National Marriage Week and World Marriage Day

Even if the divorce rate has leveled off,

marriage in America has unquestionably declined over the recent past ….

delayed marriage, increasing cohabitation and remaining single have taken place….

Irrespective of one’s view regarding the significance of this decline in marriage rates, the institution of marriage in America appears to have become increasingly inconsequential for growing numbers of young men and women, including couples having children together. (The Hill, 8/10/2021)

Like so many young people, the (non) reaction from many in the Church seems tantamount to a collective “So What?”  Talk about a “vocation crisis” seems rarely connected to the crisis of children raised apart from a mom and dad who are married to each other.  This lack of emphasis is inconsistent with authentic Catholic teaching.  “From Arcanum to 2013, there were especially clear magisterial teachings on marriage / family / human sexuality.  These are treasures which our hierarchy, priests, deacons, and selves need to re-mine” (Catholic Stand, 10/30/2022 and 10/31/2022).  As I have also noted at Catholic Stand,

In the so-called sexual revolution of the 1960s, the magnificent vocation of marriage was not properly appreciated, esteemed, and understood.  Yet in the face of monumental resistance, Saint Pope Paul VI courageously reminded humanity of God’s noble call for men and women to unite in lifelong, monogamous marriages and collaborate in His very work of creation….While many were getting lost in the weeds of temptation toward libertine attitudes, Saint Pope Paul VI was reminding humanity that marriage/ family/ human sexuality was holy!  God calls men and women to unite in lifelong, monogamous marriages and actually cooperate in His continuing work of creation!  Wow!   (Fertility Awareness/Natural Family Planning, 6/25/2021)

Saint Pope John Paul II used 129 general audiences, to convey a true appreciation of marriage, family, and human sexuality…. now known collectively as His Theology of the Body….Those who cherish human life from the first moment of fertilization till natural death, while acknowledging marriage to be the only appropriate place for husbands and wives to cooperate in God’s continuing work of Creation, and acknowledging the need for each conjugal act to be open to life are promised authentic happiness – a happiness finding its fulfillment in Heaven itself.  Human life is sacred; the conjugal act between husbands and wives is sacred.  All of us need to be shouting this from the proverbial rooftops! (The Compendium of the Catechism & the Theology of the Body, 6/11/2021)
 
As per Pope Saint John Paul II, “The future of humanity passes by way of the family” (Familiaris Consortio, 1981).  (The Truth about Marriage, Family, and Life, Catholic Stand, 2/1/22)

During the pontificate of Saint Pope John Paul II, the Pontifical Council for the Family (1996) produced Preparation for the Sacrament of Marriage….I pray that this magnificent document will not be overrun by “reinventing the wheel” tendencies. (Preparing for the “Other” Sacrament at “The Service of Communion”, 10/31/2021) 

Catholic teaching with its absolute recognition of the sanctity of human life and the sanctity of the transmission of human life needs to inform our decisions in all spheres, including decisions about public planning/transportation. (People Friendly Planning and the Blue Comet, 7/10/2021)

Phil Lawler (Catholic Culture, 2/1/21) recently looked at perspectives on declarations of marital nullity from the three most recent Holy Fathers, primarily evidenced by annual addresses to the Church’s highest court for marriage cases (i.e,

·         Saint Pope John Paul II: 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005

·         Pope...Benedict XVI: 2006 – 2013

·         Pope Francis: 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021 [Add 2022])…..

I trust that it is obvious to Pope Francis that far more Herculean efforts and prayer are needed for the preservation/repair of marriages – for the sake of the couple themselves and certainly for their children (Buyers’ Remorse? Marriage, Divorce, and Declarations of Nullity, Catholic Stand, 10/7/21)

February marks National Marriage Week (2/7 to 2/14).  Before it concludes on the traditional date for Saint Valentine’s Day, that momentous (if little known) week also includes World Marriage Day (2/12).  As per Fatima visionary Sister Lucia dos Santos,

 ‘The final battle between the Lord and the kingdom of Satan will be about Marriage and the Family.’ Don't be afraid, she added, because whoever works for the sanctity of Marriage and the Family will always be fought against and opposed in every way, because this is the decisive issue. Then she concluded: ‘nevertheless, Our Lady has already crushed his head.’ (The Catholic World Report, 10/13/2021).

We need to wake up!