The Sacramental Covenant of Holy Matrimony: Readings & Sermon for the Second Sunday After the Epiphany
The Mass readings for the Feast of the Second Sunday after the Epiphany are selected from the pre-1955 Missal of St. Pius X. Followed by the sermon of Monsignor Thomas Sebastian, Oratory Chapel of St. Francis of Assisi, Society of Christ the King.
INTROIT: Psalm 65:4
LET ALL THE EARTH ADORE THEE, O God, and sing to Thee: let it sing a psalm to Thy Name, O Most High. Psalm 65:1 – 2. Shout with joy to God, all the earth, sing a psalm to His Name; give glory to His praise. V. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be; world without end. Amen. LET ALL THE EARTH ADORE THEE, O God, and sing to Thee: let it sing a psalm to Thy Name, O Most High.
EPISTLE: Romans 12:6 – 16
BRETHREN: Having gifts, according to the grace that is given us, different, either prophecy according to the rule of faith. Or ministry in ministering, or he that teacheth in doctrine. He that exhorteth in exhorting, he that giveth in simplicity, he that ruleth in carefulness, he that showeth mercy in cheerfulness. Love without simulation. Hating evil. Cleaving to good. Loving the charity of the brotherhood one toward another. With honour preventing one another. In carefulness not slothful. In spirit servant. Serving our Lord. Rejoicing in hope. Patient in tribulation. Instant in prayer. Communicating to the ‘necessities’ of the saints. Pursuing hospitality. Bless them that persecute you: bless, and curse not. To rejoice with them that rejoice, to weep with them that weep. Being of one mind one toward another. Not minding high things, but consenting to the humble.
GRADUAL and ALLELUIA: Psalm 106:20 – 21
THE LORD SENT HIS WORD, and healed them: and delivered them from their destruction. V. Let the mercies of the Lord give glory to Him: and His wonderful works to the children of men. Alleluia, Alleluia. V. Psalm 148:2 Praise ye the Lord, all His Angels: praise ye Him, all His hosts. Alleluia.
GOSPEL: St. John 2:1 – 11
AT THAT TIME: There was a marriage made in Cana of Galilee: and the mother of JESUS was there. And JESUS also was called, and His Disciples to the marriage. And the wine failing, the mother of JESUS saith to Him: They have no wine. And JESUS saith to her : What is to Me and thee woman? My hour commeth not yet. His mother saith to the ministers: Whatsoever He shall say to you, do ye. And there were set six water pots of stone, according to the purification of the Jews, holding every one two or three measures. JESUS saith to them: Fill the water pots with water. And they filled them up to the top. And JESUS saith to them: Draw now, and carry to the chief steward. And they carried it. And after the chief steward tasted the water made wine, and knew not whence it was, but the ministers knew that had drawn the water: the chief steward calleth the bridegroom, and saith to him: Every man first setteth the good wine: and when they have well drunk, then that which is worse. But thou hast kept the good wine until now. This beginning of miracles did JESUS in Cana of Galilee: and He manifested His glory, and His Disciples believed in Him.
OFFERTORY VERSE: Psalm 65:1 – 2, 16
SHOUT WITH JOY TO GOD, all the earth: sing ye a psalm to His Name: come and hear, all ye that fear God, and I will tell you what great things the Lord hath done for my soul, Alleluia.
COMMUNION VERSE: St. John 2:7, 8, 9, 10 – 11
THE LORD SAITH: Fill the water pots with water, and carry to the chief steward. When the chief steward had tasted the water made wine, he saith to the bridegroom: Thou hast kept the good wine until now. This first miracle did JESUS in the presence of His Disciples.
SERMON of Monsignor Sebastian:
There was a marriage made in Cana of Galilee: and the mother of JESUS was there. And JESUS also was called, and His Disciples to the marriage.
