ONLINE PASTORAL MEETING

WORSHIP SONGS:

I will Hope in the Lord

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0StJjulVark

God is enough
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hc-9NZJI6w4I

Here I am Lord
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4t6mz8yoocY
 ONLINE PASTORAL MEETING

18 OCTOBER 2020
Discussion Topic:

Betrothal and the Wedding

Until late in the Middle Ages, marriage consisted of two ceremonies that were marked by
celebrations at two separate times, with an interval between. First came the betrothal [erusin];
and later, the wedding [nissuin]. At the betrothal the woman was legally married, although she
still remained in her father’s house. She could not belong to another man unless she was divorced
from her betrothed. The wedding meant only that the betrothed woman, accompanied by a
colorful procession, was brought from her father’s house to the house of her groom, and the legal
tie with him was consummated.
 ONLINE PASTORAL MEETING

18 OCTOBER 2020
Discussion Topic:

In biblical times, people were married in early youth, and marriages were usually
contracted within the narrow circle of the clan and the family. It was undesirable to
marry a woman from a foreign clan, lest she introduce foreign beliefs and practices.

As a rule, the fathers arranged the match. The girl was consulted, but the “calling of the
damsel and inquiring at her mouth” after the conclusion of all negotiations was merely a
formality.
 ONLINE PASTORAL MEETING

18 OCTOBER 2020
Discussion Topic:

The price paid by the father of the groom to the father of the bride was called mohar.
(The term continues to be included in the text of the traditional ketubah, or Jewish
wedding contract. Mattan was the Hebrew word for the gifts given by the groom to the
bride in addition to the mohar. The mohar was not always paid in cash. Sometimes it
was paid in kind, or in service.

In ancient days, marriage was not an agreement between two individuals, but between
two families.
 ONLINE PASTORAL MEETING
18 OCTOBER 2020

Discussion Topic:

The newly married man usually did not found a new home for himself, but occupied a
nook in his father’s house. The family of the groom gained, and the family of the bride
lost, a valuable member who helped with all household tasks. It was reasonable,
therefore, that the father of the groom should pay the father of the bride the equivalent
of her value as a useful member of the family.
 ONLINE PASTORAL MEETING
18 OCTOBER 2020

Discussion Topic:

Righteous or Just
CCC1807 Justice is the moral virtue that consists in the constant and firm will to give their due to
God and neighbor. Justice toward God is called the "virtue of religion." Justice toward men
disposes one to respect the rights of each and to establish in human relationships the harmony
that promotes equity with regard to persons and to the common good. The just man, often
mentioned in the Sacred Scriptures, is distinguished by habitual right thinking and the uprightness
of his conduct toward his neighbor. "You shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great, but
in righteousness shall you judge your neighbor."68 "Masters, treat your slaves justly and fairly,
knowing that you also have a Master in heaven."
 ONLINE PASTORAL MEETING
18 OCTOBER 2020

Discussion Topic:

Mt. 1:18-23: Now this is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about. When his mother
Mary was betrothed to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found with child
through the Holy Spirit. Joseph her husband, since he was a righteous man, yet unwilling
to expose her to shame, decided to divorce her quietly. Such was his intention when,
behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of
David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home.
 ONLINE PASTORAL MEETING
18 OCTOBER 2020

Discussion Topic:

Mt. 1:18-23:
For it is through the Holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her. She will bear a
son and you are to name him Jesus,[d] because he will save his people from their sins.”
All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “Behold, the
virgin shall be with child and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel,” which
means “God is with us.”
 ONLINE PASTORAL MEETING
18 OCTOBER 2020

Discussion Starter:

Put yourself in Joseph’s shoes:

1.Describe your emotions & thoughts upon learning that your betrothed wife is pregnant but not of you
2.Would you believe & follow a dream? Why?

3.Was it consequential that Joseph proceeded to marry & accompany Mary?

4.Share an incident when you accompanied somebody alienated, lost or needy Identify somebody you will
accompany & show the love of God