RVE

Sacrament: Marriage
I. Meaning and Background
A. What do we celebrate and commemorate in the sacrament
 A celebration of marriage is an opportunity for the couple to celebrate
their love for one another and their commitment to each other.
 Since God created man and woman, their mutual love becomes a
symbol of God's unconditional and everlasting love for man. This love
that God blesses is intended to be fruitful and to be realized in the
common work of watching over creation.
 Marriage is an act of faith that embodies and mirrors the love and
faithfulness of God. Jesus states that the bond created by marriage is
unbreakable because of God's unwavering faithfulness to humankind.
 Saint Paul quotes the Book of Genesis when he said the man and his
wife become “one flesh.” They shall no longer be two but “one body.”
Therefore, when Genesis says the husband and wife make up “one
body”, it speaks about unity in their whole persons. Christians
couples, therefore, should exert effort to approximate this unity.

II. Basic Information of the Sacrament

A. Symbol/s Word, and actions associated to the sacrament
 The Scrutiny. Since marriage as a Sacrament is a community
celebration, this part of the rite proclaims to the community that all
conditions have been fulfilled so that the marriage can be contracted.
 The Consent. The priest asks the couple to join hands as they
express their consent in front of the community. The joining of hands
symbolizes their intention to be one in all things.
 Confirmation of the marriage bond. Here the couple are made to
understand that they are indeed the ministers of the sacrament and
the priest just confirms this and blesses them.
 Blessing of the Arrhae and Rings. The rings are constant reminders
that the power of the Holy Spirit is in the couple. Just as the Holy
Spirit is in the binding love between the Father and Son, so is he
present in every marriage as the bonding love between couple. The
arrhae are symbols of sufficiency and material possessions which the
husband offers to his wife. The newly married are not waste or to get
attached to earthly possessions which are meant to be used to attain
happiness.
 Participation in the Eucharist. The couple’s participation in the
Eucharist shows the connection between the Sacrament of Marriage
and the Sacrament of the Eucharist. Because the Eucharist is the
celebration of Jesus’ total giving of himself to humanity, the couple’s
participation in this celebration is a call for them to follow this example
of Jesus by giving themselves to each other in love and dedication.
 The veil and yugal (cord). The veil is to cover the shoulder of the
groom and the head of the bride to show that as Christ id head of the
Church, so is the husband the head of the wife. The cord also
symbolizes the strength that should characterize the marriage bond
which meant to be indissoluble.
B. Gospel associated to the sacrament
 Matthew 19:6
“So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has
joined together, let no one separate.”

III. Importance of the Sacrament

A. What is expected of us after we have received the sacrament
 When two Christians enter into a marriage, a special, invisible bond is
formed, and this bond is the source of strength for the married couple.
This covenant between the spouses does not remain simply on a
human level but is “integrated into God’s covenant with man:
‘Authentic married love is caught up into divine love’” (CCC 1639)