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A Sacred and Solemn Institution: an Examination of the Nature and Purpose of Marriage and the Family in the Roman Catholic and H

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A Sacred and Solemn Institution: an Examination of the Nature and Purpose of Marriage and the Family in the Roman Catholic and H A sacred and solemn institution: An examination of the nature and purpose of marriage and the family in the Roman Catholic and Hindu traditions in light of Pope John Paul II's Familiaris consortio Author: Marita A. Hunchuck This work is posted on eScholarship@BC, Boston College University Libraries. Chestnut Hill, Mass.: Theology Dept., Boston College, 2009 A Sacred and Solemn Institution: An Examination of the Nature and Purpose of Marriage and the Family in the Roman Catholic and Hindu Traditions in Light of Pope John Paul II’s Familiaris Consortio by Marita A. Hunchuck ABSTRACT In 1981, Pope John Paul II promulgated the Apostolic Exhortation, Familiaris Consortio: The Role of the Christian Family in the Modern World, in which he wrote of the nature of marriage and family as that of self-giving love. Using this document as a guiding framework, this essay will offer a comparative analysis of marriage and family in the Christian, particularly Roman Catholic, and Hindu traditions. After providing a preliminary background as to the nature and purpose of the nuptial union in both traditions in Part I, I will examine, in a comparative manner, two particular aspects highlighted in Familiaris Consortio: in Part II, the family as a “community of persons” and “domestic Church” with the Hindu understanding of the union of two families through marriage and the importance of home puja, or daily worship; and, in Part III, the conjugal union as a manifestation of Divine love, with its archetype being the loving sacrifice of Christ for the Church, with the Hindu notion of bhakti and the love modeled by Krishna and Rādhā and Rama and Sita in the Epic literature of the Mahābhārata and the Rāmāyana. Furthermore, I will show that, in both traditions, marriage and family life is a means of progression toward spiritual perfection, and ultimately, to the path of salvation/liberation. I. Introduction The importance of marriage and family life as constitutive of societal foundation is a global reality, one that pervades traditional religious thought and practice. Accordingly, this essay will evaluate and compare the thought of two particular religious traditions, that of the Christian, specifically Roman Catholic, and Hindu, primarily Vaishnavite, in regard to the meaning and role of marriage and family. In the Roman Catholic tradition, Pope John Paul II, both prior to and throughout his pontificate, was a champion of marriage and family issues, and thus, this essay will use his Apostolic Exhortation, Familiaris Consortio: On the Role of the Christian Family in the Modern World1, as a guiding framework in which to offer a basis for comparison throughout. In terms of Hinduism, the specific emphasis on Vaishnavism provides for an adequate representation of the tradition as a whole because of its overarching view of 1 Hindu thought and practice. Additionally, the Epic literature of the Mahābhārata and the Rāmāyana, considered to be the most valued of Hindu sacred texts, are both primarily Vaishnavite texts, and provide an account of human relationships, particularly love relationships, and thus, will correspond to the text of Familiaris Consortio in the final analysis.2 The methodology of this essay is the following: in Part I, a brief overview of the nature and purpose of marriage in both the Roman Catholic and Hindu traditions will be given in order to provide a foundation upon which the subsequent analysis can be offered.3 In Part II, two aspects of John Paul II‟s discussion of the role and meaning of marriage and family will be extracted, namely, the notion of the family as a “community of persons” and “domestic church,” and compared with the Hindu notion of the union of two families through marriage, in other words, the Hindu “joint family,” along with the Hindu notion of home puja, or worship. Finally, in Part III, John Paul II‟s articulation of the Roman Catholic understanding of the conjugal union as a manifestation of Divine love, in which the Christian spouses share in and reflect the redemptive love of Christ for his Church, will be compared with two similar, but nevertheless divergent models of the human manifestation of Divine love, recounted in the Epic literature and represented by Krishna and Rādhā and Rama and Sita. Surely, many parallels between these two traditions will be seen throughout, as well as a few divergences; however, despite these differences, this comparative exercise will be of great value, for the Roman Catholic and Hindu can invigorate one another as both regard marriage and family life as a means of spiritual progression, and ultimately, as a path to salvation for the Christian, and liberation, for the Hindu. II. The Importance of Marriage A. Nature and Purpose of Marriage in the Roman