Jesus and Mary Jesus showed how to be fully human by giving all of Himself to us. How does a person become a self-gift to another? Mary is the supermodel of it means to receive God’s love and then share it with the world.

A Genuine Love Relationship: It demands giving and receiving It possesses all four qualities: Free Total Faithful Fruitful

A Marriage Union Is focused on: How can I be a total self-gift to the one I love? It is not stuck on the question: What am getting out this relationship? Lust has no place in genuine love The main concern is the ultimate good of the beloved. Because it is a Sacrament it is Sacred

The Purpose of the Human Body The Body gives form – expression to the human soul. The human soul gives life and essence to the human body. Both are essential to each other The body is meant to be used as an outward expression of the inward mystery of love. A person has to receive God’s love before he can give God’s love to others. You cannot give what you do not have.

Questions of Intention to Marry 1. Have you come here freely and with out reservation to give yourselves to each other in marriage? 2. Will you honor and love each other as man and wife for the rest of your lives? 3. Will you accept children lovingly from God and raise them according to the law of God and His Church?

Marriage is the Primordial Sacrament Primordial – Original – The First Sacrament Due to original sin God’s original plan for marriage became disordered. Jesus restored Marriage to its original purpose and dignity and raised marriage to the dignity of a Sacrament. Marriage is a Sacrament because it is a sacred and effective sign of Divine Love to the world. Marriage images God’s love for His creation: Christ’s love for the Church: The love that exists between the Divine Persons in the Holy Trinity.

Characteristics of the type of sexuality written in the human heart Sexuality was created to be a total self donation We are called to love through a sincere gift of self that is: Free – Total – Fruitful – Faithful This is how we become a visible sign of Christ’s love for His Church. The only way to make love is a Sacrament

Marriage as Sacrament: When a man and woman get married they not only receive a Sacrament they become a Sacrament. They become: A Sign + Instrument of God’s love for the other person. The couple administers the Sacrament to each other. Jesus becomes a Sacrament in the Holy Eucharist A man becomes a Sacrament in Holy Orders

Question to ask to determine the morality of a sexual act: Am I expressing God’s love in a free, total, fruitful, faithful way through my body?

Who is the Perfect Example of Genuine Love? Jesus Christ: Through His life- Death – Resurrection

Natural Law: Specifically governs the behavior of man It is written in the very nature of every Person It is the set of moral norms that we discover when we look at how we are created physically, psychologically, spiritually. Following the Natural law will lead us to genuine lasting happiness.

What is Natural Law concerned about? Natural Law is concerned with what we should do in order to secure our happiness and not just merely with what we can do. Genuine Freedom and wanting to do what we should do in order to become the best versions of who God created us to be.

God is the original author of Marriage It is for Him to teach us what marriage is. Man and woman were made for each other. Genesis 2:24 Original Sin damaged God’s original design for marriage. Jesus restores marriage to its original dignity and purpose: Matt. 19: 4-5 The union of husband and wife is exclusive and indissoluble

This is why the Church insists on no divorce. The marriage bond is not just physical but is a bond at the deepest level of their personhood. It is holy and is made by God and as such cannot be undone by man. (Matt. 19:6 Eph. 5) This is why the Church insists on no divorce. Scriptural basis for “Annulment” Matt. 19:9 Porneia = unlawful lust Incest

Annulment An annulment does not end a marriage but discerns that a valid marriage, for specific reasons, never took place. It is a court case

Legal Contract VS Covenant Legal Contract: An agreement made between people by the authority of people. It usually entails material objects. It is established by human persons and therefore can be dissolved by those who established it. Covenant: An agreement made between people and God through the authority of God. It creates a permanent transformation in the relationship between those entering into the covenant. Those entering into the covenant take on a new identity.

The Truth about Marriage: The truth about marriage matches the truth about the human heart. To try and change either is futile and leads only to suffering. Marriage was never intended to be lived without God.

Marriage Cannot be Changed Marriage cannot be anything we choose it to be because marriage is sacred, meaning it is something set apart fro God. Marriage comes from God and it is meant to lead us closer to Him. Marriage is a Sacrament: Every sacrament is a transforming encounter with the living Christ and means a receiving grace the very life of God. Husband & wife have an ongoing source of grace open to them by which they can each grow in holiness

What is real love? God is love Love is the reason for our existence Love is our ultimate destiny Love is our Spiritual DNA Real love must lead us closer to God or it is not real love. Sin separates us from God therefore anything sinful is not love. Love desires the best for the beloved

The original Sin Satan tempted Adam and Eve to distrust God to think that the Lord’s limits were keeping them from happiness and to reject God’s judgment of what was good and what was evil substituting their own. They thought they would find freedom by going their own way but instead they found suffering. They wanted God but didn’t want to listen to him.