Happy Lord's Day: soft and childlike hearts

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.

Mk 10:2-16

When I first read this Gospel, I was a little confused.

First Jesus is talking about God's original plan for marriage and how divorce, though it was permitted by Moses, is not actually cool. Then it seems like we've reached a totally different subject and He starts talking about children.

My first reaction was, 'Yeah, these are both great, but what the heck do they have to do with each other?"

And then my intelligence kicked in and I realized that the Church wouldn't put these two together for this Sunday's Gospel reading if they didn't have something to do with one another (side tangent, here's a good example of why the Magisterium is the ultimate interpreter of Scripture and not me--I don't see the big picture without a little nudge from those wiser than I).

Divorce was not a part of God's original plan for man and woman. It was permitted under the Mosaic law because of the hardness of the Israelites' hearts. Their hearts had become hardened, jaded, stony. They were no longer soft, trusting, easily loving. 

I can relate, Israelites. It seems to me that the older I grow, the more jaded I am. With each passing year, as I move further into adult life and reality, I have to fight even harder to not let my heart become hardened by this world and all of the stresses that come with it.

You know who has hearts that are soft? Hearts that haven't been hardened or jaded by this world? Hearts that are trusting? Hearts that easily love and are easy to love?

Children.

See the connection yet?

In this Gospel passage, Jesus is telling us that if we want to enter the kingdom of Heaven, we need to allow our hearts to be softened. We need to look to the example of children, who don't allow negativity to stop them from fully living, who don't allow worry and anxiety to get in the way of trusting that their every need will be provided for, who love without counting the cost or caring if they're loved in return. 

With childlike simplicity, we don't need concessions that keep us from living the way God intended us to in the first place.

With childlike simplicity, we can trust that all we have and all we are come from the hands of a loving Father who will never abandon or forsake us.

With childlike simplicity, we can know that even if following God's plan doesn't feel easy, He will give us the grace we need to overcome any obstacle and find the true treasure that He promises us.

I don't know about you, but that sounds a heck of a lot better than what the Israelites had under the Mosaic law.

Lord, soften my heart with Your love. Help me to learn from the example of the children around me. Help me to turn to You like a child, with all trust that You will provide for my every need. Help me to surrender those things that threaten to harden my heart to You and Your people--worry, anxiety, selfishness, pride. Help me to know that Your plan is all good.

*************************

Catie Destatte is a senior Theology and Catechetics major. She has a passion for writing, Mama Mary, ministry to women, her younger siblings, and evangelization. Her life motto is Totus Tuus Maria, and she tries to live that out in her every moment. Along with being a member of Women's Ministry Core Team, she's involved in Capture My Heart Core Team, Liturgy Committee, and Totus Tuus Maria Household. Her five great loves are JPII, St. Peter, tea, praise and worship music, and the ocean. Along with Shannon, one of Catie's roles in Women's Ministry is to run this blog. You can find out more about her here.