Reflection on August 18, 1982

https://www.ewtn.com/library/PAPALDOC/jp2tb89.htm

The mystery of salvation, the particular feature which is spousal love between Christ and the Church, the mystery of the Mystical Body of God, the mystery of God’s eternal love for man, all of these are best shown through the analogy or the sign of marriage. That is why marriage is important. That is why its definition should not be changed. That is why its deterioration is a bad sign for the world. Marriage as a sign of the mystery of God is, like we learned in Pope Francis encyclical, like the Light of Faith that guides us in the world. As we destroy marriage, we are essentially putting out the best light we have to understanding God’s relationship and love He has for us. Far beyond other repercussions of changing the definition of marriage (and I recommend the book “What is Marriage”) that are not religious or related to God, changing what marriage is directly impacts our understanding of who we think God is and our relationship with Him.

And on the flip side, we must want to seek that relationship with God and try to understand what that means so that we can live that out in our marriage. Not only is it an education in knowing God, but it is an instruction for how to know and love our spouse. God will not change, but our knowledge of Him and our spousal relationships will go hand in hand and will change. As you know more about God and His love, your marriage will grow. As you move further away from God, you will lose sight of how you are supposed to treat your spouse. The two are intertwined here on Earth. I can say personally that the closer I am to God in my relationship, the better I feel about my marriage and the opposite is also true. We must see that the two are connected and that it is vital for us to seek growth in both areas so they can grow together.

I was thinking of the Church as the Body and the idea of trying to fit that into an idea that there can be so many churches. The idea that I have heard argued for all the different Christian denominations is that they are all part of Christ Church and form an invisible unity of Church, that is the body of Christ. But does that make sense. I understand that Scripturally there are descriptions about the different parts of the Church, those that teach, those that prophesy, etc., but all the same Church. But isn’t that speaking more to the individuals that make the Church, not different churches. No one has yet, or at least I have never seen an argument, as to how a body can have parts that contradict each other. Even if one teaches and another prophesies, they move together towards a same goal, a same direction. When I walk, my feet move and my arms go along with them. It would be very comical if my arms could choose to go in a different direction than my legs, but I couldn’t accomplish anything. My son has lazy eyes and so he needs glasses that keep them straight and pointing in the same direction. If parts of the body do not work in agreement, everyone sees that something is wrong with the body.

The idea that the Body of Christ is made up of the invisible church that unites all these different denominations that disagree on different dogmas and beliefs is like saying a body that has parts that move in different directions is the normal. No one will say that, and yet they have to read these scriptures and either say that or just completely ignore it. One Body for One Christ moving in One Direction means One Church with One Teaching based on One Truth. That is the only way it makes sense. Not to mention a Body is something visible, something the world can see and follow or be a part of. Nowhere in scripture that I know of is there any mention of an invisible body or invisible church we are to follow.