Catholic Church In the Roman Catholic tradition, marriage is a supernatural vocation in which a man and a 2 woman realize the fundamental vocation of the human person, that is, to love: “Creating the human race in his own image and continually keeping it in being, God inscribed in the humanity of man and woman the vocation, and thus the capacity and responsibility, of love and communion.”4 Thus, the conjugal union is an actuation of this “most profound truth of man,”5 a natural, lived reality that is in accord with God‟s created order. The conjugal communion, the foundation for the broader communion of the family – a matter which will be taken up shortly - has the first essential property of unity: “By virtue of the covenant of married life, the man and woman „are no longer two but one flesh‟ and they are called to grow continually in their communion through day-to-day fidelity to the marriage promise of total mutual self-giving.”6 This covenantal bond, in which the spouses “share their entire life project,”7 is a special kind of friendship, one in which the spouses love each other for the very sake of the other, constantly ordering their will toward the good of the other. Additionally, the husband and wife are equal in dignity, and thus give themselves totally, uniquely, and exclusively to one another.8 Conjugal communion further requires the essential property of indissolubility, that is, the permanent commitment to one‟s spouse for the whole of life. Founded upon and strengthened by Christ, …the indissolubility of marriage finds its ultimate truth in the plan that God has manifested in his revelation: He wills and he communicates the indissolubility of marriage as a fruit, a sign and a requirement of the absolutely faithful love that God has for man and that the Lord Jesus has for the church.9 Furthermore, this indissolubility is rooted in the total self-giving of the spouses to one another, and is absolutely necessary for the good of their children, to which the marital bond is (also) directed: “Thus the couple, while giving themselves to one another, give not just themselves but also the reality of children, who are a living reflection of their love, a permanent sign of conjugal 3 unity and a living and inseparable synthesis of their being a mother and father.” Furthermore, “when they become parents, spouses receive from God the gift of a new responsibility. Their parental love is called to become for the children the visible sign of the very love of God…”10 As a matter of summation, marriage in the Roman Catholic tradition is a supernatural vocation in which a man and woman freely, consciously, and lovingly unite themselves as one, realizing the fundamental vocation of the human being, which is to love. Furthermore, this conjugal union is characterized by the essential properties of unity and indissolubility, and thus fidelity and exclusivity, and is ordered to the good of the spouses as well as to the procreation and education of children, who are a permanent sign of the love of the husband and wife. One final consideration must be made in regard to this brief overview of marriage in the Catholic tradition: the sacramental nature of marriage. As one of the seven sacraments, marriage is the specific source and original means of sanctification for Christian married couples and families. It takes up again and makes specific the sanctifying grace of baptism. By virtue of the mystery of the death and resurrection of Christ, of which the spouses are made part in a new way by marriage, conjugal love is purified and made holy…The gift of Jesus Christ is not exhausted in the actual celebration of the sacrament of marriage, but rather accompanies the married couple throughout their lives.11 Thus, as a sacrament, Christian marriage is a means through which the sanctification of the spouses and family occurs, and whereby the glorification of God through Christ is realized. Furthermore, the sacrament of marriage is a “real symbol of the event of salvation,”12 a manifestation of Christ‟s redemptive love for his Church, which the husband and wife are called to imitate. B. Nature and Purpose of Marriage in Hinduism13 In the Hindu tradition, marriage (vivaha) is a Dharmic institution in which a man and a woman, upon becoming husband and wife, enter into the second of the four stages of life, that of the Grihastha Ashram, or “householder.”14 Innate to human nature, married life is a social duty, 4 one in which the husband and wife are responsible to one another, as well as to their family, to their ancestors, and to all of society. Additionally, married life is a sacred, religious obligation wherein a husband and wife work together towards achieving the four Purusharthas, or ends of human life. Because of the sanctity of the institution of marriage and its Dharmic consequences, Hindu marriages are typically arranged by the parents of the man and the woman in order to maximize the compatibility between the partners, thus enabling them to withstand the challenges of time and fulfill their social and religious duties.
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