This week we gather in the light of the World Day of Marriage and the time is right for a Pre-Lent advisory. As the church around the world celebrates marriage, it is an opportunity to remember what the church says about marriage. We define it as a covenantal, permanent and faithful relationship between a man and a woman. It is a covenant because it includes a relationship in faith with God for each of the people being married. It is expected that each will be permanently in the relationship. “I promise to be faithful to you in good times and bad, in sickness and health. I will love you and honor you all the days of my life” These twenty-six words create the bond of marriage. With the rings to signify they have said this, a couple will work to love God and one another for life. One of the more moving quotes I have heard about marriage came from a couple I know. In conversation with another couple preparing for marriage, he said, “part of my role as a husband is to help my wife to get to heaven”. It was moving for all involved. It also reflected the seriousness with which he undertook his vows. 

We say that marriage is permanent, and we say that is also unitive and procreative. A couple “co-creates” with God to produce children. That is why we hold the teaching on the sexuality of marriage to such a high standard. It is challenging in this day and time, but also has the strength of truth of many years of reflection in it. We teach that it is unitive and use the quote from both the Hebrew scriptures, the Gospels and the letters of Paul to emphasize this understanding of marriage. “… a man leaves his mother and father and a woman her home and the two become one…” It was the early church that first demanded that there be fidelity to marriage and one partner for life, so there is a long tradition. It was very different from the norms of the time and it is still challenging today. 

In closing, I recognize the church recognizes that not every relationship works out perfectly or for life. That is the subject of what the church calls The Declaration of Nullity and will be the subject of a future bulletin. 

Lent is coming. This year we hope to start a program called 40 Days of Generosity. We will be offering a generosity challenge each day on three levels, easy to more challenging. We hope that it will be a different way to live Lent, more consciously and more aware of opportunities to live the love of others in sacrificial Generosity. There will be a counting mechanism so that we can see the effects of the generosity growing. Stay tuned. 

Peace, 

Father Murray 

Building news.

We continue to make our way through the winter with all the challenges we have on the properties. We are researching how to get costs for the replacement of the roof at IC and then to repoint the bricks and paint and restore the windows and doors on the front of the building. Currently, we are researching grants and other donations. This looks to be a two-three year project and plan at a minimum. In more mundane news, there is another sinkhole on the property, this time in the parking lot in front of the offices at St. James. Stay tuned