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| This series of Marriage reflections is meant to help the Teams of Our Lady that I chaplain in their couple's prayer together. John 17:20-26 Jesus raised his eyes to heaven and prayed, saying, “I pray not only for them, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, so that they may all be one, as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us, that the world may believe that you sent me. And I have given them the glory you gave me, so that they may be one, as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may be brought to perfection as one, that the world may know that you sent me, and that you loved them even as you loved me. Father, they are your gift to me. I wish that where I am they also may be with me, that they may see my glory that you gave me, because you loved me before the foundation of the world. Righteous Father, the world also does not know you, but I know you, and they know that you sent me. I made known to them your name and I will make it known, that the love with which you loved me may be in them and I in them.” Reflection When the scriptures give us the exact words of Jesus praying we should pay attention. He prays that we may all be one, that we may always be with Him, and that we will experience the love that He has for the Father. Perhaps this is one of those prayers that the married couple should make their own. They pray that their family may always be of one mind and heart. They pray that they should always know that Christ is with them. They pray that they will always experience the all-consuming love of God the Father. In all reality, these three are all that is needed. Reflection Are we of one mind and heart? Do we strive to be? Do we invite Jesus to walk with us no matter what we do? Do we experience the al-consuming love of God the Father as baptized Christians? as a family? Prayer Lord, Accept our offering as an image of you love for your Church. By your love and providence you have brought us together, now bless us all the days of our married life. We ask this through Christ our Lord. | | |
| This series of Marriage reflections is meant to help the Teams of Our Lady that I chaplain in their couple's prayer together. John 15:12-16 Jesus said to his disciples: “This is my commandment: love one another as I love you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. I no longer call you slaves, because a slave does not know what his master is doing. I have called you friends, because I have told you everything I have heard from my Father. It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name he may give you. Reflection In our obedience to Christ, we are not servants but friends. In our submitting of our wills to Christ or to another person for the sake of Christ, we cease to be slaves of sin, and become friends, sons and daughters of God. A marriage cannot work if the couple is not solely focused on the good of the other. This is difficult, but in Christ even the most difficult is possible Questions How do we make decisions? Are there areas of our lives that are reserved to only one of us? Why? How does obedience come into play in our lives? Prayer Lord, Accept our offering as an image of you love for your Church. By your love and providence you have brought us together, now bless us all the days of our married life. We ask this through Christ our Lord. | | |
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O Magnum Mysterium
By Thomas Tallis, Tomas Luis de Victoria, Morten Lauridsen, Francis Poulenc, Sergey Rachmaninov, Franz Schubert, Anonymous, Spiritual Traditional, Henryk Gorecki, Christopher Cock, Robert Shaw Festival Singers, Robert Shaw Chamber Singers
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This series of Marriage reflections is meant to help the Teams of Our Lady that I chaplain in their couple's prayer together. John 15:9-12 As the Father loves me, so I also love you. Remain in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and remain in his love. “I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and your joy may be complete. This is my commandment: love one another as I love you.” Reflection Love is rooted in self-sacrifice. This has always been the Catholic tradition. To mirror and cultivate the love of Christ in our lives and for those around us, we must love as He did, unto death. One of the most common things said in the middle of a divorce is, “We just fell out of love.” Love is not easy. It is something that must be worked at, day in and day out. Love is something that must be lived. Love must be put into practice. Love must be rooted in the sacrifice of Christ, or it is merely infatuation. Questions How do I love thee? Let me count the ways. What are the many little sacrifices that you do for your spouse as an act of love? Is your love rooted in Christ? How so? Prayer Lord, Accept our offering as an image of you love for your Church. By your love and providence you have brought us together, now bless us all the days of our married life. We ask this through Christ our Lord. | | |
| This series of Marriage reflections is meant to help the Teams of Our Lady that I chaplain in their couple's prayer together. John 2:1-11 On the third day there was a wedding in Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus and his disciples were also invited to the wedding. When the wine ran short, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” (And) Jesus said to her, “Woman, how does your concern affect me? My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servers, “Do whatever he tells you.” Now there were six stone water jars there for Jewish ceremonial washings, each holding twenty to thirty gallons. Jesus told them, “Fill the jars with water.” So they filled them to the brim. Then he told them, “Draw some out now and take it to the headwaiter.” So they took it. And when the headwaiter tasted the water that had become wine, without knowing where it came from (although the servers who had drawn the water knew), the headwaiter called the bridegroom and said to him, “Everyone serves good wine first, and then when people have drunk freely, an inferior one; but you have kept the good wine until now.” Jesus did this as the beginning of his signs in Cana in Galilee and so revealed his glory, and his disciples began to believe in him. Reflection We know the story, but do we read it all? Look at that last little bit at the end, “and his disciples began to believe in him.” Why? Because of the miracle of the wine and water, there is no indication that they knew it had happened, it is only clear that the servers knew of the miracle. Is it possible that they saw in this man a teacher, and a preacher who served those around him? It would have been highly unusual for a scribe or Pharisee to be seen helping haul water jars or assisting the servers with the wine. It is clear that Jesus is offering a service to the newly married couple, and his disciples see this. We can be fairly certain that before the end of the night everyone knew where the new wine had come from. But it is fairly obvious as well that Jesus wasn’t there to take the credit any longer. Questions Are we aware of Jesus walking with us in our marriage? During the good times? During the troubling times? Were we completely prepared for the Sacrament we got ourselves into? What have been some of the pleasant surprises? How about some of the unpleasant ones? Prayer Lord, Accept our offering as an image of you love for your Church. By your love and providence you have brought us together, now bless us all the days of our married life. We ask this through Christ our Lord. | | |
| This series of Marriage reflections is meant to help the Teams of Our Lady that I chaplain in their couple's prayer together. Mark 10:6-9 From the beginning of creation, ‘God made them male and female. For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother (and be joined to his wife), and the two shall become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, no human being must separate. Reflection How easy it is to forget that God has a plan! In our daily lives of hustle and bustle, it is very easy to get caught up in the mundaneness of our own “stuff.” Forgetting that we are all members of the Mystical Body of Christ, each with specific talents and gifts. If we believe that God has created marriage and blessed it from the beginning of time, we must also believe that He can help us through anything that could happen. If God has called you to be married, then it only makes sense that He will give you everything you need to make it successful. We must all strive to rely on the grace of God. Questions What are the gifts and challenges I bring to this Sacrament? What are the gifts and challenges my spouse brings to this Sacrament? Do I always recognize them? How can we use our gifts and challenges to the best of our ability to grow in holiness and sanctity? Prayer Lord, Accept our offering as an image of you love for your Church. By your love and providence you have brought us together, now bless us all the days of our married life. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen | | |
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