Transcript
Emily: Scripture tells us God intentionally created us in His “image and likeness.” This means the form in which God created human persons isn’t random but tells us something about God.
Edmund: God created us male and female. Man and woman are made FOR each other. And the Sacrament of matrimony reveals this great mystery.
Emily: There are two sacraments at the service of communion and mission. These two sacraments are Holy Orders and Matrimony. These sacraments equip us to serve the Church by serving one another.
Edmund: God is Trinity. And the Trinity is a communion among the three divine persons – The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This is a communion of life and love. Likewise, the Sacrament of matrimony is a sacrament of life and love. When a man and a woman enter into the sacrament of matrimony, they are called to the love and union of spouses that reflects the life of the Trinity.
Emily: So God created man and woman out of love and calls them to love. But that’s easier said than done. Marriage is hard, because love is hard. The Sacrament of matrimony represents the union of Christ and His Church. Jesus laid down His life completely for His bride. Spouses are called to do the same hard thing for each other, out of love.
Edmund: Who is Jesus’ bride? It’s the Church. Us. The family of God. By laying down their lives for each other, a husband and wife are called to the great adventure of becoming saints within the context of marriage. They create a family built on this spousal love. And in this way, they reflect Jesus’ love for the Church.
Emily: To model the radical love and union of God and the Church within the family isn’t just a nice sentiment; it is a great calling and vocation. Because of the form in which God created us, we are literally made for Christian marriage. And we need God’s grace if we are to enter into this great calling.
Edmund: When questioned about divorce, Jesus reminds the Pharisees of the story of creation in Genesis. 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.”
Emily: Jesus elevated marriage to a sacrament. A sacrament is a visible sign of an invisible reality, instituted by Christ, that dispenses grace to us. God’s love is total, permanent, and unconditional. In marriage, the two become one in a great mystery, like that of the Trinity.
Edmund: While there are three persons in the Trinity and only two persons in marriage, spouses are open to a new life – a new person – being created out of the self-gift of husband and wife. This reflects, though imperfectly, the way in which the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son.
Emily: One really interesting thing about marriage is that the spouses are the ministers who confer the sacrament on each other. The sacrament of matrimony is a gift given between husband and wife. They do this by giving their free consent before the Church.
Edmund: A priest or deacon assists at the celebration of a marriage. He receives the consent of the spouses in the name of the Church and gives the Church’s blessing of the marriage. The presence of the Church’s minister visibly expresses that marriage is an ecclesial reality. This means the Sacrament of matrimony takes place within the context of the family of God, the Church.
Emily: In this way, marriage is the foundation and image of what we call the “domestic church. The domestic church is where children first hear the Gospel and learn to follow Jesus. They also learn how God loves, and the qualities of His love, through the witness of their parent’s marriage.
Edmund: The marriage bond is permanent as long as both spouses are living. It is an image of God’s unconditional love and covenant with His Church. And God will never take back this covenant.
Emily: Another effect of the Sacrament of Marriage is sacramental grace. Jesus gives the spouses grace to take up their crosses and follow Him in marriage. By this grace, spouses learn to lay down their lives for each other and for their children.
Edmund: As men and women, we are created by God in a very special form that reflects the mystery of who God is. The Sacrament of Marriage reflects God as Trinity, a communion of life and love. It is also a sign of God’s total and unconditional love for the Church. In the Sacrament of Marriage, man and woman are called to the love and union of spouses that reflects the life of the Trinity.
