Open Mind, Faithful Heart by Pope Francis & Jorge M Bergoglio

Author:Pope Francis & Jorge M Bergoglio [Francis, Pope & Bergoglio, Jorge M]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: The Crossroad Publishing Company
Published: 2013-11-18T00:00:00+00:00

Prayer

Word of God, eternal light divine,

eternal source of all pure truth,

glory of God that illumines the cosmos,

bright burning torch in darkest night.

Word eternally pronounced

in the Father’s mind, what joy

that in our history he was born a child

from the bosom of the Virgin.

Do not cease to shine, heavenly beacons,

with the rays of light that God sends forth;

faithfully guide our friends, our peoples;

proclaim the truth on every path. Amen.

21. The Vision of the Wedding Feast

THE ANTIPHON FOR VESPERS in the liturgy of the Lord’s Epiphany unites three signs: “Three mysteries mark this holy day: on this day, the star leads the Magi to the infant Christ; on this day, water is changed into wine for the wedding feast; and on this day, Christ desires to be baptized by John in the river Jordan to bring us salvation. Alleluia.” These mysteries represent three manifestations of the Messiah, the Son of God: to the nations (the Magi), to the people of Israel (the baptism of Jesus), and to his disciples (the wedding at Cana). Not only does the liturgy bring the three mysteries together, but it draws out the relations among them, as the antiphon of lauds explains: “Today the Bridegroom claims his bride, the Church, since Christ has washed her sins away in Jordan’s water; the Magi hasten with their gifts to the royal wedding; and the wedding guests rejoice, for Christ has changed water into wine. Alleluia.”

The three mysteries are united in the vision of a wedding feast: the bridegroom is Christ the Messiah, who loves the Church as his bride, who entrusts himself to her (cf. Eph 5:25), and who purifies her in the waters of baptism, making her his own. The language is not just of engagement but of marriage: it tells about a wedding feast attended by many guests who bring gifts and grow merry on fine wine. It is the epiphany of Christ, but not only that; it is the wedding of the king’s son, the Son of God, who takes this people as his own and becomes one with them as husband does with wife. It is the epiphany of a wedding that is also the epiphany of the bride, the saintly and sinful Mother Church.

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her. (Eph 5:25)

IN THE COURSE of salvation history, matrimony has been conceived in terms of family descent and a people’s history. It is based on a command of God (Gen 1:27-28; 2:24) that is repeated frequently in the New Testament (cf. Mark 10:6; Matt 19:4; Eph 5:31). Those who marry are to leave mother and father and be united as one flesh. It is a commitment that involves uprooting for the sake of fusion, but it does not just end there. When man and woman are joined together, they share a common life with its ups and downs, which do not exclude rupture (adultery) or separation (widowhood), but through it all they seek fulfillment. Everything is conceived

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