2. HISTORICAL
BACKGROUND

3. • Second to Fifth Centuries
–Marriage is viewed more and more as the
justification of the use of sex which has
been infected by sin.
–The purpose of marriage is none other than
the begetting of children.
–Indeed, our sexual desires are nothing more
than the unfortunate effects of Original Sin.
–Marriage is a sacrament signifying on earth
the future unity of God’s people in heaven.

4. • Middle Ages to Vatican II
–In 1208, in the Profession of Faith
prescribed by Pope Innocent
III, marriage was accounted a true
sacrament.
–According to the Council of Trent, it
required that Catholic marriages takes
place in the presence of a
priest, especially to limit the widespread
practice of clandestine marriages.

5. • The word marriage may be taken to
denote
the action, contract, formality, or cer
emony by which the conjugal union is
formed or the union itself as an
enduring condition.
• It is usually defined as
the legitimate union between
husband and wife.

7. Love is the human vocation
(and our first vocation)
Only a human can love; other animals can respond
instinctively or characteristically, but humans love.
This reflects a special gift given to us for a reason.
Vocation (from Ln voco, vocare: to hear)
means our response to an invitation to enter
into a way of living. Vocation to love is
manifest and lived out as:
married, single, vowed religious, or celibate.
But these are not ends in themselves, but
particular manifestations of the general
vocation to love.
First vocation from the standpoint of power:
love and the actions of love and compassion
can do so much to change hearts and reform
people. (Eg story from newspaper clipping)

8. Note: #1 & 2 are 'me' centered, #3 is is the symbol of God's love in our
Marriage
directed to the other person.
world
God's love is faithful: God's love abides even
Scripture 1 John 4:16. This sentiment of God has
when we turn from God, and forgiving:
ready to start over again been poetically expressed describing God as
This is the model for Christian Marriage. This life': Good analogy. God's love
'love generating
is seen in Eph 5:25, the comparison of generation of creation and life.
is behind the
Marriage with love of Christ for the Church. to generate life. Three types of
Nature of love is
Marriage, in its best, seeks to live out the
love as defined by the ancient philosopher
love of God, bearing witness to the love of
Aristotle:
God through the faithful abiding love of the
spouses for each other. 1. Pleasure: humor, or some
other endearing quality
2. Usefulness: You have a nice
car; common
interest, common purpose
3. Good: based on the good
in the other person.

9. Marriage reflects a covenant (not a
contract)
Sacrament of Marriage reflects this love of
God, and involves inviting God into the
relationship; to support/strengthen/protect the
bond and the commitment.
Reflects covenant between God and People
Faithful and forgiving
Contract spells out responsibilities and
obligations
Covenant is built on love, commitment and
service; hence the pledge '...in good times and
in bad...'

10. Catholic marriage demands that
we accept the challenge to be
real.
Catholic marriage is a sacrament; done on your
Not something that is it images
God's love, which invites and includes God (and
own but is faithful, forgiving, and I
the community of believers to
might add, forever.
Not just a show: no place to try to outdo a
support you).
friend or relative's ceremony or give yourself
If you are not ready: flower
arrangements
time this is a big serious commitment
Not a celebration that lasts 45 minutes then
is over, If not sincere and real: don't make a
but the beginning of a new life (and a
new way of living)of the Sacrament. Make
mockery
other arrangements.

11. When God first created man and
woman, he also established marriage and
the family relationship on which every
society is built through the ages. Genesis
2:18-25 provides the blueprint for a Biblical
marriage relationship. It gives us clear
guidelines to have fulfilling marriage
relationships as God originally intended.

12. The first gift God gave man
was the relationship with
Himself. He created man
with the ability and need to
love someone. God is to be
that first lovegift to man was
The second and to fulfill
the need.
the creation of a woman.
This was very different from
the first gift, but just as
precious for him. Why did
God give man this second
gift? How was it special?

