04 Sunday Sep 2016
Saint Teresa of Calcutta, foundress of the Missionaries of Charity, was canonized today by Pope Francis in St. Peter’s Square. Most remembered for her work with the poorest of the poor in Calcutta, Mother Teresa had much to say about the importance of traditional marriage and family life.
28 Sunday Aug 2016
There is an old joke that says there are three rings of marriage: the engagement ring, the wedding ring and the suffer-ring. People laugh at this but it “rings” with some truth. As couples prepare for marriage, their thoughts are centered on their hopes and dreams for a future filled with joy and happiness. But suffering is inevitable in all of our lives; no one is immune from sickness, trials and ultimately the death of a loved one. We need to think about how we will deal with suffering when it comes. Will it break our relationship or will it draw us closer together? Christ-centered marriages have a better chance of surviving the inescapable sufferings and trials when they come.
21 Sunday Aug 2016
When you hear of a “destination wedding,” what thoughts come to mind? Do you think of a far-away exotic location with the bride and groom standing barefoot on the beach professing their love for each other? Have you ever thought about the ultimate destination – the Wedding Feast of the Lamb?
Heaven is our true destination. The task of every husband and wife is to help their spouse get there. While a wedding on the beach may be beautiful, the Sacrament of Matrimony provides the couple with an ocean of the grace necessary to live marriage according to God’s plan.
14 Sunday Aug 2016
Did you know that Canon Law in the Catholic Church dictates the foundational content of marriage preparation? In the chapter entitled, “Pastoral Care and Those Things Which Must Precede the Celebration of Marriage,” Canon Law has this to say about what constitutes a solid marriage preparation program:
07 Sunday Aug 2016
While doing his doctrinal studies in theology in Germany in the 1980s, Pope Francis discovered a local devotion to “Mary Untier of Knots.” Since then, he has encouraged this powerful devotion that is based on a painting found in the church of St. Peter am Perlach, in Augsburg, Bavaria, Germany.
The painting depicts Mary suspended between heaven and earth, resplendent with light. The Holy Spirit in the form of a dove is above her head, reminding us that she became Mother of God and full of grace by virtue of the third person of the Trinity. She is dressed in a crimson gown, with a deep blue mantle representing her glory as Queen of the Universe. A crown of 12 stars adorns her head signifying her as Queen of the Apostles. Her feet crush the head of the serpent confirming her part in the victory over Satan. She is surrounded by angels, signifying her position as Queen of the Angels and Queen of Heaven. In her hands is a knotted white ribbon, which she is serenely untying. Assisting her are two angels: one presents the knots of our lives to her, while another angel presents the ribbon, freed from knots, to us.
04 Thursday Aug 2016
Posted by Dennis and Rose Wingfield | Filed under Family, Marriage
31 Sunday Jul 2016
“The final battle between the Lord and the reign of Satan will be about marriage and the family.” These prophetic words were shared in a letter from Sister Lúcia to Cardinal Carlo Caffarra of Bologna. Sister Maria Lúcia of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart was a Portuguese Catholic nun and one of the three children to witness the 1917 Marian apparitions in Fátima.
In her letter to the Cardinal, she also said, “Don’t be afraid…because anyone who works for the sanctity of marriage and the family will always be fought and opposed in every way, because this is the decisive issue. However, Our Lady has already crushed its head.”
24 Sunday Jul 2016
This week we continue our series on models of marriage lived virtuously. Blessed Luigi and Maria Beltrame Quattrocchi were beatified by Pope John Paul II on October 21, 2001. This fulfilled a lifelong desire of the future St. John Paul II when, for the first time in the history of the Church, he beatified a husband and wife together. The beatification was part of celebrations marking the 20th anniversary of the publication of John Paul II’s seminal apostolic exhortation Familiaris Consortio (The Role of the Christian Family in the Modern World).
17 Sunday Jul 2016
St. Joachim and St. Anne are the parents of Mary, the Blessed Mother of Jesus. Each year the Church venerates them on July 26th. Tradition holds that they struggled with infertility for decades. Infertility quite often resulted in couples being shunned and scorned by their family, friends and neighbors.
After years of longing for a child, undeterred in his faith, St. Joachim went into the wilderness to fast and pray for a child. Saint Anne remained home, donning garments of mourning, weeping to God because she was childless. A servant girl reminded St. Anne to put her trust in God. St. Anne washed away her tears, donned her bridal clothes and went into her garden to pray to God for a child.
12 Tuesday Jul 2016
Today is the Feast Day of Saints Louis and Zélie Martin, the parents of St. Thérèse of Lisieux. Just this past October, they became the first couple to be canonized together as husband and wife. As the exemplars of holy family life, we have designated Louis and Zélie Martin as the patron Saints of the Calling Couples to Christ Apostolate.
Pray for us, Saints Louis and Zélie, that we may be an instrument of hope and healing to families as they strive to live well their vocation to marriage and family life.
Calling Couples to Christ 