E-Theologos, Vol. 3, No. 2 DOI 10.2478/v10154-012-0019-4

Marriage in the Light of the Ecclesiological Paradigm of Unity. Selected issues

Andrzej Pastwa University of Silesia in Katowice, Poland, of Theology

1. Unity – paradigm of the theology of marriage In the face of rapid and profound social-cultural changes occurring in the contemporary world, the fathers of the aptly diagnosed a crucial field of pastoral activity; and that is “Fostering the No- bility of Marriage and the Family”1. Consequently, responding to the signs of the time, they boldly undertook the work of renovation of the Church teaching on marriage. However, we should currently take into account the important observance made by the prominent witness to those events in the Council chamber. Benedict XVI clearly points out that: the coun- cil aggiornamento was far from “breaking off” with the traditional doctrine of de matrimonio 2; on the contrary, the aim was to merge around a theo- logical synthesis 3 its scattered and often incoherent areas and above all to overcome the dualism between the natural dimension of the marriage in- stitution and the spiritual reality of the sacrament 4. The attempt at integral interpretation of the Council teaching on mar- riage is met by the idea to systemize the de sacramento matrimonii dis- course between theologians and canonists, and what is important, the idea is convergent with the paradigm of contemporary ecclesiology. Crucial is

1 Vatican Council II , Pastoral Constitution on the Church “Gaudium et Spes” , n° 47-52. 2 Benedictus XVI, Allocutio ad Tribunal Rotae Romanae in inauguratione Anni Iudicialis (27 Ianuarii 2007), 98 (2006), 87. 3 W. Kasper, Teologia del matrimonio cristiano , Brescia 1985 2, 8. 4 See A. Pastwa, Istotne elementy małżeństwa. W nurcie odnowy personalistycznej , Katowice 2007, 15-106.

212 E-Theologos, Vol. 3, No. 2 DOI 10.2478/v10154-012-0019-4 the thesis that “unity” is the hermeneutical key 5 to understanding of Chris- tian Marriage. We need not add that this thesis is firmly grounded in dif- ferent sources. The best proof is, essential in its analysis of all Council documents on the Sacrament of Matrimony, the fragment of the 11 th num- ber of the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church entitled “Lumen Gen- tium”, beginning with the following words: “Christian spouses, in virtue of the sacrament of Matrimony, whereby they signify and partake of the mys- tery of that unity and fruitful love which exists between Christ and His Church…”. If this sentence is to be confronted with the beginning of the 2nd paragraph of the 48 th number of the Pastoral Constitution on the Church “Gaudium et Spes”: “Christ, the Lord abundantly blessed this many-faceted love, welling up as it does from the fountain of divine love and structured as it is on the model of His union with His Church” – then, there is no doubt that the intention of the Council fathers was to define the guidelines for the theology of the Sacrament of Matrimony. Already in the 1 st paragraph, the quoted Pastoral Constitution leads us to thinking about “the covenant of conjugal love” – (an idea) always pre- sent in the tradition of the Eastern Church 6, and “restored” to the West together with the Council and the teaching of Pope John Paul II. It is owing to this theologically distinctive idea that we reach the very roots of formation of the unbreakable bond of the man and woman. No one else but God himself in the Holy , each time and unchangeably comes up with the initiative of a covenant. He, himself , endows the bride and the groom with the grace of vocation of marriage and invites them to a covenant of love with Him, a covenant built upon the foundation of a willful and free choice of the betrothed bride and groom at the moment they express their marriage consent. Why? God’s activity in formation of the “sacred bond” 7 (in its nature) is most precisely reflected by the direct involvement of Christ, who places the bond of love between the baptized bride and groom in the very center of His Covenant with the Church 8. This perspective reveals the fundamental role of love in creating fieri and esse of the Sacrament of Matrimony. Suffice it to say, it would be er- roneous and totally incongruous with the Council doctrine to maintain that the marriage is a “reflection”, by the power of the Sacrament, of the bond

5 German author Kurt Herzberg made this supposition the main idea of his monograph – K. Herzberg, Taufe, Glaube und Ehesakrament. Die nachkonziliare Suche nach einer angemessenen Verhältnisbestimmung , Frankfurt am Main 1999. 6 See CCEO, can. 776; see also commentary on this – D. Salachas, Il sacramento del matrimonio nel Nuovo Diritto Canonico delle Chiese orientali , Roma-Bologna 1994, 15-42. 7 Gaudium et Spes, n° 48,2. 8 See A. Pastwa, “Przymierze miłości małżeńskiej”. Jana Pawła II idea małżeństwa kanonicznego , Katowice 2009.

213 E-Theologos, Vol. 3, No. 2 DOI 10.2478/v10154-012-0019-4 between Christ and the Church (would we not be dealing then with an apotheosis of the marriage?). The fact is that the function of “sacramental reflection” (or “sign”) should be exclusively attributed to love. It is marital love (and not the marriage itself), potentially dependent on cooperation with Grace, that is a reflection of the love of Christ for His Church 9. We can clearly see that the key to proper understanding of the bond as a paradigm of the theology of marriage is love. Yet, it is not enough to assume this. In order to conduct reliable studies in the field defined as the de sacramento matrimonii teaching, a theologian/canonist, in his dialog with the achievements of modern theological doctrine (especially ecclesi- ology and sacramentology), should undertake the effort of reconstructing, from its very foundation, the paradigmatic triad: -Matrimony- 10 . Due to the restricted frame of this work, justifiable is, regard- ing the subject in question, an attempt at shedding some light on at least the final link of this triad, and more specifically on the Matrimony- Eucharist relationship (in 2 nd chapter), in particular in the context of the 57 th number of the “Familiaris Consortio” Exhortation, as well as, John Paul II’s speech in 1982, addressed to Members of “Foyers des Equipes des Notre-Dame”. Remarkably instructive in this regard is, as it turns out in chapter 3, the Catechism of the Church. We can come up with a hypothesis that the direction for further reintegration of the marriage doc- trine is marked in all fields of theology (including ) by the probably underrated (omitted in, for instance, the commentary to the Code of Canon Law) number 1624 of the Catechism: “The various liturgies abound in prayers of blessing and epiclesis asking God's grace and bless- ing on the new couple, especially the bride. In the epiclesis of this sacra- ment the spouses receive the Holy Spirit as the communion of love of Christ and the Church. The Holy Spirit is the seal of their covenant, the

