Hello, and welcome to the Tiber River Café. My name is Dean Humphreys, and today’s topic
is the Sacrament of Marriage. We read in
the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 19 verses 4-7, that Jesus said, “Have you not
read that from the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female’ and said,
‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his
wife, and the two shall become one flesh’?
So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, no
human being must separate.” This is the
Sacrament of Marriage.
The Catholic Church recognizes seven Sacraments: Baptism,
Eucharist, Confirmation, Matrimony (marriage), Holy Orders, Anointing of the
Sick, and Reconciliation (also known as confession). We believe that there is a sacred reality to
each of the Sacraments and that each Sacrament points us towards Jesus. Catholics believe that each of the Sacraments
was instituted by Jesus himself, pointing to Biblical events in the life and
ministry, as well as the stories and teachings, of Jesus of Nazareth, our Lord
and Savior.
Each of the Sacraments also points to the Christian life, as
we participate as a faith community, in the celebration of the Sacraments. The Sacraments are signs and a means to
God’s graces, the graces that are needed to live a truly Christian life. The Church teaches that we cannot earn grace,
for God’s grace is a free gift of Himself as the controlling influence in our
lives. Sacraments are the life of the
Church for they help to make us more holy people, they help to build up the
Body of Christ, and they point us towards God.
In the Book of Genesis,
chapter 2 verse 18, we read, “It is not good that man is alone.” God created marriage so that by design man
and woman should complement and complete one another, we draw strength from
each other, and we encourage each other’s spiritual growth. The husband and wife give themselves to each
other, they give themselves to their family, and they give themselves to the
larger community. Each spouse models the
love Christ has for his Church.
In the Book of Genesis,
chapter 1 verse 27-28, we read, “God created mankind in his image; in the image
of God he created them; male and female he created them. God blessed them and
God said to them: Be fertile and multiply.”
Husband and wife are equal in human dignity and in marriage both are
equal as one. The union of man and
woman, the bride and groom, reflects the symbol of divine union between Christ,
who is the Bridegroom, and His Church, the Bride.
We read of this union between
Christ and His Church in St. Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians, chapter 5 verse
21-31, “Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ loved the church and handed
himself over to her to sanctify her, cleansing her by the bath of water with
the word, 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.” And the union between husband and wife helps
each spouse to cooperate in the raising up of their children in the Faith. The married couple has children, we raise and
care for our families, we educate our spouse and children in the Faith, and we
provide the necessary moral and ethical training for future generations.
The Catholic Church teaches
that matrimony is ‘the sacrament by which a baptized man and a baptized women
bind themselves for life in a lawful marriage and receive the grace to
discharge their duties.” The marriage
bond is between the two spouses and God.
This mutual consent is sealed by God, and the man and woman enter into a
covenant agreement with God, this covenant can never be dissolved, even the
Church cannot break this irrevocable covenant.
From marriage comes the
family and the Christian home is called ‘the domestic church.’ It is within this domestic church that
parents teach their children our Catholic faith, to love, to seek justice and
truth, and to honor God. The Church
teaches that parents are the principal and first educators of their
children. Parents teach their children
to love and care for our neighbors and to care for the larger community, for we
are a universal Church.
The Sacrament of Marriage is
more that the civil legal contract between a man and a women which can be
provided by the state and marriage is more than simply obtaining certain
government and civil benefits. The
Catholic Church believes that marriage is more than a civil contract, the
Church holds firm that marriage is a covenant, a sacred oath between the bride
and groom and God. A simple definition
of covenant is an agreement between people, in this case it is a perfect oath
between God and His people, but it is more than just a contract, for a covenant
binds one to the other in a ritual manner.
In marriage the man and woman
become one flesh with vows taken before God. A marriage covenant refers to the relationship
between a husband and wife, the permanent lifelong union between the two
persons. The union between man and women
is the sacrament that makes it a loving sign of the union between Christ and
His Church, as we read in St. Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians, chapter 5 verse
25, “love your wives, even as Christ loved the Church”.
The mark of the Sacrament of
Marriage, its external sign, is the wedding contract itself. The contract is not the license issued by the
state, but rather the contract between the man and the woman, the vows that
each spouse makes to the other. And as
long as each spouse intends to maintain a true marriage, then the Sacrament of
Marriage is completed. The effect of
this sacramental marriage is an increase in God’s sanctifying grace for each of
the spouses and a participation in the life of God.
