Fr. Lawrence Jagdfeld, O.F.M., Administrator
The long form of the reading from the Prophet Ezekiel for today's liturgy is filled with graphic language that some may find uncomfortable. I suspect that this is why an optional short form is also provided.
The reading uses the familiar image of marriage to explain the covenant relationship between God and Israel. Israel is depicted as the unfaithful bride, the adulterous woman. Ezekiel is just one in a series of prophets that use this image to illustrate that relationship. The wedding commitment of man and woman is the clearest human example of what God expects of us.
Interestingly and coincidentally, the continuous reading of the prophet is proclaimed on the same day as the passage from Matthew's Gospel which speaks of divorce and adultery. Obviously, divorce and remarriage are not "modern" problems. It has always been thus.
The Church's teaching on the inviolability of the marriage covenant is actually based upon the covenant relationship which exists between us and God. Just as God has been faithful to us and we are called upon to be faithful to God, so too those who enter into the Sacrament of Matrimony are called upon to be faithful to one another for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health. . . So while the language may be somewhat unsettling, Ezekiel gives us a potent reminder of just what our relationship to God entails.