9 Cf. K. Herzberg, Taufe, Glaube und Ehesakrament… , 306-307. John Paul II’s au- thentic commentary to the Council teaching can be found at the beginning of the important the “Familiaris Consortio” part entitled: “Marriage as a Sacrament of Mutual and an Act of Worship”: “The sacrament of 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 puri- fied and made holy: »This love the Lord has judged worthy of special gifts, healing, perfecting and exalting gifts of grace and of « (Gaudium et Spes, n° 49)” – John Paul II, Apostolic Exhortation “Familiaris Consortio” (22 XI 1981), n° 56. 10 See W. Beinert, Die Sakramentalität der Kirche im theologischen Gespräch , in: Theologi- sche Berichte, Bd. 9, hg. J. Pfammatter, F. Furger, Zürich 1980, 13-66.

214 E-Theologos, Vol. 3, No. 2 DOI 10.2478/v10154-012-0019-4 ever available source of their love and the strength to renew their fidel- ity” 11 .

2. The Eucharist as the source of Christian marriage Among numerous merits of Pope John Paul II in the field of Catholic theological doctrine, one, in the opinion of some theologians 12 , is exem- plary as it will mark further development of the theology of marriage. What is meant here, is the magisterium connected with the basis of anal- ogy between the Eucharist and the Sacrament of Matrimony. The deep- ened truth in the papal teaching about immanent nature of relations con- necting the above-mentioned Sacraments of the Church turns out to be an urge (and in its own way, an invitation) to a new interpretation of the de sacramento matrimonii doctrine of the last Council. The Second Vatican Council – what the Pope emphasized in the 57 th Apostolic Exhortation “Familiaris Consortio” – “ drew attention to the unique relationship be- tween the Eucharist and marriage by requesting that »marriage normally be celebrated within the Mass« ( , n° 79)” 13 . Here the de matrimonio teaching of Pope John Paul II reaches its cli- max: the Pope calls the Eucharist “the very source of Christian marriage”. It cannot be anything else, as it is the Eucharistic sacrifice that makes the love covenant present between Christ and the Church. “In this Sacrifice of the New and Eternal Covenant, Christian spouses encounter the source from which their own marriage covenant flows, is interiorly structured and continuously renewed” 14 . It is worth mentioning that the contents of the whole 57 th number of the Exhortation perfectly harmonize with the Coun- cil conveyance of the Church’s self-awareness, in which the communio - ecclesiology assumes the shape of the Eucharistic ecclesiology 15 . John Paul II returned to such an outlined doctrinal idea in his promi- nent speech to the Members of “Foyers des Equipes des Notre-Dame” in 1982 16 . The crucial point of this address is the biblical category of the

11 CCC, n° 1624. It is difficult to agree with the opinion presented implicite by Dimitros Salachas, as if this magisterial text were to refer to only the Eastern Churches. Such an altered sense of a Catechism formula is the result of including, by the canonist, the word orientali in the quoted text (Italian version): “le diverse liturgie [orientali] sono ricche…” – D. Salachas, Il sacramento del matrimonio nel Nuovo Diritto Canonico delle Chiese orien- tali , Roma-Bologna 1994, 183. 12 U. Baumann, Die Ehe – ein Sakrament? Zürich 1988, 138. 13 John Paul II, Familiaris Consortio, n° 57. 14 Ibid. 15 See J. Ratzinger, Die Ekklesiologie des Zweiten Vatikanums , IKZ Communio 15 (1986), 41- 46. 16 Jean-Paul II, Discours aux membres du mouvement “Foyers des Equipes des Notre- Dame” (23 IX 1982) –

