I- 3 steps of a relationship that lead to marriage:

1. Eros: feelings, attraction…

2. Philia: relation, friendship, to get to know each other, trying to make common land,
compromise…
3. Agape: love for the sake of love, self-giving, life-giving love…

N.B. never take a decision to get married if you both didn’t reach Agape phase.

II- Marriage as per the Old Testament: (Genesis)

The LORD God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.” This
is called the Original Solitude.

So the LORD God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of
the man’s ribs and then closed up the place with flesh.  Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib
he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.

The man said,

“This is now bone of my bones

    and flesh of my flesh;
she shall be called ‘woman,’
    for she was taken out of man.”

Man and woman are equal (she was made from his rib not from his head to become his superior not
from his leg to become his inferior) and both are created by God himself.
God made the woman from the rib of man to mark the Original Unity.
Originally man rejoiced when he saw the woman, this shows the balance and harmony between the
two.
“God created man in his own image, in the image of God created him; male and female created
them.”

“So God created human beings, making them to be like himself.”

So Man and Woman together are in the image of God the Trinity:

- They are both equal in value and are one in essence;

- They are two different persons with different roles, united by self-giving and life-giving love.
- They live in perfect unity, communion and harmony.

“He created them male and female, blessed them, and said, “Have many children, so that your
descendants will live all over the earth and bring it under their control.”
 - God gave them His blessings and made them productive, fruitful and cable of procreation.

After the fall, conflicts started to grow between man and woman (no more harmony and unity) and they
both parted from God, but God didn’t stop looking after them “The LORD God made clothes from
animal skins for the man and his wife and dressed them.”

III- Meaning of the ceremony of the Catholic marriage:

“They asked, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any and every reason?”

“Haven’t you read,” he replied, “that at the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’ and
said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two
will become one flesh’ So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined
together, let no one separate.”

- Marriage is a Sacrament (a visible sign of an inward grace), it symbolizes the life of the Trinity of
selfless self-giving a life-giving love.
- Man and woman must “leave his/her father and mother and be united to his/her wife/husband
and the two will become one flesh”, they must abandon all that prevents them from being one
and in perfect harmony.

The wedding ceremony meaning and symbols:

The priest ask them to hold hands (symbol of unity and indissoluble union) and place their hands on the
bible (their unity is based on the word of God: Jesus) and put his veil on top their hands (their unity is
under the authority of the church).

By the blessing of marriage the couple is back to the Original Unity (before the fall): equal in value; one
in essence; although two different persons but united by selfless self-giving and life-giving love capable
of living in perfect unity, communion and harmony. With God blessing through the sacrament of
marriage the couple became fruitful; they grow (on a personal level and as a couple) and procreate.

IV- Marriage is also an apostolic work:

- A couple should be a testimony, in the heart of the church, of the love of Jesus to His church and
a testimony of the Love of the Trinity (selfless self-giving & life-giving love).
- A married couple has the duty to raise their children as good Christians.

Marriage is a vocation that sanctifies us and leads us to heaven