The Sacrament of Marriage
The Sacrament of Marriage
According to Franciscan Priest, Richard Rohr, a wedding is not a marriage. "No, a marriage is two lives held together by a covenant promise – to love, cherish, and be faithful to one another ... no matter what ... until death. And in the process, you discover each other’s idiosyncrasies and flaws and you learn to live together over time. And if you succeed in keeping the promise well, both of you will wind up as better persons in the end than you were when you first said “I do.” . Marriage is made to order to steal you from your selfishness.
In a sacramental marriage, God’s love becomes present to the spouses in their total union and also flows through them to their family and community. The sacrament of Christian marriage involves their entire life as they journey together through the ups and downs of marriage and become more able to give to and receive from each other. Their life becomes sacramental to the extent that the couple cooperates with God’s action in their life and sees themselves as living “in Christ” and Christ living and acting in their relationship, attitudes and actions.
Sacramental marriage brings grace to those who receive them with the proper disposition. Grace is a way of describing how God shares the divine life with us and gives us the help we need to live as followers of Christ. In marriage, the grace of this sacrament brings to the spouses the particular help they need to be faithful to one another. It also helps a couple to serve others beyond their immediate family and to show the community that a loving and lasting marriage is both desirable and possible. The couple’s relationship expresses in a unique way the unbreakable bond of love between Christ and his people.
Please complete the on-line Wedding Request Form. Please note that the Wedding Preparation is 6 months to 1 year prior to requested wedding date.