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“covenant” 17 re-discovered by the Council in the richness of the evoked trinitarian, Christological, personalist and especially ecclesiological mean- ings. Love and life – God’s gift for the man and woman – from the “be- ginning” expresses the truth of the God-man mysterium communionis . Hence the sign of covenant between the bride and groom in Revelation, in the first place found in prophet sources (such as Isaiah, Jeremiah, Hosea and Ezekiel), is the reflection of God’s covenant with people 18 . Finally, the eternal mystery of the Covenant, so far hidden in God himself, reaches the stage of ultimate, historical realization. As John Paul II says, in the above-mentioned speech – here comes “the fullness of the time” 19 and the Word that became Flesh weds humanity in the womb of Mary. Jésus va jusqu’au bout de l’amour, il scelle l’Alliance dans le sang de sa croix et “remet son Esprit” (Io. 19, 30) à l’Eglise, son Epouse 20 . Among the sacraments in the Church, which are the place where “the Covenant is celebrated and completed”, as the Pope continues saying in his speech, the Eucharist plays the only of its kind and irreplaceable role. While it is true that “the Church celebrates the Eucharist”, it is also true that “the Eucharist celebrates the Church” 21 . The Papal clarification of this doctrinal aspect surprises us with its richness of theological-personalistic connotations: L’Eucharistie en effet nous rend accessible l’Alliance, en même temps le don et Celui qui se donne: Sacrement par excellence de l’Alliance, elle est mystère de communion, d’unité, dans le respect de la personne de chacun: “Celui qui mange ma chair demeure en moi et moi en lui” (Io. 6, 56). “De même que . . . je vis par le Père, celui qui mange ma chair vivra aussi par moi” (Io. 6, 57). Elle manifeste la communion du Père et du Fils dans l’Esprit en entraînant dans cette communion les fidè- les, qui se trouvent ainsi en communion les uns avec les autres. Par la chair du Christ ressuscité s’opère la communion dans l’Esprit: “Celui qui s’unit au Seigneur n’est avec lui qu’un esprit” (1 Cor. 6, 17) 22 . And it is this perspective of “Eucharistic ecclesiology”, concentrated around theologically significant terms of “covenant” and “communion”, where the Papal teaching on sacramentum matrimonii enters. Instantly clear are the basic reasons for the analogy between: the Eucharist and http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/speeches/1982/september/documents/ hf_jp-ii_spe_19820923_foyers-equipes-notre-dame_fr.html. 17 See N. Lohfink, Der Begriff “Bund” in der biblischen Theologie , Theologie und Philoso- phie 66 (1991), 161-176. 18 John Paul II, Familiaris Consortio , n° 12. 19 Gal. 4, 4. 20 Jean-Paul II, Discours aux membres du mouvement “Foyers des Equipes des Notre- Dame” , n° 1. 21 Ibid., n° 2, 5. 22 Ibid., n° 2.

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Christian marriage. Le sacrement de mariage ne réalise-t-il pas aussi une communion où l’unité dans la chair conduit à la communion de l’esprit? 23 – rhetorically asks the Pope. Indeed the marital communio personarum , initiated through the mutual gift by two individuals, the man and the woman, and by the power of the Sacrament, opens, through Christ, with Christ and in Christ, on the radical character of Grace, as far as “the par- ticipation in God’s nature” 24 and as far as “the permanent reference” to the Trinitarian Communion of Divine Persons 25 . . In a way, already participat- ing, by the power of the Covenant (gift of Christ), in God’s Communio, Christian spouses can build their marital communion. The immanent principle of the mentioned analogy between the Eucharist and the Sacrament of Matrimony is Love ( caritas ). With a par- ticular care does the Pope focus on this truth. L’accomplissement de l’Alliance dans l’Eucharistie – naucza papież – se répercute tans l’alliance conjugale. [...] L’Alliance, non seulement inspire la vie du couple, mais s’accomplit en elle en ce sens qu’elle déploie son énergie propre dans la vie des époux: elle “modèle” de l’intérieur leur amour: ils s’aiment non seule- ment comme le Christ a aimé, mais déjà, mystérieusement, de l’amour même du Christ 26 . This way, both the initial, as well as, the final fragments of the “classical” passage of Eph 5, 21-33 reach a deep meaning. These words, which John Paul II narrows down to the initial verse, (sort of a “common denominator”): “Be subordinate to one another out of reverence for Christ” 27 , express the essential truth of the Sacrament of Matrimony. Now, the mutual relation between the man and the woman (husband and wife) corresponding with the Christian vocation “in the mystery of Christ”, radically results from their mutual reference to the Savior and His Sacrifice. The point is, that we should not forget that marriage is subjected to the logic of the Cross of Christ, which, often connected with pain and suffer- ing, demands from the married couple a lot of effort and dedication 28 . In other words, human love between the man and the woman (husband and wife) facing the reality of sin, requires . As the vocation of Chris- tian spouses is to experience caritas of the Savior sacrificing His life on the cross 29 , then what undoubtedly serves the purpose, is their frequent

23 Ibid. 24 Cf. 2 Pt 1, 4. 25 John Paul II, Letter to Families “Gratissimam Sane” (2 II 1994), n° 8. 26 Idem , Discours aux membres du mouvement »Foyers des Equipes des Notre-Dame«... , n° 2. 27 Eph 5, 21. 28 Cf. John Paul II, Allocutio ad Romanae Rotae tribunal (1 Februarii 2001), Acta Apostolicae Sedis 93 (2001), 362, n° 6. 29 Cf. Idem, Familiaris Consortio, n° 13.

217 E-Theologos, Vol. 3, No. 2 DOI 10.2478/v10154-012-0019-4 participation in the Eucharist – “the best way to experience the Cove- nant” 30 . In short, the Sacramental Covenant in which the husband and wife “mutually bestow and accept each other” 31 – based on submitting the spouses to Christ (following the example of the Church) materializes through experiencing His Love. The gift of new communion and, together with it, the whole wealth of love dynamism in the marriage covenant is the work of the Holy Spirit given to the bride and groom at the sacramental ceremony32 . Here also, John Paul II perceives essential parallels defining the mentioned analogy. During Holy Mass the Holy Spirit , through the ’s service , transubstan- tiates bread and wine into the Body and Blood of our Lord, whereas , ow- ing to the Sacrament of Matrimony, the same Spirit can change marital love into the love of our Lord. Because in Spiritu Sancto are the spouses capable of loving with a new heart promised through the 33 . Continuing this line of thinking, the Pope clearly emphasizes that the amor coniugalis transformed by the Holy Spirit, is no longer ordinary love. Supported by God’s faithfulness, which is the permanent foundation of the Covenant 34 , not only does this love never end 35 , but conduit de l’alliance conjugale à l’Alliance divine et de l’image à sa Source 36 . However, in his concept of “Eucharistic Analogy” John Paul II pro- ceeds even further. The Spirit of Love acting both during the Liturgy of the Highest Sacrifice , as well as , during the liturgy of sacramentum matri- monii is but the Spirit of the Church. As the Eucharistic Body of Christ builds His Mystical Body 37 , because the Eucharist, by the Spirit of Christ gives life to the faithful and the whole Church 38 , so is the marriage (fam- ily) a “place” prepared by God, “in which new citizens of human society are born, who by the grace of the Holy Spirit received in baptism are

