Why was Jesus angry with the disciples for trying to stop people from bringing children to him? For one, he liked children and wanted to give them his blessing. He also didn’t want his disciples to get in the way of a teachable moment about why it was important to have the trust of a child in order to accept the kingdom of God.

A world without respect is a bitter, divided, violent, and uncertain place to live. You can’t have peace without justice, as popes and prophets have long warned us. And the first indication justice is absent is when one group rejects the full humanity of another.

Pharisees came up, intending to give him a hard time. They asked, “Is it legal for a man to divorce his wife?” Jesus said, “What did Moses command?” They answered, “Moses gave permission to fill out a certificate of dismissal and divorce her.”

In the sacrament of Matrimony the promise of fidelity the couple shares with each other becomes a sacred and graced covenant between them. And so, God in return makes a covenant promise to be faithful and present to them on their life journey together.

Our Lord has liberated us from sin and death. Let us ask forgiveness for the times we have obstructed that freedom in ourselves and others.

“What God has joined together, no human being must separate.” The readings this week speak of lifelong fidelity to shared relationships rooted in God.

Your Son went down from the heights of his divinity to the depths of our humanity. Can anyone’s heart remain closed and hardened after this? —Saint Catherine of Siena (1347-1380)