Fr. Granados (Pontifical John Paul II Institute), “The Church as the place of relations for spouses”

“The place in which to get married is not just a physical place, like an office, a beach, or a temple. The question of ‘where’ to get married also refers to the ‘place’ understood as a network of relationships that surround us, in the same way that a house is not just made of bricks but built with the love of those who take care of us.” This was said by Father José Granados, vice-president of the Pontifical John Paul II Institute, who spoke today at the World Meeting of Families in Dublin. “When people want to get married,” he added, “this is because they want to find a place where they can relate to themselves, a place where they feel accepted and safe and where they can make their life prosper”. In the light of this, Fr. Granados considers that “the first place” is “the love between spouses, their relationship itself, on which they build their family”. This is why “love between spouses needs a bigger place to be a stable, deep, and fruitful love”. Now, that place is indicated in the Church. “The fact that a couple wants to get marry indicates that they recognizes the need for another place for their love,” added the priest, “The Church is the place where we can promote a radical commitment in love ‘all the days of our life’. Because in the Church, we find the certainty of God’s commitment in Christ, not only for us as persons, but also for our love as spouses.”

In his words, therefore, this is the reason for getting married in church. “Getting married in the Church means establishing the radical love of Jesus for his Church as the foundation of one’s commitment. Moreover, through the forgiveness of Christ, the Church offers us a place where our love can be healed when it is wounded. Ultimately, concluded Fr. Granados, a commitment for “every day of our life” is possible only if we are sustained by a greater love, and the Church is a place where the greatest love, the love of Christ, lives.”