30 Idem, Discours aux membres du mouvement »Foyers des Equipes des Notre-Dame«... , n° 3. 31 Gaudium et Spes , n° 48. 32 Cf. John Paul II, Familiaris Consortio, n° 19. 33 Idem , Discours aux membres du mouvement »Foyers des Equipes des Notre-Dame«... , n° 2. 34 Cf. Idem, Allocutio ad Romanae Rotae iudices (30 Ianuarii 2003), AAS 95 (2003), 396, n° 5. 35 1 Cor 7, 31. 36 Jean-Paul II, Discours aux membres du mouvement “Foyers des Equipes des Notre- Dame” , n° 6. “L’Eucharistie enfin annonce et prépare le retour du Seigneur et l’accomplissement définitif de l’Alliance. L’Eucharistie est une nourriture pour le chemin: elle prépare le temps où elle-même ne sera plus nécessaire parce que »nous le verrons tel qu’il est« (1 Io. 3, 2). [...] Cette perspective eschatologique de l’Eucharistie rejaillit jusque dans le mariage” – ibid. 37 Ibid. , n° 5. 38 Cf. Jn 6, 53-58.

218 E-Theologos, Vol. 3, No. 2 DOI 10.2478/v10154-012-0019-4 made children of God, thus perpetuating the through the centuries” 39 . Showing in the ecclesiological plan the “deepest relationship” between the Sacrament of the Body and Blood of our Lord with “the first and vital cell” of the Church 40 leads to significant specifications. Therefore, we must consider incontrovertible the fact that the essential act of marital covenant (marital consensus) of baptized individuals: the man and woman, is in Spiritu Santo an “ecclesial act” calling to life the sacramental reality: “Home Church” 41 . Quoting key statements of the Council Fathers on Ecclesia domestica (domesticum sanctuarium Ecclesiae )42 , John Paul II directly says that the Christian marriage (family), ontically “inscribed in the mystery of the Church”, is an irreplaceable participant of His saving mission 43 . Therefore, the baptized spouses, by the power of the Sacrament, “not only receive the love of Christ and become a saved community, but they are also called upon to communicate Christ's love to their brethren, thus becoming a sav- ing community” 44 . While the participation of the Christian marriage (fam- ily) in the triple mission of Christ the Prophet, the Priest and the King, through the testimony of faith and evangelization and life “in dialogue with God” and “at the service of man” 45 , shows the true face of the “Home Church”, which in its sacramental dimension puts into effect the universal communio Ecclesiae . Into this particular synthesis, of modern sacramentology and ecclesi- ology, merges the teaching of the Catechism, showing us, on the basis of source references to the key passages of the Vatican II doctrine, the speci- ficity of the Sacrament of Matrimony: “Through these sacraments those already consecrated by Baptism and Confirmation for the common priest- hood of all the faithful can receive particular consecrations. Those who receive the sacrament of Holy Orders are consecrated in Christ's name »to feed the Church by the word and grace of God« ( Lumen gentium , n° 11,2). On their part, »Christian spouses are fortified and, as it were, consecrated

39 Lumen Gentium , n° 11,2. 40 Vatican Council II , on the Apostolate of the Laity “Apostolicam Actuositatem” , n° 11,4. 41 Lumen Gentium , n° 11,2. 42 Apostolicam Actuositatem , n° 11,4. 43 “For this reason, Christian spouses have a special sacrament by which they are fortified and receive a kind of consecration in the duties and dignity of their state” – John Paul II, Familiaris Consortio, n° 56. 44 Cf. ibid, n° 49. 45 Ibid., n° 50.

219 E-Theologos, Vol. 3, No. 2 DOI 10.2478/v10154-012-0019-4 for the duties and dignity of their state by a special sacrament« ( Gaudium et spes , n° 48,2)”46 . To sum up, we need to state that the Sacrament of Matrimony, per- ceived through the prism of “Eucharistic ecclesiology”, is in no way an abstract being, narrowed down to static-ontological category. On the con- trary, this “covenant of marital love” 47 is a space for a redemptive Encoun- ter and Dialog. It is a substantial existential-historical reality, inscribed in the dynamism of the enlargement of the Mystical Body of Christ. This is exactly why, John Paul II consistently teaches that, in the Gift of the Eucharist, in the Gift of Divine caritas, the Christian marriage (family) dis- covers its foundation , as well as , the Spirit revitalizing marital (family) “communion” and “mission” 48 . Emphasizing the ecclesial profile of the defined “Eucharistic analogy”, the Pope makes his message complete when, in the final words of the mentioned speech to the Equipes Notre , he proclaims that the Christian spouses live in the “heart of the Sacrament of the Covenant”: they nourish their marriage with the Eucharist and “illu- minate” the Eucharist with the Sacrament of their marriage 49 .

