6 – 7 October 2018
Today many people think when emotional love ends, they no longer love one another.
Harold Kushner, an American Rabbi speaks of a young couple who came to him, asking he officiate at their upcoming wedding.
At one point the young groom asked. ‘Rabbi, would you object if we made a small change in the wedding ceremony? Instead of pronouncing us husband and wife till death do us part, could you pronounce us husband and wife for as long as love lasts? We talked about this and we both feel that, should the day come when we no longer love each other, it wouldn’t be morally right for us to be stuck with each other.’
The rabbi replied ‘I appreciate your honesty. But you must understand that a marriage commitment is not just a mutual willingness to live together, but also a commitment to accept the frustrations and disappointments that are an inevitable part of two imperfect human beings relating to each other. It’s hard enough to make a go of marriage even when you give it everything you’ve got. But if only apart of you is involved in the relationship, then you have virtually no chance.’
When two people get married, their lives are linked together. From that point on they have a common destiny. They are committed to one another, and are responsible to and for one another. God seals and blesses this bond. However, the bond is not made of unbreakable material. It is made of human, and there-fore, imperfect material.
God made us for love – to receive and to give it. Love is something that has to be learned. The real journey that married couples have to make, and not just them but single people too, is the journey from selfishness to love.
Nothing is a greater challenge to love, nothing provides a greater opportunity for growth in love, than marriage. It calls for a lot of maturity. Gold Fish in a bowl get along easily. But bring two human beings together and you soon have problems. When two people get married they bring to it their strengths and weaknesses, loves and hates, hurts and wounds, hopes and fears. However, the difficulties they encounter can be opportunities for growth. There is more depth to a relationship that has weathered some storms. The fragility of the bond should make the couple eager to seek God’s help.
We ask God’s blessings on all marriages, that they be happy and fruitful. That their love mirrors the love of the holy family, Jesus Mary and Joseph. May the Lord protect and enrich you all the days of your married love.
Love to all
Dean Peter