FOR the past few years I have preached to you concerning Holy Marriage on this Sunday, and I shall continue this tradition and I pray that you listen and learn with your mind, hearts and soul. There was a time when every person knew and understood the goodness and importance of marriage, and every Catholic knew and understood the goodness and importance of Sacramental Marriage, indissoluble once validly contracted in the Holy Church. In our present time marriage, both natural and supernatural, is under such purposeful attack it can only be properly understood in the context of a diabolical abnegation of God’s great gift of human society. Plainly put, the devil hates Holy Marriage because it is instituted by God to provide goodness and grace to man so that he may attain heaven. The evil one has set up obstacles to impede natural and supernatural marriage since the beginning of time, whether it is the temptation to sin and disobey in Paradise, the adultery of S. David the King, or the incestuous adultery of King Herod and Herodias, his brother’s wife. This draws a direct line to the murderous heresiarch Henry VIII of England and the systematic destruction of Holy Marriage by the non-Catholic sects of the horrific Protest-ant de-formation. Alas, divorce, bigamy and sodomy are now accepted as normal and part of modern “marriage.”
We have two distinct features from this morning’s Gospel of S. John: 1) the elevation of marriage from a societal contract to an indissoluble Sacrament; and 2) Our Lord took this opportunity to manifest His glory by performing His first public miracle at this same marriage, whereby His Disciples believed in Him (S. John 2:11). As an aside we must address the non-rebuke of Our Lady: Our Lord does not rebuke her, but rather allows His Disciples, S. John chief amoung them who recounts the story for us in his Gospel, to see how Our Lady’s intercession for us can be counted upon. Her requests for our good is immediately heard and answered, as long as we do what He tells us to do (cf. S. John 2:5).
It is no small passing thing that Our Blessed Lord chose the Marriage at Cana to perform His first public miracle, and this must have been a wedding of very devout people because Our Lord, His Blessed Mother and His disciples are present. We see how God manifests Himself through the ordinary, natural and simple things. As always God elevates the natural to the supernatural: first by water turned wine, and then the marriage contract into Sacramental Marriage. God speaks to us in the hushed whispers of our heart and soul in order that we may cooperate and participate in our own salvation. There is also, of course, the very powerful association of turning water into wine with Our Blessed Lord and King changing wine and bread, natural elements, into His Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity, that is, supernatural elements.
Before we discuss Holy Matrimony let’s discuss miracles. Too many people want shows and extravaganzas to confirm their Faith – just look at the performers on the so-called “miracle crusades” which one can see on the television. These lukewarm believers have failed to hear and heed the admonishment of the Lord: unless you see signs and wonders, you believe not (S. John 4:48)! When Our Lord raised the daughter of Jairus from the dead (cf. S. Luke 8:49 – 56) the crowd laughed Him to scorn (ibid.) because He raised her without fanfare, but simply bid her quietly to arise, and her spirit returned to her (ibid.).
Many times people say to me that miracles no longer occur, which saddens me greatly, because they fail to see the glory of God manifested in the simple and ordinary. Look to our little Oratory Chapel for an example: with so few for so long how do we keep our doors open? Because God always provides. He desires that we remain in this way; it is His most holy will. We are simple and quiet, yet I promise you that your souls have been filled with a burning desire for God’s grace. Your sincere prayers keep God’s favour and support here. However, this does not mean we should be complacent in our efforts for growth. We must always invite and encourage so that we may witness the truth of the Lord Jesus Christ to visitors and newcomers. Always extend a friendly and fraternal greeting to all who enter God’s House: show them the smile, warmth and blessing of the Lord! A simple “welcome, thank you for coming” will go far in making someone comfortable and confident that they are in the right place. At the same time, don’t overwhelm them either… remember S. Paul’s teaching this morning that we must pursue hospitality (Romans 12:13).
Now let us proceed to the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony…again, Our Lord’s first public miracle takes place at this wedding at Cana, at which S. John tells us, He manifested His glory, and His Disciples believed in Him (S. John 2:11). It is, given the current attacks on marriage, an opportune time to teach about the great and holy Sacrament of Matrimony.