3. Critical reading of canons 1065, paragraph 2 and 1119 of the Code of Canon Law in the context of n° 1624 of the Catechism Faithfulness to the principles of canonical hermeneutics, makes any individual interpreting (and applying law) see the modern shape of com- munion ecclesiastica 50 as a principle value to be put into effect 51 . This truth perfectly recognized in post-Council canonistics, especially by prominent representatives of the “ School” 52 , cannot be overesti- mated today. If we assume that the structural principle of “communion”

46 CCC, n° 1535. “Baptism, Confirmation, and Eucharist are sacraments of Christian initia- tion. They ground the common vocation of all Christ's disciples, a vocation to holiness and to the mission of evangelizing the world. They confer the graces needed for the life ac- cording to the Spirit during this life as pilgrims on the march towards the homeland” – CCC, n° 1533. “Two other sacraments, Holy Orders and Matrimony, are directed towards the salvation of others; if they contribute as well to personal salvation, it is through service to others that they do so. They confer a particular mission in the Church and serve to build up the People of God” – CCC, n° 1534. 47 John Paul II, Familiaris Consortio, n° 11. 48 Cf. Ibid., n° 57. 49 Jean-Paul II, Discours aux membres du mouvement “Foyers des Equipes des Notre- Dame” , n° 8. 50 A. Rouco Varela, E. Corecco, Sakrament und Recht – Antinomie in der Kirche? , hg. L. Gerosa, L. Müller, Paderborn 1998, 72-73. 51 Cf. R. Sobański, Metodologia prawa kanonicznego , Katowice 2004, 62. 52 See Idem, Szkoły kanonistyczne , Warszawa 2009, 95-104.

220 E-Theologos, Vol. 3, No. 2 DOI 10.2478/v10154-012-0019-4 lies at the foundation of the renewed code legislation 53 , then even more distinctly do we perceive the theological doctrinal horizon at which we see the essence of canons 1065, paragraph 2 and 1119 of the Code of Canon Law (1983). The first regulation combines a fruitful contraction of a sacramental relationship by Catholic nupturients, which involves receiving the Eucharist, while another one refers to the rite of the 7 th Sacrament, indirectly conveying the significance which the Church attaches to the liturgical form of marriage contraction. If we were to transfer the axis of scientific thinking about the Sacrament of Matrimony into the ground of canon law, then relevant remains the formerly raised thesis that the direc- tion for further reintegration of the marriage doctrine is marked by an im- portant passage of the Catechism of the teaching: “In the epiclesis of this sacrament the spouses receive the Holy Spirit as the com- munion of love of Christ and the Church. The Holy Spirit is the seal of their covenant, the ever available source of their love and the strength to renew their fidelity” 54 . This desideratum, however not submitted formally, found its promoter in the author of a draft document opening a prominent legal-canonical study entitled Matrimonio e Sacramento 55 , lecturer of sac- ramentology at the Gregorian University, professor José M. Millás. Perceiv- ing differences in the evaluation of significance attached to the newly- weds’ blessing in the tradition of the Eastern Churches and the Western Church, the author draws the attention of canonists to a not-so-trivial cir- cumstance 56 . It is difficult to overestimate the significance of the fact that in the Church, already in the pre-council period, there had been a process of optimalization (gradual enrichment) of rituals for a given bless- ing. As a result, the second edition of Ordo celebrandi matrimonium (1991; first – 1969) ) brought about a very essential change: the structure of the spouses’ blessing assumed a similar shape to the structure of sol- emn liturgical prayers 57 . Conclusion: provided that unchanged remains the

53 See H. Müller, Communio als kirchenrechtliches Prinzip im Codex Iuris Canonici von 1983? , in: Im Gespräch mit dem dreieinigen Gott. Elemente einer trinitarischen Theologie. Festschrift zum 65. Geburtstag von Wilhelm Breuning, hg. M. Böhnke, H. Heinz, Düsseldorf 1985, 481-498; I. Riedel-Spangenberger, Die Communio als Strukturprinzip der Kirche und ihre Rezeption im CIC/1983 , Trierer theologische Zeitschrift 97 (1988), 217-238. 54 CCC, n° 1624. 55 Matrimonio e Sacramento , Studi Giuridici, vol. 65, Città del Vaticano 2004. The men- tioned volume of a published series gathered a prominent group of authors among whom were: Antoni Stankiewicz, Mario Francesco Pompedda, José Maria Serrano Ruiz, Paolo Moneta, Carlos Errázuriz, Salvatore Berlingò. 56 J.M. Millás, Il sacramento del matrimonio. Elementi fondamentali, in: Matrimonio e Sacramento... , 15. 57 Ordo celebrandi matrimonium , Città del Vaticano 1991, 26-27. Nel detto rituale la benedizione per gli sposi ha, infatti, le tre parti essenziali delle più solenni preghiere della

