When God made Adam a bride, He put him into a deep sleep, and while he slept God took one of his ribs and made it into a woman. He brought her to Adam and Adam said, "This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh, she shall be called Woman for she was taken out of Man." Finally, Adam was not alone, but had someone to help him make new life. And so Adam and Eve were made in God's image in that like God they could make new life together.
The surprising thing is that God made the second Adam His bride in the same way.
Jesus, the second Adam, the new humanity, was also put into a deep sleep by God. He was crucified, and while dead, and to be sure He was dead, the soldier pierced His side with a spear in the very same place where Adam's rib once was. From that very place on Jesus poured forth two things: water and blood. And the Bible teaches that through this water and blood Christ makes His bride, the Church.
The water poured out of Christ and into the baptismal font where new Christians are born into the Church. And the blood poured out of Christ into the chalice where Christians are fed and nourished in the Church.
In and through these God-given means we are brought to Jesus where He exclaims over us, "This at last is bone of My bones, and flesh of My flesh." In Christ the image of God has returned to humanity. We are not alone, but God is with us. He is the groom, and in and through us He creates new life. Thanks be to God that He wants to be so united to us, He would join Himself to us in our full humanity, and join us to Him in His divinity.
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