It is fitting…even providential…that…
as we gather to begin this special day for sponsor couples…
the Gospel reading chosen by the Church for today
speaks of a wedding.
In offering this parable of the wedding banquet…
Jesus has a particular lesson in mind.
He wishes to teach them about the importance of humility in the Christian life.
In Jesus’ Gospel vision…
the Christian takes a lowly place rather than promoting himself…
the Christian does not seek places of honor and high visibility
for his own sake.
It is God whom we are called to glorify by our thoughts, words, and actions…
not ourselves…
and not our own ideas and agendas.
This disposition of humility is the attitude we are called to have before our God…
and also before our mother, the Church.
We are called to be open and receptive to the teachings of Christ and the Church.
As Catholic Christian people,
we do not take the high place of our own sop box…
promoting what we create.
Instead we take the lowly place as servants of Jesus Christ and of His Church…
handing on to others the Word of God…
which is revealed to us in Scripture
and in the Tradition and teachings of the Church.
As sponsor couples…
you have a critical role in the life of our parish
and share in the mission of the whole Church to spread the Gospel.
Marriage and family life is a priority for the Church in our day…
for the world in which we live offers a serious challenge to the truth of Christ
for married people and families.
You have been called to help the Church proclaim with love
the truth about God’s plan for marriage and family life.
In your meetings with engaged couples,
you will have the opportunity to share with them
the wisdom of your own experience as husbands and wives
and the perfect wisdom of God’s plan for joyful and holy marriages.
What you gain from today’s reflections you will pass on to our engaged couples…
so that they have the foundation for living as Christ calls them.
As we begin this day with the celebration of Holy Mass…
we come to the banquet of the Lamb of God…
where Heaven is wedded to earth
and where Jesus comes to share His Body and Blood
and so become “one flesh” with us.
In receiving Christ into your bodies and souls…
you are strengthened in your vocation to live the truth of married love
and to share that truth…in humility…in love…with others.
My Christ the bridegroom…
who gave His life for the sake of his bride, the Church…
draw you ever closer to Himself…
until at last you are united to Him forever
in the eternal wedding feast of the Lamb in Heaven!
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