221 E-Theologos, Vol. 3, No. 2 DOI 10.2478/v10154-012-0019-4 rule of expressing marital consent in canonical form 58 and provided that we must assume that the spouses are the sacramental dispensers (in Latin tradition) 59 , then we cannot today abstract away from the evident care of the Church magisterium , to “theologically” raise the value of the newly- weds’ blessing 60 . What immediately catches our attention is the compatibility of the “program” requirement with the normative specification of marriage in the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches (1990): “The matrimonial cove- nant, established by the Creator and ordered by His laws, by which a man and woman by an irrevocable personal consent establish between them- selves a partnership of the whole of life, is b y its nature ordered toward the good of the spouses and the generation and of the offspring (§ 1). From the institution of Christ a valid marriage between baptized per- sons is , by that very fact a sacrament, by which the spouses, in the image of an indefectible union of Christ with the Church, are united by God and, as it were, consecrated and strengthened by sacramental grace (§ 2)”61 . liturgia: »anamnezi« o memoria delle cose fatte da Dio riguardo al matrimonio, sia nella creazione (con riferimento alla Genesi), sia nella redenzione (con riferimento alla lettera agli Efesini); c’è dopo una preghiera di »epiklesi« o petizione della grazia dello Spirito Santo per gli sposi; a continuazione, come conclusione della solenne benedizione, ci sono delle »intercessioni« specifiche per i coniugi cristiani nei compiti concreti che dovranno svolgere nel matrimonio – J.M. Millás, Il sacramento del matrimonio... , 15. 58 CIC, can. 1057, can. 1108. 59 Here, worth mentioning is the amendment made into n° 1623, in the first edition of the Catechism (1992). Its meaning in the original version was the following: “In the , it is ordinarily understood that the spouses, as ministers of Christ's grace, mutually confer upon each other the sacrament of Matrimony by expressing their consent before the Church. In the Eastern liturgies the minister of this sacrament (which is called »Crowning«) is the priest or who, after receiving the mutual consent of the spouses, successively crowns the bridegroom and the bride as a sign of the marriage covenant”. On September 8, 1997, Pope John Paul II formally prom- ulgated the editio typica (the definitive Latin language edition) of the Catechism of the Catholic Church. The new version of n°1623 is the following: “According to Latin tradition, the spouses as ministers of Christ's grace mutually confer upon each other the sacrament of Matrimony by expressing their consent before the Church. In the tradition of the Eastern Churches, the ( or presbyters) are witnesses to the mutual consent given by the spouses,124 but for the validity of the sacrament their blessing is also necessary”; see A. Pastwa, Katechizmowe ujęcie formy zawarcia małżeństwa. Postęp czy regres doktrynalny? , Theologos 13/2 (2011), 9-27. 60 J.M. Millás, Il sacramento del matrimonio... , 13-15; G. Ferraro, I sacramenti e l’identità cristiana , Casale Monferrato 1986, 250-260; Idem, I sacramenti nella liturgia , Roma 1997, 300-315. 61 Full contents of the canon in the Latin original are the following: Matrimoniale foedus a Creatore conditum eiusque legibus instructum, quo vir et mulier irrevocabili consensu personali totius vitae consortium inter se constituunt, indole sua naturali ad bonum coniugum ac ad filiorum generationem ed educationem ordinatur (§ 1).

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What we clearly see, is that the mentioned compatibility is determined by, the theologically relevant, final fragment, which, in the original, has the following wording: … quo coniuges ad imaginem indefectibilis unionis Christi cum Ecclesia a Deo uniuntur gratiaque sacramentali veluti conse- crantur et roborantur. Then, what remains to be openly asked is whether the much desired implementation of this doctrinal coherence “program” can be in harmony with the normalization of the Sacrament of Matrimony in the Code of Canon Law (1983). The first step towards a positive reply involves taking into account recent recommendations made by representatives of the canonist doctrine 62 to incorporate, into the orbit of the “defined” in Latin codification sacramentum matrimonii , apart from the fundamental canon 1055 paragraph 1, also the “magisterial” contents of canons 1063 n° 3 63 and 1134 64 . The mentioned canon, opening a compilation of the De Matrimonio code regulations is widely known: “The matrimonial cove- nant, by which a man and a woman establish between themselves a part- nership of the whole of life and which is ordered by its nature to the good of the spouses and the procreation and education of offspring, has been raised by Christ the Lord to the dignity of a sacrament between the bap- tized (§ 1). For this reason, a valid matrimonial contract cannot exist be- tween the baptized without it being by that fact a sacrament (§ 2)” 65 . The second regulation found its way into Chapter 1 of the mentioned collec- tion of “marital” concepts, entitled “Pastoral Care and those Things which must precede the Celebration of Marriage”. Its contents are the following: “Pastors of souls are obliged to take care that their ecclesiastical commu-

Ex Christi institutione matrimonium validum inter baptizatos eo ipso est sacramen- tum, quo coniuges ad imaginem indefectibilis unionis Christi cum Ecclesia a Deo uniuntur gratiaque sacramentali veluti consecrantur et roborantur (§ 2). Essentiales matrimonii proprietates sunt unitas et indissolubilitas, quae in matrimonio inter baptizatos specialem obtinent firmitatem ratione sacramenti (§ 3) – CCEO, can. 776. 62 R. Alfs, Sakramentale Ehe als “Ereignisort” gelebten Glaubens und Glaubensmangel als Ehenichtigkeitsgrund. Theologischer Anspruch und kanonistische Konsequenz , De proces- sibus matrimonialibus 5 (1998), 28-29. 63 I expand more on this subject in my work entitled: Ekumeniczny walor formuły kodeksowej “fructuosa liturgica matrimonii celebratione” (KPK, kan. 1063, n. 3) , Studia Oecumenica 10 (2010), 71-100. 64 In this context accurate is the remark made by Karl-Heinz Selge, who suggests that a perfected (a better doctrinally “refined”) normative specification of the Sacrament of Matrimony, in canon 776 of the CCEO, be considered an indispensable guideline and assistance in the interpretation of the analogical canon 1055 of the Canon Code of Law – K.-H. Selge, Ehe als Lebensbund. Die Unauflöslichkeit der Ehe als Heraus- forderung für den Dialog zwischen katholischer und evangelisch-lutherischer Theolo- gie , Adnotationes in Ius Canonicum, Bd. 12, Frankfurt am Main 1999, 286. 65 CIC, can. 1055.

