PAGTINGIN/OPINION: Faith in the Family, Faith in the Priesthood: A Statement of Reaction to Marriage and Priesthood in Sacred Scripture

Editor's Note: This article was made as a reaction statement to a talk on Marriage and the Scriptures given by Sem. Herbert Agustine N. Bacani, one of four speakers during a Symposium on Marriage, an undertaking of the Cycle Class of the Graduate School of Theology of the seminary, A.Y. 2013-2014 under the guidance of Rev. Fr. Dario V. Cabral, Ph.D. (Cand.), S.Th.L. This was done at the San Lorenzo Ruiz Audio-Visual Room at the Immaculate Conception Major Seminary, Tabe, Guiguinto, Bulacan last September 21, 2013.

   I can still remember that when I was on Grade 2, when I felt that I am called for the priestly vocation. I pursued it and now I am a few years away from being ordained. Honestly, I never really thought about getting married before. I never dreamed of standing in front of the altar watching and waiting for my dream girl walking down the aisle. Then, I looked upon marriage as a lesser vocation, a notch below the vocation for priesthood. Para sa akin mas gusto ng Diyos at mas mahal ng Diyos ang mga nagpapari at nagmamadre dahil sila ang tumutugon sa tawag ng Diyos upang maglingkod sa Simbahan. (For me, God likes and loves more those who aim to be priests or nuns because they are the one who respond to the call of God to serve in the Church.) I am sure that many of our laity still believe that notion. Mas pinakikinggan ng Diyos ang mga panalangin ng mga pari kaysa sa ating mga layko. (God hears the prayers of priests more than those of the laity.)

   In the first lecture that was presented to us, we were given a glimpse, a gist of the perfect plan God has in store for man. From a world full of chaos and darkness, God puts everything in order so that man can live comfortably in the Garden of Eden. Mula sa kaguluhan ay binigyan ng Diyos ng kaayusan ang lahat. (From chaos, God gave order to everything.) Everything God created, he created it for the sake of man. I would like to emphasize the second account of creation found in Chapter 2 of the Book Genesis. Matapos likhain ng Diyos ang lalaki ay pinapili niya ito ng kanyang magiging katuwang sa buhay. Isang malayang pagpili kung kanino niya ibabahagi ang mga responsibilidad na iniatas ng Diyos sa kanya, ang panatilihin ang kaayusan sa mundong kanyang kinabibilangan. Malamang nandoon ang mga aso, ang mga pusa, mga daga, mga isda at marami pa. (After God created man, He allowed him to choose the one who is to be his partner in life. It was a free choice of who shall be the one he shall share the responsibility given to him by God with, maintaining the order of the world where he belongs. Most probably creature like dogs, cats, mice, fish and others were with him.) But none of these creatures would suffice for what man would need for a partner. A great task was given to him. Hence, a suitable partner must be chosen to accompany him accomplish these tasks. Adam, the first man acknowledges that he cannot do it alone for in his very nature, he is also limited. 

   Because of this, God made a drastic move. If other creatures were created from the dust of the earth, this special creature was taken from man itself, his ribs. If we would just reflect on this, and look at the function of the ribs in the human body, the ribs are the bones which protect the vital parts of man, his internal organs, his HEART. Ang babae ay nagmula sa buto ng lalaki na nangangalaga at pinakamalapit sa kanyang puso. (The woman came from the rib of the man that safeguards and is closest to his heart.) Now he found that perfect partner God has in store for him. As they say: save the best for last. For this reason, Adam can only exclaim: “This at last is bone from my bones, and flesh from my flesh!”

   In the lecture, it was repeatedly stated that man and woman are equal in dignity. Ano po ang ibig sabihin noon? (What does it mean?) Hindi po ibig sabihin nun na kung ano ang kaya ng lalaki ay kaya rin ni babae. Hindi po ganoon. Wala pong kumpetensya sa pagitan ng lalaki at ng babae. Hindi po to pagalingan at pataasan. May mga kayang gawin ang lalaki na hindi kaya ng babae, gayundin naman mayroong kayang gawin ang babae na hindi kaya ng lalaki. Ang mahalaga ay nagiging isa sila upang suportahan ang kahinaan ng bawat isa. (This does not mean that what a man can do, a woman can also do. This does not mean the competition for both sexes. There are things that a man can do that a woman cannot and there are things that a woman can do that man cannot do. What is important is that they become one in order to support the weaknesses of the other.) It is through such an act that man and woman can become one. I remember one of the beliefs of the Jews: it is only after marriage that a man can be considered to be an image of God, while an unmarried man is considered not a whole man. In short, it is only a woman that will make a man complete.

   Brothers and sisters, now, we live in a world outside of that paradise God has prepared for Adam and Eve. Wala na tayo sa paraiso. Hindi paraiso ang tawag sa kaguluhan at kahirapan na kinasasadlakan ng ating lipunan. (We are not in paradise. We do not call the chaos and the poverty that is experienced by our society as paradise.)It is because of sin which Adam and Eve committed that they were sent out of Paradise. Hence, a man needs his partner, his helper, in Greek his ezer, his STRENGTH, his savior. Hindi maikakaila na sa mga panahon ngayon ay marami na ang mga mag asawang naghihiwalay. Marahil ito ay dahil nagkukulang sila ng suporta sa bawat isa. (One cannot deny that in our present time, there are many broken couples. Maybe it is because they do not support each other well.)Husbands and wives must be true to the essence of their promise that they will be together whatever comes; that in times of sickness, in times of suffering, in times of poverty, spouses will provide the strength that they need to push through.

Mahirap magpari. Pero sigurado ako na mas mahirap ang mag asawa. (It is hard to be a priest. But it is definitely harder to have a spouse.) If you feel that your vocation is for married life, be proud of it. Living a married life is also one way of serving our Lord in a different way.

Photo Courtesy: Sem. Rex Andrian E. Polintan

                          Graduate School of Theology

                          Immaculate Conception Major Seminary

                          Tabe, Guiguinto, Bulacan

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