Marriage - Sacrament of Life-Giving Oneness
In all civilizations people have sensed a mysterious sacredness about the union of man and woman. There has always been a vague realization that the deep longing for oneness with “the other” is life-giving – and that it is a longing for oneness with the source of all life.
Jesus made marriage the sacrament of matrimony, giving matrimony a new dimension to the Christian vocation that begins in baptism. In matrimony a husband and wife are called to love each other in a very practical way: by serving each other’s most personal needs; by working seriously at communicating their personal thoughts and feelings to each other so their oneness is always alive and growing. This love is explicitly, beautifully sexual.
In matrimony a couple is also called to live their sacrament for others. By their obvious closeness, a couple affects the lives of others with “something special” – the love of Christ in our midst. They reveal Christ’s love and make it contagious to their children and to all who come into contact with them. A major purpose and natural outcome of matrimony is procreation or the beginning of new life – children. But a couple’s love also validates the life of Christ’s Spirit to other people. A couple does not live a life of love because they happen to be compatible. They do it consciously and deliberately because it is their vocation. Matrimony is much more that a private arrangement between two people. It is a sacramental vocation in and for the Church. It is a method through which Christ reveals and deepens the mystery of his oneness with us, his Body.
In the Catholic Church, a couple’s sacramental union is exclusive (one man with one woman) and indissoluble (till death do us part). These are concrete ways in which the mysterious oneness between husband and wife, Christ and Church, becomes reality.
Marriage Preparation
Arrangments for the SACRAMENT OF MARRIAGE must be made at least six months in advance. Parish membership, preparation and regular Faith Practice are required. For more information on marriage preparation please click on the "Weddings" link in the right panel.