Vatican City, 2 April 2014 - Pope Francis concluded
his series of catecheses dedicated to the Sacraments by speaking about
marriage. "A sacrament that leads us to the heart of God's plan, which is
a plan of alliance with his People, with all of us, a plan of communion".
To explain this, he quoted a phrase from the Book of Genesis: "So God
created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and
female he created them. ... That is why a man leaves his father and mother and
is united to his wife, and they become one flesh".
"The image of God is a married couple, man and woman, not only man, not
only woman, but rather both. This is the image of God: love, God's alliance
with us is represented in the alliance between man and woman", he said.
"We were created to love, as a reflection of God and
his love. And in matrimonial union the man and woman realise this vocation, as
a sign of reciprocity and the full and definitive communion of life". When a man and a woman receive the Sacrament of marriage,
"God is, so to say, 'mirrored' in them, he imprints in them the features
and indelible nature of His love. Marriage is the icon of God's love for us.
Indeed, God too is communion: the three Persons of the Father, the Son and the
Holy Spirit have always lived and live for ever in perfect unity. And this is
the mystery of marriage: God makes married couples into one existence. The
Bible uses a strong term: it says one 'flesh' only, so intimate is the union
between man and woman in marriage. And this is the mystery of marriage: God's
love that is reflected in the couple who decide to live together".
Francis mentioned that, in his Letter to the Ephesians, St.
Paul emphasizes that Christian married couples reflect the great mystery of the
relationship that Christ establishes with the Church, which means that
"marriage responds to a specific vocation and must be considered as a
consecration. The man and woman consecrate themselves in their love. Married
couples, thanks to the Sacrament, are invested with a genuine mission, that of
making visible, starting with simple and ordinary things, the love Christ has
for His Church".
"The plan inherent in marriage is a truly wonderful! It
is expressed in the simplicity, and also the fragility, of the human condition.
We are well aware of the many difficulties and trials there may be in the life
of a married couple. ... The important thing is to keep alive the link with
God, which is at the basis of the matrimonial bond. When a husband prays for
his wife, and a wife for her husband, the bond remains strong; each one prays
for the other. It is true that married life has many difficulties: work, there
isn't enough money, there are problems with the children ... and often the
husband and wife become irritable and argue amongst themselves. There are
always arguments in marriages, and at times even plates are thrown. But we must
not be sad about this: this is the human condition. And the secret is that love
is stronger than the moments in which we argue, and I therefore always advise
married couples never to let the day draw to an end without making peace. There
is no need to call in the United Nations peacekeepers. A little gesture is
enough: a caress, see you tomorrow, and tomorrow we start afresh. This is life,
and we must face it in this way, with the courage of living it together.
Married life is beautiful, and must be protected".
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