YOUCAT*: A sacramental marriage has three necessary elements: (a) free consent, (b) the affirmation of a lifelong, exclusive union, and (c) openness to children. The most profound thing about a Christian marriage, however, is the couple’s knowledge: “We are a living image of the love between Christ and the Church.” [1644-1654, 1664]
I was recently at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C., where there is a mosaic of the Wedding Feast at Cana and it made me think … summer is here (unofficially) which means lots of people getting married.
So what’s necessary for a sacramental marriage?
One kane and one wahine make the lifelong commitment to each other freely and exclusively. “So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, no human being must separate.” (Matthew 19:6)
They must also be open to having keiki. During the Rite of Matrimony, husband and wife declare before God that they “accept children willingly and will bring them up in the practice of the Faith.”
Congrats and blessings to all those getting married this summer!
*Youth Catechism of the Catholic Church
Lisa Gomes is the director of the Office of Youth and Young Adult Ministry
