was against divorce.
He was against anything that would unfairly reduce someone to poverty. It was unjust.
In this country, women have legal rights, so they have the ability to argue their case and win an equitable arrangement in the dissolution of the marriage.
Now, that doesn't address the commandment issue. But it does explain why it was so devastating back then to be a divorced woman.
So, what do we do?
I believe compassion comes first. Just because two people can no longer live together, it may not mean that they hate each other. They could still have love for one another, and that is a good thing.
As we get older, we may find a need to console and support someone who is in failing health, out of that love that remains when all else falls apart.
That is what Jesus wants us to hold onto, that lasting love we have for one another. All God's children are our brothers and sisters, and we should have love for all.
But that love that brought two together can be stronger than any other bond, even after years of separation. It is just as real and just as important in our lives than the bond we have with those who are closest now.
When the Spirit calls us to help console another, we should go, regardless of the history we share with that person. Or perhaps because of it.
More to come...