His Holiness, Pope John Paul II, has asked us to celebrate today, Sunday, February 13^th, as World Marriage Day.     On this day our world, our community, our parish, are all asked by His Holiness to stand-up for this Sacred Gift from God of Marriage.    Our world and our media have given-up any belief in the Sanctity of Marriage.     Today our world and our media yell-out: "Love them and leave them!"     "Sex for pleasure without any commitment or responsibility!"    "Children are not needed!"    "Don't let children or family get in the way of advancing your career or cramping your ability to get ahead!"     All these ideas seem to be some of the current trends of our world and media that are so openly proposed and acted upon, as if God does not exist!       As if God has nothing at all to do with Marriage!       As if God has nothing at all to do with our world!

World Marriage Day gives us an occasion to stand-up for the Lord.     It gives us an opportunity to stand-up for the Sanctity of Marriage.    It also gives us an opportunity to honor all husbands and wives who are working daily to uphold the Sacredness of Matrimony, and to provide an occasion for all couples present at each Mass to renew their Marriage Vows in the presence of the entire Gathered Assembly.       In addition, it gives an opportunity to reflect on exactly what Marriage is.      To reflect on Who it is, Who gave us this great and wonderful Gift!       And, to examine our own minds and consciences and see whether our concepts and ideas about Marriage truly reflect what God intended, or whether our ideas and concepts come from the ideas and concepts proposed by the world and the media!

World Marriage Day is also an opportunity to reflect on why the Church since the time of Photius in the 4^th Century, has insisted upon the Blessing of the Priest at a wedding for a wedding to be considered as valid for a Catholic Christian.     

Finally, it also a unique opportunity to reflect upon "what it is" that constitutes Marriage.     It is more than just a man and woman willing it.     It needs the commitment to the ends and purposes of Marriage as set forth by God, which not all people these days want to do.     It needs the basic abilities to fulfill and live-out such a commitment, which not all people can do, sometimes even if they really truly want to do that.     It is NOT that a marriage relationship is "dead", that invalidates a marital commitment.     Rather, it is the lacking of one of the necessary ends or purposes as required by God, or the inability to fulfill such ends and purposes, that invalidates a Marriage.    E.g., a necessary end/purpose such as children or fidelity or permanence.     Or, the necessary capacity to carry out all the marital rights and obligations, as St. Thomas Aquinas explained in his "Summa Theologica", Pars II-III, q. 82 & ff.     

Our sincerest and most heartfelt congratulations to all married couples.     Whether you are married but one week or fifty years, may God bless and love you all always!