In today’s reading from St. Paul’s letter to the Corinthians, why does Paul seem to discourage persons from getting married?
In the time of St. Paul, there was a strong current of asceticism – a strong sense of self-discipline in which one sought to focus all of one’s energy and attention on one’s relationship with God. There were those who thought that marriage was an impediment to a deep, strong relationship with God because the responsibilities of marriage, and the carnal pleasures of marriage, were thought to be a distraction from one’s relationship with God. In fact, there was a strong strand within the Church (that lasted for centuries) in which marriage was thought to be no more than a ‘necessary evil.’ Marriage provided an appropriate outlet for sexual desires and provided the structure necessary for the procreation of children which, in turn, was necessary for the continuation of the Church and of civil society. Rather than portraying marriage as something beautiful, sacred, and ennobling, it was seen as simply something we couldn’t do without.
Given that the Church today has a much more healthy understanding of the beauty and sacred character of marriage, is there any value to that passage from Paul’s letter to the Corinthians? Yes. The issue for all of us today, married, single, priest or religious, is whether there is anything in our lives that is proving to be a significant distraction from our faithfulness to God and to what God expects of us in our state in life. If you are married, are you distracted by the temptation of infidelity and do you feed that distraction by thought or action? If you are a priest or religious, are you distracted by attractions to the life that you surrendered to devote yourself to God and the people of God? If you are single, are you distracted by your independence such that you are too self-centered and not sufficiently attentive to the help that you can give to others? What distracts you from your relationship with God and how can you diminish those distractions so as to strengthen your faithfulness to God?