27th Sunday in Ordinary Time (B) – October 6, 2024

St. Paul – Lyons, KS

Genesis 2:18-24; Psalm 128:1-6; Hebrews 2:9-11; Mark 10:2-16

More Than Meets the Eye

Have you ever heard the phrase, “There’s more to it than meets the eye”? Probably. Hopefully. Even if you haven’t, you know what it looks like. Especially in a small town, this is all over the place. As in something happens, even something pretty normal, but then everyone starts asking, “What’s really going on?” Or in the news: something happens in politics or sports, someone unexpectedly retires, and all of a sudden everyone goes, “There’s more to it than meets the eye.”

This is the kind of idea we have to keep in mind when it comes to our faith as well. Because just like in life, our faith has so much more going on that what meets the eyes. So much more! In the Mass, in Scripture, in our teaching—there is so much more than meets the eye. One way to talk about this distinction is the difference between history and mystery. History is what happened, the story, what’s going on; boots on the ground, what happened. Mystery is the “more than meets the eye,” the more to the story, the deeper reality behind the history. For example, Jesus said, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will rebuild it.” And then there is a little editorial, a little comment in the Gospel, “He was speaking of the ‘temple’ of his body.” More than meets the eye.

For us, and the question I want to explore in the next several weeks—we want to begin a series on the Church. What is the Church? Because the Church—well, when it comes to the Church, there is so much more to it than meets the eyes. What do I mean? Well, think: What is church? What do people hear when they hear “church”? Many people think of a building: 1205 S Douglas. Others think of an event you can attend: we “go to church.” Others think about different “flavors” of “Jesus people”: Catholic or Presbyterian or Baptist or Methodist. Or we call any spiritual thing “church”: there’s a country song that talks about listing to the radio in the car as “church.”

But that’s only “what meets the eye,” that’s the “history,” boots on the ground. And especially in our day and age, that’s not always the best place to begin. So what is the “more than meets the eye” of the Church? What is the mystery behind it all? The Church—capital T, capital C “The Church—as our Tradition and the Scriptures themselves make clear, the Church is the bride of Christ, of Jesus the bridegroom. The Church is the people to whom the one God, the one Lord has wed himself. Jesus is the bridegroom, we are the bride. And the reason this is a big deal is because when we begin to really understand this, really take this in, we discover that “The Church” is not optional, or a building, a certain “flavor” of Jesus people. Or yeah, again, many people think of faith as, “Well, I believe in God, I know I need to be a good person, and I know I should pray.” But that’s not Christianity, that’s not “the Church.” The Church is a real people, a concrete, tangible, visible people. And what’s more, it’s more than just “our parish.” There is a great mystery behind this visible reality of our parish. There is more to the Church than meets the eye—more than our parish, more than this. And fundamentally, it’s the mystery of Jesus as the bridegroom and us, the people, as the bride.

Seeing the Story with the Lens of Mystery

Now, you may have heard this before, you might not have. But the only way—the only way—this could ever make any sense is if we have a biblical lens to help us see. Like I was harping on all of September, we need a biblical lens. If we don’t, we’re just left with the history, what meets the eye. But with a biblical lens, we can see that’s there’s more, in fact, a great mystery.

In the biblical story—if you want a key to understanding the entire biblical story—you have to begin to see it through a nuptial lens, a wedding lens, a covenantal lens. The fundamental shape of the entire biblical story, our story, the story of God and humanity, the story of salvation history—the story is nuptial, the story of a bridegroom and a bride. What do I mean?

Well, for starters, the entire biblical narrative begins with a wedding (and this is what we heard in our reading today—all of our readings are getting at the mystery of marriage). Scripture begins with the story of the wedding of Adam and Eve, Genesis 2. “The LORD God cast a deep sleep on the man, and while he was asleep, he took out one of his ribs”—and the word there in Hebrew is selah, which literally means “side”: “he took out one of his ‘sides’…[and He] built up into a woman the ‘side’ that he had taken.” And then there’s that beautiful exchange, “This one, at last, is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh.” But then the author of Genesis adds a comment, tells us the “more than meets the eye,” the mystery behind this history: “That is why a man leaves his father and mother and clings to his wife, and the two of them become one flesh.” So here at the very beginning, creation, the creation of man and woman—it’s rooted in this nuptial understanding. And also notice: it’s not an ordinary marriage. Because what’s unique here? The bride is created from the flesh, from the side of the bridegroom.

