The Theology of Marriage
Office of Marriage and Family Life: Adrienne Yates
Marriage and Sacrament
What is a sacrament?
An efficacious sign of grace, instituted by
Christ and entrusted to the Church, through
which Divine life is infused by the power of the
Holy Spirit.
10-14
Mothers in Faith
2
Objective Goal for Marriage
Preparation Ministers
A man and woman should come to the
sacrament of marriage with the
understanding that they have been created
by God, in the image and likeness of God,
and are called through the vocation of
marriage to reveal God’s love to one
another, and God’s saving presence to the
world.
Mothers in Faith
3
Together, Created in the Image of God
When God created man, he made him in the
likeness of God; he created them male and
female. When they were created, he blessed
them and named them “man”. (Gen 5:1-2)
Mothers in Faith
4
Together, Created in the Image of God
The Lord God formed man out of the clay of
the ground and blew into his nostrils the
breath of life and so man became a living
being (Gen 2:7).
Mothers in Faith
5
Together, Created in the Image of God
“This one at last is bone of my bone and flesh of
my flesh; this one shall be called woman, for out
of her man this one has been taken.
That is why a man leaves his father and mother
and clings to his wife and the two of them
become one body” (Gen 2 23-24).
Mothers in Faith
6
What does this say about the nature
and purpose of Marriage?
The Hebrew understanding of body refers to
the whole person, flesh and life-breath of God.
Marriage is for the good of the whole persons,
who come together as man and woman,
complementing one another in the image of
God.
The new reality created in Christian marriage
is life-giving and reveals the presence of God
to the world.
Mothers in Faith
7
Reflection Question
Think of a married couple who are or have
been a role model to you as a couple.
What is it about them that you admire?
How do you feel when you are with them?
Mothers in Faith
8
Marriage as a Sacrament
 Saint John Paul II spoke of this reality in the apostolic Exhortation,
Familiaris Consortio:
 This conjugal communion sinks its roots in the natural
complementarity that exists between man and woman, and is
nurtured through the personal willingness of the spouses to share
their entire life-project, what they have and what they are: for this
reason such communion is the fruit and the sign of a profoundly
human need. God takes up this human need, confirms it, purifies it
and elevates it, leading it to perfection through the sacrament of
matrimony: the Holy Spirit who is poured out in the sacramental
celebration offers Christian couples the gift of a new communion of
love that is the living and real image of that unique unity which makes
of the Church the indivisible Mystical Body of the Lord Jesus.
Mothers in Faith
9
Christian Marriage is a Sacrament
at Two Levels
Foundational level: A Christian marriage
reveals and celebrates an intimate
communion of life and love between a man
and a woman.
Symbolic level: A Christian marriage
proclaims, makes explicit and celebrates an
intimate communion of life, love and grace
between Christ and His Church.
Mothers in Faith
10
Marriage as a Sacrament
Canon 1055- The matrimonial covenant, by which
a man and a woman establish between
themselves a partnership of the whole of life and
which is ordered by its nature to the good of the
spouses and the procreation and education of
offspring, has been raised by Christ the Lord to
the dignity of a sacrament between the baptized.
Mothers in Faith
11
Sacramental Marriage
The Sacrament of Marriage reveals an indissoluble
love that is:
Free
Faithful
Forever
Fruitful
For the good of the spouses and all they encounter
Mothers in Faith
12
Foundational Level of the
Marriage Sacrament
The sacrament of marriage requires the full and
free consent of the woman and the man entering
into the marriage covenant.
The ritual asks, “Have you come here freely and
without reservation to give yourselves to each other in
in marriage? Will you love and honor each other as
man and wife for the rest of your lives? Will you
accept children lovingly from God, and bring them up
according to the law of Christ and his Church?”
Mothers in Faith
13
Marriage as SacramentFoundational Level
The bride and groom are the ordinary
minsters of this sacrament.
The priest or deacon, as the witness of the
Church, invites the couple to declare their
intentions by saying:
Mothers in Faith
14
Vow of Consent
“I, _____ take you _____
to be my wife/husband.
I promise to be true to you in good times
and in bad,
in sickness and in health.
I will love you and honor you
all the days of my life.”
RCA
15
Sign of Covenantal Love
After receiving their consent the priest or
deacon says, “You have declared your
consent before the Church. May the Lord
in his goodness strengthen your consent
and fill you both with his blessings. What
God has joined, men must not divide.”
Mothers in Faith
16
Sign of Covenantal Love
The rings are a sign of unending
covenantal love. In exchanging the rings
the bride and groom say:
“____ take this ring as a sign of my love
and fidelity. In the name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”
Mothers in Faith
17
Covenantal Love
Covenantal love transcends self, reaching beyond
one’s self to another.
Covenantal love in marriage is an irrevocable love
formed when two equals join to create a new
reality.
It involves a lifelong partnership of love for the mutual
well-being of both the husband and wife and their
children.
Mothers in Faith
18
Covenantal Love
 The Christian husband and wife assist one another in
realizing his or her highest potential physically,
emotionally and spiritually.
 Christian love is rooted in service of one another.
 All Christians are asked to “give way to one another
because you stand in awe of Christ”. St. Paul’s letter to
the Corinthians describes Christian love:
 “Love is patient, love is kind. It is not jealous. Love is not
pompous, it is not inflated, it is not rude, it does not seek its own
interests, it is not quick tempered, it does not brood over injury, it
does not rejoice over wrongdoing but rejoices with truth. It bears
all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.”
Mothers in Faith
19
Reflection Question
Think back our first reflection of the married
couple whom you admire.
If you replace the word Love with that
couple’s name. Is the reading accurate?
If you replace your names with the word Love
what statements are true?
Mothers in Faith
20
Symbolic Level
of the Marriage Sacrament
The marriage rite calls the couple to be a living
sign of the Church in the world. In the Nuptial
Blessing, the priest or deacon prays,
 “Father, to reveal the plan of your love, you
made the union of husband and wife an image of
the covenant between you and your people. In
fulfillment of this sacrament, the marriage of
Christian man and woman is a sign of the
marriage between Christ and the Church.” (#119)
Mothers in Faith
21
Symbolic Level:
the Domestic Church
Marriage does not isolate the couple but
immerses the couple in life.
From the couple springs life.
In loving and serving each other, their
children and their community, the married
couple is a living witness to Christ.
This embodiment of Christ’s presence by
the family in their day to day living is
known as the domestic church.
Mothers in Faith
22
The Beginning
Mothers in Faith
23