“Dear families, you too should be fearless, ever ready to give witness to the hope that is in you (cf. 1 Pet 3:15), since the Good Shepherd has put that hope in your hearts through the Gospel. You should be ready to follow Christ towards the pastures of life, which he himself has prepared through the Paschal Mystery of his Death and Resurrection. Do not be afraid of the risks! God’s strength is always far more powerful than your difficulties!” (#18 “The Bridegroom is With You” Pope St. John Paul II)

Our Holy Father reminds us of the dynamic and fruitful blessings of marriage and family even when we endure heartache and suffering in the relations. He offers to ideas to ponder where marriage and family are a “challenging mosaic” and must be filled with “missionary creativity” in the sacramental gift of life. Each family is different and faces different challenges and blessings…the “challenging mosaic” is an understanding of how our hopes and dreams begin to conform to the loving of another deeply, intimately and fully where we strip bare the facade of worldly desires and allow ourselves to be exposed in complete love. It is the mosaic of children with their unique and holy gifts. We also recognize within the family is the classroom of faith and from faith comes the forgiveness and reconciliation practiced in Christian charity.

This week we are celebrating National Marriage Week and the Church rejoices in the gift of marriage and the wonder of family flowing forth from this gift. We also recognize the challenge of marriage and the wounds and hurts that can come from this intimate relationship where the baring of the soul and the opening of our hearts to another can leave us vulnerable and open to great suffering. Yet, as Pope St. John Paul II reminds us we are called to be fearless in following the vocation of relationship and love offered to us.
One of these great mysteries is how we live in this unity of love. In my ministry in Worldwide Marriage Encounter I have seen the grace of God work with such powerful blessing in the married couples who choose to hear and be with each other in hope that my heart also breaks to recieve the grace and blessings as a priest in relationship with my bride the Church.

It is in the challenges of our brokenness and hurt where we discover the grace of God’s healing mercy within our relationship in sacramental love. We prepare ourselves for this sacrifice by offering and receiving the blessing of love. It is in the recognition of a sacrificial love, where suffering will be present side-by-side with joy that we begin to see and know the depth and truth of God’s love for us through the cross of His Son, Jesus Christ.
Pope Francis reminds us that no family is without the need for healing, “I thank God that many families, which are far from considering themselves perfect, live in love, fulfill their calling and keep moving forward, even if they fall many times along the way. The Synod’s reflections show us that there is no stereotype of the ideal family, but rather a challenging mosaic made up of many different realities, with all their joys, hopes and problems. The situations that concern us are challenges. We should not be trapped into wasting our energy in doleful laments, but rather seek new forms of missionary creativity. In every situation that presents itself, “the Church is conscious of the need to offer a word of truth and hope… The great values of marriage and the Christian family correspond to a yearning that is part and parcel of human existence”. If we see any number of problems, these should be, as the Bishops of Colombia have said, a summons to “revive our hope and to make it the source of prophetic visions, transformative actions and creative forms of charity”.” (#57 Amoris Laetitia: The Joy of Love, Pope Francis)

St. John Paul II shares this wisdom, “The love of spouses and parents has the capacity to cure these kinds of wounds, provided the dangers alluded to do not deprive it of its regenerative force, which is so beneficial and wholesome a thing for human communities. This capacity depends on the divine grace of forgiveness and reconciliation, which always ensures the spiritual energy to begin anew. For this very reason family members need to encounter Christ in the Church through the wonderful Sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation.” (#14 “The Bridegroom is With You” Pope St. John Paul II) The decision to love is discovered in the first decision to accept and love the other in who they are: the good, the bad, the joy and the sorrow. It is awakening the willingness to communicate who we are, even when we are not at our best…even when we sin. God calls us to be healers in relationship. We cannot be in relationships unless we share the gift with God and our spouse, children and entire family.
As we celebrate National Marriage Week, let us take time to renew our marriage and seek God’s divine mercy in our relationships of love.
God bless
Fr. Mark.