Catholic Tradition And Marriage

EFFECTS OF THE ROMAN CATHOLIC TRADITION UPON ASPECTS OF CHRISTIAN LIFESTYLE AND BEHAVIOR MARRIAGE ‘The love of a man and a woman is made holy in the sacrament of marriage and becomes the mirror of your everlasting love.’ Marriage is a sacrament by which two people are united in love and become one. A sacrament is the outward sign of something sacred. For many Christians, the sacraments as signs of the blessing of God, lie at the heart of worship.

For many people, marriage is simply a civil ceremony, a legal step confirming the union of a man and a woman. But most Christians believe that it is a sacrament, which conveys God’s blessing onto the newly wedded couple. In 1984 in Britain there were 396,000 marriages and over half of these took place in a Register Office, which shows a decline in the amount of couples that opt for the more traditional marriage. Why do people marry? The main reasons for marriage are as follows: *to commit yourself to the person you love for a lifetime *to bring up children in a secure and loving home *to control and direct the sex instinct *for friendship and companionship through life In the gospel of Mark Jesus gives an explanation about the meaning and purpose of marriage, ‘..........

And for this reason a man will leave his father and mother and unite with his wife, and the two will become one.’(Mk 10:7-8), ‘........So they are no longer two but one. Man must not separate, then, what God has joined together.’(Mk 10:8-9) The Catholic Church follows this teaching in Marks Gospel. Only death can end a marriage in the eyes of a church. If a couple have been married in a Church and get a divorce from the state, the Church teaches that they are still married in the eyes of God.

The vows carried out during a marriage are almost like a rulebook that tells the couple how they should treat each other and respect each other according to the words of God. ‘I take thee to be my wedded husband/wife to have and to hold from this day forward for better and worse for richer and poorer in sickness and in health to love and to cherish till death us do part according to God’s holy law and thereto I give thee my promise.’ Both partners make this promise and then in turn they place a ring on each others fourth finger and repeat: ‘With this ring I thee wed; with my body I thee honour and all my worldly goods with thee I share in the name of the Father, the son and the Holy Spirit.’ The ring is a sign of love and fidelity.

The couple have promised themselves to each other in love as a permanent and exclusive relationship. The ring is a token of their promise to each other. Since the middle ages it has been traditional for the bridegroom to place the ring on the fourth finger of the bride. The ring was placed on the fourth finger after the words, ‘In the name of the Father, son and Holy Spirit, Amen. Another reason for placing the ring on the fourth finger is because it was believed that it contained a vain going to the heart.

In a Register Office there are only two statements required from both the bride and groom: ‘I do solemnly declare that I know not of any lawful impediment why I may not be joined in matrimony to........’ and ‘I call upon these persons here present to witness that I (FULL NAME) do take thee.......to be my lawful wedded wife/husband.’ When a marriage takes place in a Register Office they are made infront of the Superintendent Registrar of the district. These vows are very sacred and are a guideline for all marriages. They are supposed to be undertaken by both partners in the marriage. When they are not followed properly a breakdown will occur within the marriage and both spouses will suffer because of it.

Marriage is a public affair as it is carried out in your local community. Through marriage God’s love is said to be ‘reflected’. In the love that the man and women have for each other. When Pope John Paul ll spoke in Britain, he presented this vision of married life: ‘A man and a woman pledge themselves to one another in an unbreakable alliance of total mutual self-giving.' A total union of love. Love that is not a passing emotion or temporary infatuation but a responsible and free decision to bind oneself completely, ‘In good times and bad’, to one’s partner. It is a love to be proclaimed before the eyes of the whole world.’ In this statement the Pope is saying that marriage is concerned with the best type of possible love and this love must be shown throughout the world.