Marriage is common to all
peoples and cultures, from the beginning of human existence, as we read in the
Book of Hebrews, chapter 13 verse 4, “Let marriage be honored among all”. But the Catholic Church believes the covenant
bond between the husband and wife is sacred.
Their marriage is a lifelong union for the purpose of having children
and mutual support, which is love. And
the Church teaches that the marriage between two baptized Christians entered
into with the intention to contract a true marriage is a sacrament. The marriage is when one gives oneself
totally to the other person, a public statement of love and fidelity. And this union mirrors and reflects the union
between Jesus and His Church, it is a symbol of God’s love.
The Church helps the couple
prepare for their marriage through discussion, instruction, and prayer, often
called Pre-Cana classes, as in the Wedding of Cana. We read that Jesus not only approves but
promotes the goodness of marriage and the happiness of the couple. We read in the Gospel of John, chapter 2
verses 1-11, how Jesus and his disciples attended the wedding celebration at
Cana, where Jesus performed his first miracle, turning water into wine. The bride and groom are to prepare themselves
for the Sacrament of Marriage by first receiving the Sacrament of
Reconciliation.
The marriage is a public sign
celebrated within the faith community of believers. The ministers for a sacramental marriage are
the spouses themselves. The priest or
deacon serve only as witnesses. The
Catholic Church strongly encourages Catholics to have a wedding Mass, called the
Nuptial Mass. The marriage ceremony is a
liturgical act to be celebrated within the Christian community which confirms
the goodness and sacredness of marriage.
The Nuptial Mass is a very special blessing for those starting the holy
vocation of marriage.
During the Rite of Marriage,
the ceremony itself, the man and woman exchange wedding rings as an outward
sign and reminder of their love and fidelity to one another. During the exchange of wedding vows the man
and woman promise each other their mutual love and support, they promise to
give freely of themselves to the other. They
promise to help each other despite trials, hardships, and disappointments. They promise each other that there will
always be love and forgiveness. They are
now in a state of life called marriage, perpetual and exclusive.
A Sacrament is an outward
sign that confers an inner grace. In
marriage the outward sign is the exchange of marital consent. The couple administers the Sacrament of
Marriage to each other, they join into a covenant agreement with God for Christ
is at the center of all Christian life, the priest or deacon serve as the
witness to this covenant, to bestow the Church’s blessing. The priest or deacon is simply the official
or witness to the Sacrament, representing Christ and His Church and offering
the Church’s blessing.
But it is important to
remember that the presence of the priest or deacon is absolutely necessary, for
without the priest or deacon there is no sacrament. As Jesus tells us in the Gospel of John,
chapter 1 verses 7-9, “’For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother
and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’. Therefore what God has joined together, no
human must separate.”
There are four basic elements
that are common for a natural marriage.
The first element is that the marriage is a union between opposite
sexes, male and female. Second, the
marriage is a lifelong union, the union only ending when one spouse dies. Third, the marriage union excludes any other
unions with any other person, that each spouse must remain faithful and
monogamous. And fourth, this lifelong
marriage union and exclusiveness are guaranteed by a contract. The Catholic Church also teaches that the
marriage has a supernatural quality in addition to the basic natural
elements. For all love comes from God,
for God is love, and the Sacrament of Marriage is a sign and symbol of God’s
love. This love then spills out to
others, the married couple’s children, their families, as well as other members
of their faith community
It is not always easy being
married. It is not easy for two people
to live with each other day after day, year after year. We have faults and defects, we get on each
other’s nerves, and we often grate on each other. But over time, and with much patience and
prayer, we come together in our mutual growth.
We grow into one body, physically and spiritually, and we evolve into
the fulfillment of the Sacrament itself. Our married love is caught up into the
love of God.
So there you have it, a
rather simple explanation of the Catholic Church’s Sacrament of Marriage. Marriage is the sacred and lifelong covenant
between one man and one women, in the presence of God. Something to think about this Sunday at
Mass. I also encourage you to check out
my pages on YouTube, Twitter, and Facebook; as well as my blog on Blogger,
where I have complete transcripts of all my videos.
Well, thanks again for
stopping by the Tiber River Café, where there is always plenty of room at the
banquet table. I hope to see you next time. Peace be with you
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