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THE SACRAMENT OF HOLY MATRIMONY
“For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” This is a great mystery, but I speak in reference to Christ and the Church.” (Ephesians 5:31-32)
The sacrament of Holy Matrimony whereby a man and one become one signifies the union of Christ and His Church. It gives spouses the grace to love each other with the love with which Christ has loved His Church; the grace of the sacrament thus perfects the human love of the spouses, strengthens their indissoluble unity, and sanctifies them on the way to Eternal life.
Marriage is based on the consent of the contracting parties, that is, on their will to give themselves, each to the other, mutually and definitively, in order to live a covenant of faithful and fruitful love.
Unity, indissolubility, and openness to fertility are essential to marriage. Polygamy is incompatible with the unity of marriage; divorce separates what God has joined together; the refusal of fertility turns married life away from its “supreme gift,” the child.
The remarriage of persons divorced from a living, lawful spouse contravenes the plan and law of God as taught by Christ. They are not separated from the Church, but they cannot receive Eucharistic communion. They will lead Christian lives especially by educating their children in the faith.
The Christian home is the place where children receive the first proclamation of the faith. For this reason the family home is rightly called “the domestic church,” a community of grace and prayer, a school of human virtues and of Christian charity.
Couples are asked to make arrangements with the Priest or Deacon at least six months prior to the planned wedding date.
Please call 337-394.6021 or e-mail [email protected] to make arrangements or to obtain more information.
CLICK HERE to view our Wedding Policy guide in PDF format.
CLICK HERE to view the Wedding Readings
