Marriage

The Sacrament of Marriage

On the threshold of his public life Jesus performs his first sign—at his mother's request—during a wedding feast. The Church attaches great importance to Jesus' presence at the wedding at Cana. She sees in it the confirmation of the goodness of marriage and the proclamation that thenceforth marriage will be an efficacious sign of Christ's presence. CCC 1613

On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, ‘They have no wine.’ And Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, what concern is that to you and to me? My hour has not yet come.’ His mother said to the servants, ‘Do whatever he tells you.’ Now standing there were six stone water-jars for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. Jesus said to them, ‘Fill the jars with water.’ And they filled them up to the brim. He said to them, ‘Now draw some out, and take it to the chief steward.’ So they took it. When the steward tasted the water that had become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the steward called the bridegroom and said to him, ‘Everyone serves the good wine first, and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now.’ Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him. NRSV John 2:1-7

Thomas Richstatter, O.F.M., Th.D. says this on the sacrament of marriage, "The sacrament reveals the religious dimension of marriage. Besides the human, social and legal dimensions of marriage—the public sign that one gives oneself totally to this other person—sacramental marriage is also a public statement about God. The celebration of each of the sacraments reveals something of this ultimate reality: who God is and who God is for us.  In the Scriptures the relationship between God and God's people is often described in terms of a marriage. The early Christians, reflecting on Christ's love for us, also used this image. Christ and the Church embrace in mutual love and self-giving, even as do husband and wife." (see, for example, Ephesians 5:21-33) "For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.' This is a great mystery, and I am applying it to Christ and the church" (Ephesians 5:31-32).

“I think the world today is upside down. Everybody seems to be in such a terrible rush, anxious for greater development and greater riches and so on. There is much suffering because there is so very little love in homes and in family life. We have no time for our children, we have no time for each other; there is no time to enjoy each other. In the home begins the disruption of the peace of the world.”- Mother Teresa

http://www.americancatholic.org/Newsletters/VAT/aq1004.asp

Annulments

The Church believes that marriages are valid and lifelong. When two people exchange vows of love and fidelity, their marriage covenant becomes a participation in the unbreakable covenant between Christ and the Church. With the help of the Holy Spirit, spouses are called to perform acts of self-giving love to the benefit of themselves, their families, and the whole Church. In this way their marriage does more than symbolize Christ’s love; it makes that love present in the world.

Because of the Church’s belief in the sacramentality of marriage, it does not recognize divorce. In its eyes, the spouses are separated and remain in good standing with the Church. However, unless the ex-spouse has died, in order to re-marry and remain in good standing, a spouse must receive an annulment of the first marriage.

An annulment, or Declaration of Nullity, states that the marriage was not true or binding according to the Church’s understanding of marriage. Even though there is a wedding ceremony, something stood in the way of one or both people from entering into the sacrament of marriage. The annulment process will explore each person’s readiness at that time to enter into marriage and what may have contributed to his or her inability to enter into a sacramental covenant. It does not dissolve an existing civil marriage, but rather determines that the sacrament of marriage was not entered into validly.

If you have questions or need help in navigating the process, staff is available to walk with you through the process. Please contact Denise Ruiz at 426-1588. If you would like to study it further, visit the United States Catholic Conference of Bishops website at www.usccb.org and search “annulment.”