223 E-Theologos, Vol. 3, No. 2 DOI 10.2478/v10154-012-0019-4 nity offers the Christian faithful the assistance by which the matrimonial state is preserved in a Christian spirit and advances in perfection. This assistance must be offered especially by: […] a fruitful liturgical celebration of marriage which is to show that the spouses signify and share in the mystery of the unity and fruitful love between Christ and the Church”66 . Finally, in Chapter IV of the De Matrimonio code regulations can be found the last of the mentioned key regulations: “From a valid marriage there arises between the spouses a bond which by its nature is perpetual and exclusive. Moreover, a special sacrament strengthens and, as it were, con- secrates the spouses in a Christian marriage for the duties and dignity of their state” 67 . The second step towards “integration” of the marriage doctrine at the level of Canon Law is connected with what was convincingly expressed by professor Klaus Lüdicke in “Münsterischer Kommentar”: “In order that marriage contraction should not remain only an external event in the pub- lic and Church legal domain, but be a sign and partaking [of the nupturi- ents/spouses – A.P.] in the Covenant of Christ with the Church, the Sacra- ment should be fruitfully received (see canon 1134), namely, after their adequate preparation” 68 . Let us notice that the author builds this idea upon the just mentioned contents of Code regulations. In the Sacrament of Mat- rimony “the spouses, in the image of an indefectible union of Christ with the Church, are united by God and, as it were, consecrated and strength- ened by sacramental grace” 69 – “for the duties and dignity of their state” (as its is specified in can. 1134). What is no less essential here, is that the renowned German canonist implicitly points, through this quoted state- ment, at the value of the interpreted (through these words) canon 1065 – in the following wording: “To receive the sacrament of marriage fruitfully, spouses (Catholics – A.P.) are urged especially to approach the sacraments of penance and of the Most Holy Eucharist” 70 . An observation that this regulation together with the norm of canon 1063 n° 3 should be unequivocally associated – as is the Church legislator’s intention – with the regulations on preparation of the bride and groom for the liturgical ceremony 71 , is not truistic. Also not coincidentally, Profes-

66 CIC, can. 1063 n° 3. 67 CIC, can. 1134. 68 K. Lüdicke, Kommentar zum c. 1065 , in: Münsterischer Kommentar zum Codex Iuris Canonici , hg. K. Lüdicke, Essen 1989, 1065/1. 69 CCEO, can. 776 § 2; cf. CIC, can. 1063 n° 3. 70 CIC, can. 1065 § 2. 71 Cf. H. Franceschi, La preparazione al matrimonio (cann. 1063-1072) , in: Diritto matrimoniale canonico , vol. 1, Studi Giuridici, vol. 56, Città del Vaticano 2002, 334- 335.

224 E-Theologos, Vol. 3, No. 2 DOI 10.2478/v10154-012-0019-4 sor Tomás Rincón Pérez of the University of Navarra (Pamplona), a re- nowned expert on the issues of the Sacrament of Matrimony72 , in his commentary to canon 1065, paragraph 2, bridges the ecclesiologically crucial 11 th number of Lumen gentium , and to be more specific, the con- tained in it locus theologicus , with the proclamation that the Eucharist is “the source and summit of the Christian life” 73 . For we should ask if the authors of the ius matrimoniale reform have done their best to make this relevant to the “system” canon to accentuate the relationship between the two mentioned Sacraments. Have they succeeded in shaping this regula- tion into such an ecclesiological profile as to, and as it is specified by the papal magisterium , prophetically state that the Christian spouses live “in the heart of the Sacrament of the Covenant”: nourish their marriage with the Eucharist and “illuminate” the Eucharist with the Sacrament of their marriage 74 . We can instantly notice that the absence of any textual adaptation of the Council doctrine in canon 1065, paragraph 2 (the way it was in canon 1063 n° 3) is not defective here. On the other hand, a specific gap in the discussed regulation is a lack of a clear reference to the liturgy of the Sac- rament – in accordance with a principle contained in the of Exhortation “Familiaris Consortio”: “Christian marriage normally requires a liturgical celebration…” 75 . It is only the actio liturgica that shows us the deep bond between the Christian marriage and the Eucharist 76 . What is more, as the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy “Sacrosanctum Concilium” states: “Matrimony is normally to be celebrated within the Mass” 77 . Certainly this is exactly what Rev. Professor Wojciech Góralski had in mind who, as he was proving the imperfection of the analyzed formula in the Latin Code: Ut fructuose sacramentum matrimonii recipiatur, enixe sponsis commen- datur, ut ad sacramenta paenitentiae et sanctissimae Eucharistiae acce- dant 78 recognized the ad sacramenta paenitentiae […accedant ] clause as redundant . In his opinion, the fragment about the Catholic nupturients receiving the can definitely be omitted to even bet-

72 See T. Rincón Pérez, El matrimonio cristiano. Sacramento de la creación y de la redención. Claves de un debate teológico-canónico , Pamplona 1997. 73 Lumen Gentium , n° 11,1; CCC, n° 1324; T. Rincón Pérez, Comentario al c. 1065 , in: Comentario exegético al Código de Derecho canónico , ed. Á. Marzoa, J. Miras, R. Rodríguez- Ocaña, Pamplona 2002 3, vol. 3/2, 1120. 74 Jean-Paul II, Discours aux membres du mouvement “Foyers des Equipes des Notre- Dame” , n° 8. 75 John Paul II, Familiaris Consortio, n° 67. 76 Ibid, n° 57. 77 Vatican Council II , Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy “Sacrosanctum Concilium” , n° 78. 78 CIC, can. 1065 § 2.

