What struck me, in my conversion to Catholicism, was brought on by a homily. It was on the Feast of the Holy Family, and one of the scripture readings was where Paul says:
21 Be subordinate to one another out of reverence for Christ. 22 Wives should be subordinate to their husbands as to the Lord. 23 For the husband is head of his wife just as Christ is head of the church, he himself the savior of the body. 24 As the church is subordinate to Christ, so wives should be subordinate to their husbands in everything. 25 Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ loved the church and handed himself over for her 26 to sanctify her, cleansing her by the bath of water with the word, 27 that he might present to himself the church in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. 28 So (also) husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 For no one hates his own flesh but rather nourishes and cherishes it, even as Christ does the church, 30 because we are members of his body. 31 “For this reason a man shall leave (his) father and (his) mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” 32 This is a great mystery, but I speak in reference to Christ and the church. 33 In any case, each one of you should love his wife as himself, and the wife should respect her husband.
At the time I had figured out that my education regarding God, scripture and religion had to start all over, clean, like I had never heard of anything before.
But I was sitting there thinking, in my Mormon upbringing it was without a doubt taught that this scripture meant the wife was subordinate to the husband, in a hierarchical sort of fashion.
I didn’t know what Catholics thought of this verse, and was thinking I would look it up when I got home, but I didn’t need to. The priest explained that the bond between Christ and the Church is Himself, given in unconditional love, and this is what the Church is subordinate to…God’s unconditional giving of Himself, which is God’s Love.
So it is that a husband is said he should love his wife, as Christ loves the Church. The wife is subordinate to the husband in the same fashion, which, if you stop and think about it, is a pretty astounding way to view marriage.
It was one of the signs for me that I had found God’s Church. There are layers of meaning in this scripture that Mormons completely ignore, starting with Jesus Christ who loves the Church as a husband loves his wife.
It is difficult for me to see how Mormons can explain away this teaching, this reality, and claim an apostasy. This scripture alone reveals how far in error that idea is.
Peace.