First, let us speak of marriage in its natural sense: when God created man he gave him a counterpart. Man and woman complimented one another: not completed one another, for man was made in perfection (cf. Genesis 1:26 – 27, Ezekiel 28:12 – 15) and therefore did not need anything to be complete. This state of union was so blessed by God that He commanded them to be fruitful and multiply in order to become masters of the world (cf. Genesis 1:28). So marriage was given to man by God to compliment and to bring forth children, that is, create society. Remember, as I taught you last Sunday, that the family is a natural society formed for the good of mankind. The coming together of one man and one woman for their exclusive mutual benefit is a noble and wholly good thing for the propagation of human society, for it prevents distraction, selfishness and misuse of the conjugal act. When a husband and wife come together it must be respectful, thoughtful and in mutual consent – the actual definition of marital love – and elevated to an higher purpose. We understand this in its natural sense using the human faculty of reason. Aristotle teaches us in his Ethics that reason must be used for correct behaviour: The good, whatever it is, is the good for man and therefore can be ascertained only by discovering what man is (that is, by understanding what man’s nature is). So understanding what the proper nature of marriage is necessary to make a well ordered use of marriage. Therefore, the nature (that is, the proper manner of acting) of natural marriage is to build up human society, and to give a heroic example to that same human society of marriage’s proper and well-ordered use.
Now, let us proceed to speaking of marriage in its supernatural sense. A thing, in this case marriage, is perfected when it is moved by grace. When Our Lord upholds marriage as not only natural but supernatural through His explicit teaching on its indissolubility (cf. S. Matthew 19:3 – 10, S. Mark 10:2 – 12), He lends His grace to its confection. Natural marriage is not done away with, rather, it is elevated; as S. Thomas teaches: grace does not destroy nature, it perfects it (Summa Theologica Part I, 1:8). Those who now enter into a Sacramental Marriage, which is only possible in the Catholic Church, are called to a more perfect union, not only one man and one woman alone, but with God and with His grace. Marriage is now called to a higher operation, that is, its nature is now perfected. S. Thomas calls this natura cum gratia cooperans (nature cooperating with grace). The operation of a supernatural marriage is to create a supernatural society: which is a society that imitates the Perfect Society and Family: the Most Holy Trinity. To do so a husband and wife, united in the Sacrament of Matrimony, come together with the express purpose of bringing forth new life (children). Children must be a reflection and a product of their perfect love, not the motivation for love – which would be disordered. All creation came into being because of the perfect love between the Three Persons of the Most Holy Trinity,God being the agent or primary mover of all created matter. Simply put, God does not love man because He made him, rather, He made him because He loves him. This must apply to the married parent, again, in imitation of the perfection of God: man and woman must not love their children because they created them, rather, they created them because of their love for God and one another. This is order.
If an husband and wife come together with the sole purpose of physical gratification and close themselves off to the creation of life through contraception or other acts that do not permit the creation of life, they engage in selfish, sinful and disordered behaviour; completely contrary to the purpose of marriage. They would be guilty of the purposeful misuse of their conjugal gift. This sin is doubled when a man and woman come together outside of marriage, again, without the possibility of bringing forth life: there is no love, not even for each other, simply self-gratification and the misuse of a natural act with a disordered intention. This is why S. Paul, echoing the Saviour, teaches: Know you not that the unjust shall not possess the Kingdom of God? Do not err: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor the effeminate, nor liers with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor railers, nor extortioners, shall possess the Kingdom of God (I Corinthians 6:9 – 10).
What is important in any marriage is intimacy, both physical and emotional. Let us speak first of the latter and then discuss the former…when one of the spouses becomes overly friendly with another person, most especially of the opposite sex, and they share their emotional feelings and desires they are being unfaithful to their spouse by emotional infidelity. They are denying their spouse access to the intimacy that belongs to them exclusively. The sacramental covenant between a man and a woman must never be misused because it ruptures the bond of intimacy between them and creates a crevasse that can eventually cause a fissure that may be impossible to repair. In today’s “open” society with socalled social media it seems people feel free to share their most intimate of feelings with anyone except those with whom they should only share such topics. This is what happens when shame is removed from a holy and civil society. This is disorder…this is sin.
So let us rejoice that God so loves us that He has blessed us with such a good and holy thing as marriage: all of human society and life comes from God’s gift of marriage: it is truly the foundation for our continued natural existence. Let us protect and defend marriage, for it is a precious gift from God that gives grace and facilitates eternal life.
Jesus, Mary, and Joseph. We love you. Save souls. Amen.