And that’s not all. As the biblical story continues, we see that this isn’t the only “marriage” that is important. In the book of Exodus, the story of God rescuing his people from slavery in Egypt—we’ve all seen the Ten Commandments, or maybe you’ve read through Exodus as part of the Bible study we’re doing—the exodus of the people of Israel from Egypt at the time of Moses. We all know the story: the people are in slavery, and then Moses comes and says, “Set me people free,” and then there are plagues, and then they leave and cross the Red Sea, they arrive at Mt. Sinai, and they get the Ten Commandments. Ok, that’s the history, that’s the story, that’s what meets the eye! But what is the “more,” what is the mystery? Well, later on in the prophets—from the prophets’ point of view, they see more, they see the mystery. And through their inspired vision, they see this as a love story, a love story between God (the divine bridegroom) and Israel, this people (the bride). And from the prophets’ viewpoint, the “wedding” take place at Mt. Sinai. There at Mt. Sinai—God enters into a covenant, a marriage with his people called out from Egypt and gathered at Mt. Sinai—and the word there is qahal, the people “called out” of Egypt, a qahal. In other words, what’s really going on isn’t just a political liberation of a people from bondage and slavery to Pharaoh in Egypt (that’s only what meets the eye, the history). What’s really happening is the union and communion of God with his people. For example, the prophet Ezekiel later described what happened at Mt. Sinai like this—so this is God speaking to the people through Ezekiel, “And you [Israel] grew up and…behold, you were at the age for love [in other words, the age to be married]… And I betrothed myself to you and entered into a covenant with you [a marriage with you], and you became mine” (c.f., Ezekiel 16). So through the prophetic viewpoint, at Mt. Sinai, God entered into a marriage with his people, this qahal.

Now, as the story goes on, you know what happens, and the prophets also describe this: the people, the bride, are unfaithful. Over and over and over again, the people, the bride, are unfaithful to the bridegroom. It’s a story of infidelity. But the prophets point out that one day God will renew and restore the relationship, establish a new nuptial covenant between him and his people. And Ezekiel describes this as a new and “everlasting covenant”—ever heard that? Every Mass? Ok, so there is so much more going on than meets the eye, a great mystery.

Jesus and the New Bride

Ok, so fast forward to the New Testament. All of this, this entire story, the promises, the nuptial imagery, all of it is fulfilled in and through Jesus Christ. For example, Jesus’ first miracle, the “history,” is him changing water into wine at the wedding feast at Cana, right? Ok, but what’s the mystery? Well, the job to provide wine at a wedding was the job of the? The bridegroom! And so the Gospel already hints at Jesus as the bridegroom. Later, Jesus is explicitly called the “bridegroom” by John the Baptist (c.f., John 3). On and on, references and hints that Jesus is the bridegroom. But most importantly, Jesus’ passion and death—all of it is surrounded and described in nuptial terms; the cross is Jesus’ “wedding day.” And so the mystery behind the history of the cross, the more than meets the eye: Jesus is establishing a new covenant, a new marriage. The night before, with the cup, he says, “This is my blood…the blood of the new and everlasting covenant.” Famously, what happens on the cross itself? His side, his “selah” is pierced, and as the Fathers of the Church would say, “From the side of Christ the Church is born.” Just as the first man’s bride came from his “side”—Adam and Eve—so now, the new man’s bride is born from his side— Christ and the Church. And these two are also one flesh; as we partake of his body and blood in the Eucharist, we are no longer two, but one flesh with him. 