13. •Do not be yoked together with
unbelievers. For what do
righteousness and wickedness
have in common? Or what
fellowship can light have with
darkness? (2 Corinthians 6:14)
Ephesians 5:28 says:
So husbands ought also to love their
own wives as their own bodies. He who
loves his own wife loves himself.
• Exclusivity in marriage relationship
• Permanence of the marriage
relationship - "They will become one
flesh."

14. Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to
the Lord. For the husband is the head of the
wife, as Christ also is the head of the
church, He Himself being the Savior of the
body. But as the church is subject to Christ, so
also the wives ought to be to their husbands in
everything. Husbands, love your wives, just as
Christ also loved the church and gave Himself
up for her; that He might sanctify her, having
cleansed her by the washing of water with the
word, that He might present to Himself the
church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle
or any such thing; but that she should be holy
and blameless. So husbands ought also to love
their own wives as their own bodies. He who
loves his own wife loves himself; (Ephesians
5:22-28, NASB).

15. Marriage is a commitment to love!
Love does not deal treacherously with
others....especially not one's on wife or
husband.
Romans 13:10 states God's first principle of love. "Love
worked no ill to his neighbor: therefore love is the fulfilling
of the law." Verse 9 says "Thy shall love thy neighbor as
thyself."
Galatians 5:14 "For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even
in this; Thou shall love thy neighbor as thyself."

16. Through HIS love

17. Two became

18. Marriage Ceremony

19. T he Rite of the Marriage
C onfirmation of the Marriage bond
B lessing of the Arrhae and the Rings
G iving of the Rings and the Arrhae
T he Offertory
T he Eucharistic Prayer
C ommunion rite
C oncluding rites

20. The Rite of Marriage
- The priest addresses the
couple and the congregation.
• Allocution
• Scrutiny
• Exchange of Consent

21. Allocution and Scrutiny of the Bride and Groom

22. The Bride and Groom join their right hands
Exchange of Consents

23. Confirmation of the Marriage Bond

24. Blessing of the Arrhae and the Rings
- Ring, Coin and Bible bearers
will come forward assisted by
the Best Man and Matron of
Honor and will stand at the
right side of the priest
- The priest sprinkles the
arrhae and the rings with
holy water

25. Giving of the Rings and the Arrhae
- The priest takes the ring and
gives it to the Bride and
Groom.
- The Groom takes the arrhae
in both hands. The Bride
places her cupped hands
under those of the Groom. He
lets the arrhae fall into the
hands of the Bride.
- The Bride places the arrhae
on the tray

29. The Offertory
- The male sponsor takes the cruets and gives them to the
Groom. Likewise, the lady sponsor gives the chalice and the
ciborium to the Bride. Then the Bride and Groom present them
to the priest.

32. Eucharistic Prayer
- The couple kneels.
- Two candles are lit, one at the right and the other at the left
side of the couple. A white veil is laid over the head of the
Bride and the shoulders of the Groom. Then, the cord in form
of 8 is placed over the shoulders of the Bride and Groom

36. Communion Rite
* Our Lord’s Prayer
* The Nuptial Blessing
* The Sign of Peace
* The Breaking of the Bread
* Communion
- While the Choir sings the communion hymns, the priest gives communion
to the newlyweds and then gives communion to everyone.

41. Concluding rites
- The Bride, the Groom, the Priest and the Sponsors sign
the Marriage Contract.
- The Bride, the Bridegroom and their entourage march
in procession out of the Church.

44. TheGospel Mt. 25: 1-13 speaks out of the
The bride walks down the aisle
with her father on the as some kind of
bridesmaids, who served right and her
court to the bride, keeping herreaching
mother on the left. Before company
while altar, father groom.
the waiting for the kisses the bride
and gives her hand that the groom
In Jn 3: 22-30 mentions
to Best Man in
the person of the Groom’s friend, whose
whowas to protect the bride end she was
duty is waiting at the until of the
aisle. to her husband. due respect to
united After paying
the bride’s parents, the couple will
proceed to their special seats
placed before the altar. This
gesture signifies the handing over
of the bride to the groom for the
purpose of forming a new family.