225 E-Theologos, Vol. 3, No. 2 DOI 10.2478/v10154-012-0019-4 ter accentuate the significance of the Holy Sacrament 79 in the whole litur- gical ceremony. And here comes the causative, and certainly incomplete, answer to the raised issue 80 . The imperfection of the contents of canon 1065, paragraph 2 CIC has been, at least partially, neutralized by a more theologically mature formula of canon 783, paragraph 2 CCEO: Enixe commendatur sponsis catholicis, ut in matrimonio celebrando Divinam Eucharistiam suscipiant . The suggestion for yet another step towards reintegration of the ca- nonical marital doctrine entails canon 1119, located in the chapter entitled “Marital Consent”, which has the following wording: “Outside the case of necessity, the rites prescribed in the liturgical books approved by the Church or received by legitimate customs are to be observed in the cele- bration of a marriage”. The mentioned regulation, which is important, not alone, but together with the successive one (canon 1120), creates the en- tirety of code normalization of the Christian (Sacramental) marriage liturgi- cal form 81 . This remark turns out to be not-so-trivial because of an attempt at solving the problem of validity of the liturgical form: does Canon 1119 really convey a clear message that the liturgical form, not required for the validity ( ad validitatem ), is required ad liceitatem 82 ? The above-mentioned bishop, prof essor Eugenio Corecco, in a compe- tent statement, raised his justifiable doubts about this issue. This renowned canonist remarked that Matrimony is the only Sacrament that does not have its own sacramental form 83 . What is more, canon 1119, which sanc- tions the preservation of “the rites prescribed in the liturgical books”, ap- pears not to be fully logical, insufficient at any rate, to eliminate, as the well-known canonist critically remarks , the fracture between the legal and liturgical aspect in the celebration of the Sacrament of Matrimony 84 . Because of the retaining dichotomy in the Code, continues Eugenio Corecco, it is not easy to answer the question why the Church does not recognize marriages of baptized individuals contracted in the civil-legal form (the reason is, they are invalid because of lack of canonical form),

79 W. Góralski, Prawo małżeńskie Katolickich Kościołów Wschodnich (według Kodeksu Kanonów Kościołów Wschodnich) , Lublin 1992, 10. 80 Reminding the limitations of this work, we may only add that the indicated issue should be subject to further wide-range study. 81 Zob. M. Żurowski, Kanoniczne prawo małżeńskie Kościoła katolickiego , Katowice 1987, 336-340. 82 Ana Maria Vega is right in her commentary to can. 1119: No puede, por tanto, confundirse la »forma litúrgica« con la »forma jurídica«. La primera es exigida »ad liceitatem«, la segunda »ad validitatem« – A.M. Vega, Comentario al c. 1119 , in: Comentario exegético... , 1487. 83 E. Corecco, Il matrimonio nel nuovo Codex... , 124. 84 Ibid., 124-125.

226 E-Theologos, Vol. 3, No. 2 DOI 10.2478/v10154-012-0019-4 not to mention that in canonistics there are still more and more sugges- tions that the obligatory canonical form be abolished 85 (contracting mar- riage in the presence of a government would be sufficient, which in times of contemporary crisis in the institution of marriage seems to make no sense) 86 . The canon in question does not solve the problems. It is exactly Eugenio Corecco who reaches the heart of the matter. If we are to recognize as legitimate, as it was pointed out before, only the proper interpretation of the described normative regulation together with, the important in this case understanding of the context, then we can no- tice one more sign of systematic incoherence within Marriage Canon Law. Therefore, the contents of canon 1119: Extra casum necessitatis, in matri- monii celebratione serventur ritus in libris liturgicis, ab Ecclesia probatis… , must be interpreted together with the next canon formula: Episcoporum conferentia exarare potest ritum proprium matrimonii, a Sancta Sede rec- ognoscendum … (can. 1120). What is the meaning of both canons? What does the “cumulative” exegesis of the former and latter regulation show? It is difficult not to agree with the Swiss canonist that the legislator clearly does not make it obligatory to follow the liturgical form. Why? Because he makes it obligatory to faithfully follow the formal shape of the ceremony with its proper contents, exactly according to the obligatory ritual applied in a given country, which means without introducing foreign elements. Let this be clear: the words of the serventur ritus in libris liturgicis canon do not contain any presumptions indicating the obligatory character of the liturgical celebration; so that there be no doubts that the liturgical form which is not required for the validity in the Catholic Church, is required for the rightful dispensing of the Sacrament. In relation to this, it is a right thing to support the de lege ferenda suggestion made by Eugenio Corecco 87 . A clear indication at the issue of what is required as far as the liturgical form is concerned (for a rightful marriage contract) might be guaranteed by the formula: servetur liturgica forma, secundum ritum in

85 Let us hear the opinion of Miguel Angel Ortiz, one of the supporters of such a solution: Recentemente abbiamo suggerito l’opportunità di ripensare la possibilità di esigere la forma soltanto ad liceitatem, come un modo di favorire l’esercizio dello ius connubii /cfr. M.A. Ortiz, La forma canonica quale garanzia della verità del Matrimonio , Ius Ecclesiae 15 (2003), 371-406/ – Idem, La forma della celebrazione , cap. 1: La forma (cann. 1108-1110; 1114-1115; 1117-1123 , in: Diritto matrimoniale canonico , vol. 3, Studi Giuridici, vol. 63, Città del Vaticano 2005, 30, fn 14. 86 E. Corecco, Il matrimonio nel nuovo Codex... , 125. 87 By the way, it is proper to note that Eugenio Corecco univocally supported the introduc- tion of the liturgical form ad validitatem matrimonii (quoting the tradition of the Eastern Churches constituted an important, though not the only argument) – ibid ., 125-126.

227 E-Theologos, Vol. 3, No. 2 DOI 10.2478/v10154-012-0019-4 libris liturgicis 88 . This way the significance of “title” canons (can. 1065, paragraph 2 and can. 1119 CIC) might also be emphasized in the pro- phetic-educational conveyance, made by the Church, of the bond between Christian marriage and the Eucharist.

88 Then canon 1119 would be the following: Extra casum necessitatis, in matrimonii celebratione servetur liturgica forma, secundum ritum in libris liturgicis, ab Ecclesia probatis, praescriptum aut legitimis consuetudinis receptum – ibid., 125.

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