Today we enter into the last week of the Bread of Life Discourses and the 1^st lines of the Gospel ring true for our readings, “this saying is hard, who can accept it”.  In our Sunday cycle of readings, the =1^st reading and the Gospel usually have a common theme that runs through them.  The 2^nd reading sometimes seems to march at the beat of its own drum, though there is usually something you can tie into the theme of the other readings.   This week though, our 2^nd reading relates very beautifully to our Gospel and other readings.

Ephesians 5:21-32 hits our modern ear very roughly with the language that is used, yet it is also a wonderful reading describing marriage if we truly listen.   The very 1^st line states “be subordinate to one another out of reverence for Christ”.  I could probably use every cuss word in the book, and it would still be less offensive than the word subordinate.  The word subordinate means to place oneself under another, not as a door mat, but so that they may lift the other higher.  This is the point of Christian marriage, that the spouses life each other up to holiness!   We are all called to do this, not just the wives, but each of us.

St. Paul goes on to say the husband is head of the wife/family.  Again, our modern ears hear this as ‘putting the wife in her place’, but this could not be farther than what St. Paul means.  He knew Christ’s teaching on authority and led by example to the Churches he wrote to.  In Luke 22 Christ reminds his disciples that they are not to lord their authority over others as the Gentiles do; rather the 1^st must be last and the one who wishes to be master must be the servant of all (Luke 22:24-30). There are different roles men and woman play, even in marriage, but this does not mean one is more important than the other since it takes both to make the marriage successful.  The husband is to be the leader of the family, but this leadership should be the servant leadership that Christ demands of all his followers. It is a leadership that is to build up the family and never to take advantage of, that would be an abuse of leadership.  

In fact the 1^st demand of St. Paul to husbands is a demand that they ‘love their wives, even as Christ loved the Church’.  How did Christ love his Church?  He abandoned the glory of Heaven and took on our weak human nature; he submitted to be raised by parents; he submitted to be misunderstood by his own people he came to save; he submitted to being betrayed for 30 pieces of silver, denied by his best friend, and abandoned by his friends; he submitted to be falsely accused, arrested, and imprisoned by crooked judges; he submitted to being beaten, flogged, crowned with thorns, dragged through the streets and finally crucified where he spent 3 hours suffering on the cross before he died; this is how Christ showed his love for the Church!   He would never do anything to diminish, demean, take away from her dignity. If we do this for each other, how easy it would be to submit to our brothers and sisters!  

When St. Paul states, “He who loves his wife loves himself.  For no one hates his own flesh but rather nourishes and cherishes it, even as Christ does the Church”.  The words he uses for ‘nourishes’ and ‘cherishes’ is a maternal word used for when a woman is nursing her child.  St. Paul is emphasizing the gentleness selflessness of this servant leadership men are called to.

This all fits in with our Gospel in that the Eucharistic banquet is also called a marriage feast, Christ is the bridegroom, and the Church is his bride, we are his bride.   The only 2 sacraments where bodies are exchanged and received is in the Sacraments of Marriage and the Eucharist.   In marriage the husband and wife give themselves to each other, in the Eucharist Christ gives himself completely (body, blood, soul, and divinity) to us and we in turn give ourselves completely (body, soul, and will) to him. Marriage is supposed to be modeled after the love shared in the Trinity but also in the marriage bond of Christ and his Church.   We are called to submit to each other out of reverence for Christ as St. Paul started with today, even when we encounter hard teachings.  

In our 1^st reading Joshua asks the people if they will follow the God of Israel, or will the follow other gods?  Their response is almost funny since throughout the Old Testament they tend to fall away from true worship to idol worship often, but they do say far be it from us to serve any other god but the Lord.”   Christ also lets the people decide if the people, and us, will follow him.  Last week we heard our Lord state that his flesh is true food and blood is true drink, and that his blood is the blood of the new covenant.  Unless we partake of the Eucharist, we are not sharing in the fullness of the new covenant.  When some of his disciples walk away, he lets them because they understood his words as he meant for them to be understood.  His flesh is true food and his blood is true drink!

Some will argue that Jesus’ comment about the flesh being to no avail counters Catholic’s belief in the Eucharist.  We must understand though that Christ is speaking not of HIS flesh but rather of our fallen nature.  His flesh obviously has meaning and purpose, otherwise he would never have taken it on.   St. Paul and St. John refer to this when they speak of the flesh’s desire to sin.  Christ’s flesh through is sinless and brings us into relationship with God.

Our Lord then asks the 12 if they too will leave?  St. Peter’s response is perfect “to who shall we go, you have the words of eternal life”.  St. Peter did not say he understood everything the Lord had just said perfectly, in fact he probably had a lot of questions, but he also knew who was in front of him and placed his faith in him.  We must do the same!  We must always give ourselves to Christ as he gives himself to us in the Eucharist placing our faith, our hope, our trust in him, even when we encounter hard teachings or things we do not fully comprehend.  Faith if a mystery, but with the Holy Spirit and the Church to lead us, we know we will reach the destination of our journey, Heaven.  Let us ask for the intercession through the chaste heart St. Joseph and the Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary to guide us in whatever vocation we have been called to, that they may lead us closer to the Sacred Heart of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  Let us submit ourselves to these heart that we may be lifted up to the glory of God.  May God bless you all.