45. This symbolize purity and innocence.
The trend of a long white gown was
initiated by Queen Victoria in her
wedding with Albert in 1840.
Traditionally, the veil was introduced to
protect the bride from evil spirits, and
to hide her face from the groom until
after the ceremony.

46. This symbolizes fertility and the start of a
new life. During medieval times, bouquets
were used as a protection from evil spirits.
After the wedding, the bouquet was
burned inside the house to chase away
the evil spirits, and the ashes tossed to
the wind.
Nowadays, after the wedding
reception, the bouquet is tossed to the
maids to wish good luck for their future
marriages.

47. During the exchange of the
marriage consent, the couple join
their hands, to say: “Grant us, O
Lord, to be one heart and one soul
from this day forward, for better, for
worse, for richer, for poorer, in
sickness and in health, until death
do us part”
This signifies their total
commitment to one another. The
husband and wife belong to each
other. They do become one in
body, heart and purpose.

48. This rings are placed on the
The symbolizes the everlasting
love and fidelity of the couple.was
ring-finger because it The
circular shape represents their
believed that a vein runs
circle of love that has no
directly from finger love the
beginning or end. These to and
heart. are proclaimed by married
fidelity
people who proudly wear their
wedding rings all throughout their
lives. It is in this spirit that the
Church, when blessing the
rings, pray that those “who wear
them may ever live in mutual love
and unbroken loyalty.”

49. The Arrhae gives thethat the
Goom or coins arrhae
groom Bride, saying: “I give
to the place on the hands
you
of thethese arrhae as the
bride symbolize a
pledge of
sufficiency my of
dedication to
material
your welfare.” that
possessions the
husband should provide for
This means that it is
the material needs of the
family. the man’s duty to
primarily
be the provider and the
breadwinner of the family.

50. The candles to be lighted on
both sides of the couple
symbolize the presence of
Christ in their married
life, as well as the union of
their two families.

51. The veil placed on the bride’s
head and extended to the
groom’s shoulder symbolizes
that as Christ is the head of
the Church so the husband is
the head of the wife. It also
emphasizes their union and
mutual self-surrender.
By covering the bride’s
head, it means that the bride
reserves her beauty
exclusively for her husband.

52. The cord which is placed in
an 8-shaped around the
couple’s shoulders
symbolizes that the
responsibilities of married
life should be carried
together. It signifies the
unity of marriage.

53. The garters were introduced as a
symbol of modesty. Usually, there
were of color blue in association to
the Virgin Mary, and also in reference
to an ancient nuptial rhyme, which
said that every bride should wear:
“Something old, something
new, something borrowed, something
blue with a sixpence in your shoe.”
Nowadays, after the wedding, the
bride will toss the garter to all the
single men for good luck. The catcher
then places the garter on the leg of
the maid who caught the bouquet.

54. The wedding cake is a
custom inherited from
ancient Romans and
symbolizes prosperity and
fortune. Originally, it was
made of seeds and grains
to signify fertility.

55. The white doves set free
during the wedding are
symbols of purity and
innocence, as well as a sign of
peace being announced to the
whole world.

56. Values

57. The teaching of the Church on individual moral norms can only
be appreciated and followed if Christian Marriage is truly
understood for what it really is.
Only if Christian Marriage is recognized as part of “a new
covenant, a covenant not of a written law, but of spirit.”
The personal purpose of marriage is to express the mutual
love, support, and unity of the couple.
* Christian marriage is the union of a man and a woman in
Christ.
This unity does not mean losing one’s own identity by merging
with another into one personality, nor yielding to domination by
the other.

58. To “become” implies a life-long process. The essential condition
of this “becoming one body” is the basic equality of male and
female, asserted in the creation.
Sacraments are outward and visible signs or symbols through
which god's grace is given to us. The love of man and woman is
made holy in the Sacrament of Marriage, and becomes the
mirror of your everlasting love.