In other words, and this is the point: it’s not just “me and Jesus,” Jesus is wed to a people; he creates a people “from his side” and weds them. And you know how the people with whom God made a covenant at Mt. Sinai were called a qahal in Hebrew? Well, when that word is translated into Greek, the word is ekklesia. Ekklesia is the word we translate as Church. Ok. All of the story, the entire story of the Bible, the story of God and humanity, Jesus Christ and the Church—it is a love story: God the divine bridegroom and the people his bride. All of this points to and is fulfilled in and through Jesus Christ: Jesus the divine bridegroom, the ekklesia, the Church his bride—his bride created from his side, made one flesh through the Eucharist, the wedding feast. The Church is so, so, so much more than just a building, so much more than just our parish. The Church is a great mystery. There is so much more than meets the eye.

The Visible Church

But here’s the thing: the only way we get access to this invisible mystery is through the visible. In other words, the visible Church—the visible Church is essential. The pope, the bishops, dioceses, parishes, priests—all of this is essential because it makes clear and visible what is invisible. Again, it would be very easy to hear all of this “bride and bridegroom” stuff and then still go back to, “Oh, that’s so beautiful, that’s so nice—I’ll participate in this while I’m listening to the radio in my car.” No. Again, in Scripture itself and then in the early Christian writings, it is clear that this continues to be a visible thing too. The Church, the new ekklesia, the new qahal, the new people wed to God—this looks like something, and we don’t just get to make up what it looks like. That’s why St. Clement, who was the bishop in Rome after St. Peter—Clement always urged the people toward a concrete unity: unity in our beliefs, but also unity in our worship, and unity in our leadership. Just like in the Old Testament covenant God would teach, and give rituals for worship, and appoint leaders—so too, Jesus gives teachings (“do unto others”), he gives rituals (think of baptism and the Eucharist), and he appoints leaders: the apostles, and the chief apostle Peter (who we now call the Bishops and the Pope).

Does this make sense? It is very easy for us to slip into a mentality of “me and Jesus,” very easy for us to start saying, “Well, I’m a Christian, I’m a Catholic. And so I believe in God, and I’m a good person. And that’s good enough.” But no. Although there is so much more than meets the eye, a great mystery behind the visible—all of this looks like something: the Church is a real people, a concrete, tangible, visible people; it has real, concrete, tangible leaders; real teachings; concrete practices. And these are not optional, they are essential.

One concrete way that I want to help us to embrace this, and to remind us of this—we’re going to learn to pray the Our Father in Latin. (As you can see in your pews you have this little card.) Again, we are not the “Church of St. Paul in Lyons,” we are part of the one Church. We are united with all of the Church, throughout the world, in union with the Bishop of this local Church (Bishop Kemme), and in union with the Pope (Pope Francis); that’s why we reference them in the Mass, every single Mass. We are part of the one bride, the one Church. 

One way we used to express this unity is that Mass was in Latin; all over the world the Mass was in Latin. And for a lot of reasons, the Church began to use the native language. But the Church never envisioned us using no Latin (but we’re not going to get into that today). Rather, as we go through this series, I want us to learn the Our Father in Latin for a few reasons: 1) sure, because Latin is the official language of the Church; but 2) because it will be a simple reminder of this homily series: we’re a part of something much bigger, part of one Church, we’re not just our own thing here in Lyons; and 3) practically, when our English and Spanish speaking communities gather for one Mass, we will be able to pray in union, in one voice together. *So let’s look*

Eucharist: One Flesh

Here in this Eucharist, we pray the Our Father as we begin what’s called the “Communion Rite.” Here, as we are about to receive the flesh and blood, the Sacrament that makes the Church, as we become one flesh with the bridegroom, we renew the covenant—and with this small gesture, we will enter into a more intentional communion with one another and with the rest of the Church throughout the world. And even when it’s uncomfortable (which it will be) we will be able to say, “I am not the Church, I am part of the Church, the one Church. I am part of the one great mystery. The one Church, one body, one flesh, the one people of God.”