The Annunciator Newsletter of the Church of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Anglican Patrimony within the Catholic Communion Canadian Deanery of St John the Baptist Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of St Peter 289 Spencer Street Ottawa ON K1Y 2R1 613-722-9139 www.annunciationofthebvm.org Vol. 21 No.010 – SEPTEMBER 2019 ********************************************************************** Sacramental Grace – A WEDDING Homily Marriage of Zack Candy & Bentleigh Bogacki, AUGUST 17th, 2019 Ephesians 5:20-33; John 2:1-11 “For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” This is a great mystery, and I mean in reference to Christ and the Church. Ephesians 5:31-32 Marriage is a Mystery: from the Greek μυστη ριον muste rion, which in Latin translates as sacramentum, from which we get the English word Sacrament. Among the chiefest sacraments of the Church, one worthy to be most highly honoured and esteemed is Holy Matrimony; in which is offered to the world a glimpse of Christ’s love for His Church—selfless/sacrificial love—and, accordingly, an even more mysterious glimpse of the inner life of the Holy and Blessed TRINITY: GOD who is Love. The sacraments are all gifts, which our Lord has given His Church as a means of His grace; each involving an outward and visible sign, or signs, which we offer and participate in in faith, while trusting God to supply inward, spiritual grace according to His promise, in order to enable us to live more fully the life for which He has made us. In Marriage, the bride and groom offer vows, joining of hands, rings, and prayers; all is witnessed and blessed; the priest covers their bound hands with his stole and their union is proclaimed. The promises—commitments; offering of outward signs—are made intentionally, willingly; but I daresay that they are impossible vows to fulfil, without a divine grace to undergird and enable the same. In fact, many in our world today will say: “No way; it’s not realistic to say you’ll agree to this for the rest of your life—who can make such an exclusive promise?! Who knows what tomorrow may bring?” Their skepticism’s fair; if you do not know—are not open to—the grace of God, how could anyone imagine being equal to the task? Yes, you need to be committed to work at it; but there is no married person attending to the vows this day, who will not admit to some failure in loving with truly selfless love, honouring, being true and faithful all the days of your life… We need the grace of the Sacrament, which comes of entrusting everything to the Lord. One thing that Zack and Bentleigh hold in common is their time around Augustine College—i.e. the one year, post-secondary, Christian liberal Arts programme, where I teach and serve as Chaplain. In particular, although there were several years between their respective classes, both were subjected to my annual Chapel reflection (homily) on the feeding of the Five Thousand (see John 6; cf. Mk.6:30-44). Jesus and His disciples had drawn aside to a remote place, but were sought out by a large crowd, thousands in number. It was late in the day and they had no food. John recalls Jesus raising with His disciples the question of where they were to buy bread to feed them. The Twelve were understandably overwhelmed by the need, set against the scarcity of their resources—seven or more months’ wages would be insufficient for each to have a little! I always imagine a dialogue arising between the Lord and His Apostles: “Good! You know you can’t do it, so won’t try alone. Now what do you have? Bring it to me.” “Lord, we don’t have anything; and even if we did, there are thousands of people and we could never…” “No, no, I am not looking for what you wish you had or think you need, but what you do have.” Then Andrew produces a boy’s lunch of five barley loaves and two fish; but even then he must add, “But what are they among so many?!” “Give them to me.” Then Jesus takes, blesses and breaks—though John does not mention the breaking, Mark does, and I always argue that it is essential to the letting go into His hands—and He provides, not just taste, but an abundance, an overflow, with fragments yet to gather. Yet He does not just do it alone; rather He distributes to and through His disciples, charging them thereafter to gather the leftovers—bringing it all back together with Him. …continued on page 2 Key to this is that, while it was impossible for them to in worship. This is also the word employed at the end of meet the need on their own, with God all things are the passage to describe how wives are to regard their possible, by His grace; but they needed—as we need—to husbands. The context matters, especially as it is yield to Him their meagre resources, that He might work applied first to our relationship with Christ. Accordingly through them. it not to be understood as the fear which sin brings into We don’t always do really well in yielding—truly our lives and perfect love drives out (I John 4:14) for that bringing and letting go—all the outward signs that He is the cowering fear, which anticipates punishment—as might transform them—particularly because, in such a we see likewise in the Garden of Eden, following con- context as Marriage, it means offering not just the vows sumption of the forbidden fruit. Rather St. Paul appears and signs here today, but living them out daily, to have in mind what Isaiah encountered at his calling, demonstrating the selfless love of Christ and His Church: when confronted with the overwhelming—terrifying— Divine Life shared in human flesh. To do so, we actually holiness of the Presence of the LORD (Isaiah 6). need His grace before we can give ourselves fully to each Elsewhere this is lauded as the Fear of the LORD which other. Husbands and wives must give themselves first is the beginning of wisdom (cf. Psalm 11:10; Proverbs 1:7, into His hands, like loaves and fishes, opening up to His 9:10): i.e. an awareness of who He is in His holiness and grace, and what He alone can bring to bear. I cannot majesty; and in that light, our consciousness of how make a tree, but I can plant a seed; then watch, water, unholy and unworthy we are. Yet, if we like Isaiah, do tend; God alone can produce the growth. The servants in not run in terror, but rather prostrate ourselves at His Cana could not turn water into wine; but they could fill feet, we glimpse also perfect Love—the Consuming Fire up water jars in obedience to Him—leaning even upon which will not rest until we’ re refined, made perfect: His Mother’s intercession. He alone could transform holy, even as He is. The Fear of LORD is the beginning their meagre offering into a surpassing vintage; even so of Wisdom, but its End is knowing as we are fully known: being gathered up in the fullness of Divine LOVE. He can transform your vows into the fullness of the sacrament of Holy Matrimony. Still, why does St. Paul choose this “fear” word as he I fear we might have missed some key words at the start writes about marriage and our common life in Christ? of the Ephesians passage in the translation read today. Because it is that which keeps us from treating lightly Give thanks to God the Father always and for everything in the our relationship with God, and likewise with each other name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Give way to one another out of within marriage—that is that we ought to fear engaging reverence for Christ. Ephesians 5:20. First, to read in any in those things which would damage the union. The fear English translation, we can miss the significance of is not meant to paralyze, but rather to stir us to set the giving thanks, which in the Greek is ευ χαριστε ω boundaries with great care; that we not play with eucharisteō, which is the origin of Eucharist, one of the affections, flirt with impurity, immorality, unfaithfulness chief titles given to the Mass—the central act of Catholic in thought or word, let alone in deed! It ought to make Worship: Communion with Christ. Our model of us wary of wandering into the potential occasions of thanksgiving is that of Jesus Christ Himself, in His sin—we pray, Lead us not into temptation; we’re to be serious about not venturing there of our own accord! perfect Self-offering, His Sacrifice of heart, mind, soul, strength and Body poured out to the Father. The You might have noticed that the wife’s direction to fear Eucharistic Sacrament gathers us into His Passion. (have reverence for) is preceded by an exhortation to the St. Paul exhorts his readers to offer not simply a nod of husband to love his wife as himself—with his model the head, or tip of a cap, “Thanks”, but the true sacrifice being the sacrificial love of Christ for His Church. He too of thanksgiving: Always; in ALL things; in the NAME of our must embrace for her the holy fear of total self-giving, Lord Jesus Christ—i.e.