Didn't preach this week because I was traveling but here is what I wrote in my bulletin this Sunday about the just concluded Extraordinary Synod on the Family and a topic that no one is talking about but is of paramount importance:
This
past week, Pope Francis, along with cardinals, bishops, and lay people from
around the world, concluded the first part of the Extraordinary Synod on the
Family. Our Holy Father is very aware of what we already know: that the family
is the cornerstone of society and if it fails then society fails. As the Synod
opened, the Pope said: “The family continues to be the unparalleled school of
humanity, an indispensable contribution to a society of justice and solidarity”
(Oct. 5, 2014).
One
of the main topics that the secular media has focused on is the Sacrament of
Holy Matrimony. Obviously, what we believe about this sacred union is not what
society at large believes about marriage. The Synod participants sought to
strengthen Christian marriage in an effort to strengthen the Christian family.
In order for this to happen, solid preparation for the Sacrament of Holy
Matrimony is paramount. In the summary of the 8th general congregation that
took place on October 10th, which is a summary of what was discussed during
that particular meeting, the Vatican Press Office released this statement:
The
Assembly reiterated the importance of adequate preparation for marriage, as its
celebration seems to be increasingly reduced to the social and legal status,
rather than a religious and spiritual bond. The preparatory course, it was
noted, is often perceived by couples as an imposition, a task to complete
without conviction, and as a result it is too brief. Since marriage is a
vocation for life, preparation for it should be long and detailed, as in the
case of preparation for religious life. It was also shown that, among couples,
there is a frequent lack of awareness of the sacramental value of the marriage
bond, so much so that the celebration of the marriage rite, it was said, is not
automatically the celebration of the marriage sacrament.
I
can testify to the lack of preparation and disinterest that some couples show
when requesting to receive this Sacrament of Holy Matrimony, as can my brother
priests and deacons here at Immaculate. While none of the discussions held so
far in the Synod are final until the Pope publishes its conclusions in an
Apostolic Exhortation late next year or in early 2016, what the statement above
proves is that our bishops are very aware that we need to do more to prepare
young couples for Holy Matrimony to build stronger Christian families. Couples
need to see this sacrament and its preparation for it as a gift and not an
imposition. Couples need to have the conviction that marriage is a vocation and
not merely a choice of a spouse. They need to see their spouse as someone who
God himself chose for them to enrich their life and to help them achieve
salvation. I always say that the stronger our marriages, the stronger our families
because the love that a married couple shares, which is rooted in Jesus Christ,
will be transmitted to their children creating a family modeled after the Holy
Family.
As
we celebrate World Mission Sunday today, may we make it the mission of this
parish to support our families who are being fragmented by a secular world. May
we support families who for whatever reason only have one parent or guardian,
but above all, may we embrace everyone who is part of God’s family: the body of
Christ. Please continue to pray for our bishops as they continue to deliberate
the results of this Synod, which will conclude next year, and continue to pray
for all our families in our parish so that we may be shining examples to the
world of the love of Jesus Christ.
