SUMMARY:
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THE SACRAMENT OF MARRIAGE, ICON OF GOD'S LOVE FOR HUMANITY
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FRANCIS PRAYS FOR THE RECONSTRUCTION OF L'AQUILA
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OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS
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THE
SACRAMENT OF MARRIAGE, ICON OF GOD'S LOVE FOR HUMANITY
Vatican
City, 2 April 2014 (VIS) - Pope Francis concluded his series of
catechesis dedicated to the Sacraments by speaking about marriage. "A
sacrament that leads us to the heart of God's plan, which is a plan
of alliance with his People, with all of us, a plan of communion".
To explain this, he quoted a phrase from the Book of Genesis: "So
God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created
them; male and female he created them. - That is why a man leaves his
father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one
flesh". "The image of God is a married couple, man and
woman, not only man, not only woman, but rather both. This is the
image of God: love, God's alliance with us is represented in the
alliance between man and woman", he said.
"We
were created to love, as a reflection of God and his love. And in
matrimonial union the man and woman realise this vocation, as a sign
of reciprocity and the full and definitive communion of life".
When a man and a woman receive the Sacrament of marriage, "God
is, so to say, 'mirrored' in them, he imprints in them the features
and indelible nature of His love. Marriage is the icon of God's love
for us. Indeed, God too is communion: the three Persons of the
Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit have always lived and live for
ever in perfect unity. And this is the mystery of marriage: God makes
married couples into one existence. The Bible uses a strong term: it
says one 'flesh' only, so intimate is the union between man and woman
in marriage. And this is the mystery of marriage: God's love that is
reflected in the couple who decide to live together".
Francis
mentioned that, in his Letter to the Ephesians, St. Paul emphasizes
that Christian married couples reflect the great mystery of the
relationship that Christ establishes with the Church, which means
that "marriage responds to a specific vocation and must be
considered as a consecration. The man and woman consecrate themselves
in their love. Married couples, thanks to the Sacrament, are invested
with a genuine mission, that of making visible, starting with simple
and ordinary things, the love Christ has for His Church".
"The
plan inherent in marriage is a truly wonderful! It is expressed in
the simplicity, and also the fragility, of the human condition. We
are well aware of the many difficulties and trials there may be in
the life of a married couple. ... The important thing is to keep
alive the link with God, which is at the basis of the matrimonial
bond. When a husband prays for his wife, and a wife for her husband,
the bond remains strong; each one prays for the other. It is true
that married life has many difficulties: work, there isn't enough
money, there are problems with the children ... and often the husband
and wife become irritable and argue amongst themselves. There are
always arguments in marriages, and at times even plates are thrown.
But we must not be sad about this: this is the human condition. And
the secret is that love is stronger than the moments in which we
argue, and I therefore always advise married couples never to let the
day draw to an end without making peace. There is no need to call in
the United Nations peacekeepers. A little gesture is enough: a
caress, see you tomorrow, and tomorrow we start afresh. This is life,
and we must face it in this way, with the courage of living it
together. Married life is beautiful, and must be protected".
FRANCIS
PRAYS FOR THE RECONSTRUCTION OF L'AQUILA
Vatican
City, 2 April 2014 (VIS) - In his greetings following today's general
audience, the Pope addressed the group "Jemo Nnanzi" of
L'Aquila, five years after the earthquake that devastated the city.
"I join in prayer for the many victims, and entrust those who
still live in difficult conditions to the protection of Our Lady of
Roio. I encourage all to keep their hope alive! May the
reconstruction of homes be accompanied by the rebuilding of churches,
which are houses of prayer for all, and the recovery of artistic
heritage, which is linked to the revival of the area".
OTHER
PONTIFICAL ACTS
Vatican
City, 2 April 2014 (VIS) - The Holy Father has:
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confirmed the erection of the archiepiscopal esarchate of Kharkiv,
Ukraine by His Beatitude Sviatoslav Shevchuk, major archbishop of
Kyiv-Halyc, with the consent of the Synod of the Greek Catholic
Church, with territory from the current archiepiscopal esarchate of
Donetsk-Kharkiv, Ukraine.
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gave his assent to the canonical election by the Synod of the Greek
Catholic Church of Fr. Vasyl Tuchapets, O.S.B.M., as first bishop of
the archiepiscopal eparchy of Kharkiv, Ukraine. The bishop-elect was
born in Yavoriv, Ukraine in 1967 and was ordained a priest in 1997.
He holds a licentiate in theology from the Pontifical theological
faculty in Warsaw. He has served in pastoral roles in Zolochiv,
Krekhiv and Zhovkva, and taught ascetics at the institute for
formation of the Salvatorian in Zolochiv. He is currently superior of
the monastery of St. Basil the Great in Kyiv, vicar and councillor of
the province of the Basilian Order of St. Josaphat in Ukraine.
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acknowledged the canonical election by the Synod of the Greek
Catholic Church of Bishop Taras Senkiv, O.M., as bishop of the
eparchy of Stryj of the Ukrainians, Ukraine, transferring him from
the office of apostolic administrator.
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gave his assent to the canonical election by the Synod of the Greek
Catholic Church of Fr. Bohdan Manyshyn as auxiliary of the eparchy of
Stryj of the Ukrainians, Ukraine. The bishop-elect was born in Novyj
Rozkil, Ukraine in 1972 and was ordained a priest in 2002. He holds a
licentiate in pastoral theology from the Catholic University of
Lublin, Poland, and has served as military chaplain in Lviv and vicar
in various parishes in the eparchy of Stryj of the Ukrainians. He is
currently protosyncellus of the same eparchy.
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appointed Archbishop Franco Coppola, apostolic nuncio in the Central
African Republic, as apostolic nuncio in Chad.
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