The Seven Sacraments Part Six: Marriage and Holy Orders
Last week I spoke about the sacraments of healing: Penance and the Anointing of the Sick. This week I conclude this series on the sacraments with some reflection on the two sacraments of Christian vocation: Marriage and Holy Orders. By the Sacrament of Marriage man and woman enter into a sacramental union that reflects the love of Christ and his Church. By the Sacrament of Holy Orders a man is ordained for sacramental service to the Church as an alter Christus, “another Christ.”
Marriage is the one sacrament that believers confer on each other. The priest functions as the church’s official witness, but it is the bride and groom who confer the sacrament on each other by the marriage vows they exchange before the believing community.
St. Paul gives us the best explanation of the sacramental nature of marriage toward the end of his great Epistle to the Ephesians. In that letter he tells us that the love of man and woman in marriage is intended to reflect the love between Christ and his Church. Just as Christ loves the Church and gives himself to her, so a man is to love his wife and give himself to her. And just as the Church loves Christ and gives herself to him, so a woman is to love her husband and give herself to him. This means that every marriage is a sign to the world of Christ’s own love for the Church and the Church’s own love for Christ. Christian marriage, then, is a unique witness to the world of the love that exists between Christ and his bride, the Church.
We are experiencing a drop in church marriages today. Some young people have opted not to enter into a sacramental marriage. Others have opted for “destination marriages” before a civil official in some exotic setting. While I am not in a position to judge the motives of other people, I fear that some are making the place of their wedding reception more important than the place of their marriage. Some Catholics, not all, are missing an opportunity to witness the love of Christ to the world by their marriage.
The Sacrament of Holy Orders is a sacrament by which a young man is conformed to Christ as a priest within the Church to proclaim the Word and celebrate the sacraments. The priest is ordained to proclaim the gospel, to watch over the people of God entrusted to his care, and to celebrate the sacraments, especially the Eucharist. Because he has been ordained for service to the Church, the priest functions as “another Christ,” making Christ present to others through his ministry of Word and Sacrament.
Just as there has been a precipitous drop in church marriages in recent years, so there has been a precipitous drop in the number of young men pursuing Holy Orders. There are many reasons for this: a change in our culture, the recent and persistent scandals among the clergy, the demands of a celibate life, etc. I have found my life as a priest-professor and now as pastor life-giving. While there have been difficult moments along the way, my life as a priest has been satisfying and fulfilling. The years I spent as a professor at Catholic University were deeply challenging and enriching, and this newest phase of my priesthood as your pastor has been no less challenging and enriching.
If you are a young person, your life will be spiritually enriched by the sacraments of Marriage and Holy Orders, depending upon your vocation. Those of you who do not get married or ordained can also live a deeply Catholic life as a single person provided you live that life for others rather than for your own selfish purpose. You live in world of God’s grace. Bathe yourself in that grace every day!