A Deeper Understanding of the Church and Marriage
90 (of 129) - Catechesis by John Paul II on the Theology of the Body
General Audience, Wednesday 18 August 1982 - in Italian, Portuguese & Spanish
"1. Analyzing the respective components of Ephesians, we established that the reciprocal relationship between husband and wife is to be understood by Christians as an image of the relationship between Christ and the Church.
This relationship is a revelation and a realization in time of the mystery of salvation, of the election of love, hidden from eternity in God. In this revelation and realization the mystery of salvation includes the particular aspect of conjugal love in the relationship of Christ to the Church. Thus one can express it most adequately by applying the analogy of the relationship which exists—which should exist—between husband and wife in marriage. Such an analogy clarifies the mystery, at least to a certain degree. Indeed, according to the author of Ephesians, it seems that this analogy serves as a complement to that of the Mystical Body (cf. Eph 1:22-23) when we attempt to express the mystery of the relationship of Christ to the Church—and going back even further, the mystery of the eternal love of God for man and for humanity, that mystery which is expressed and is realized in time through the relationship of Christ to the Church.
2. If—as has been said—this analogy illuminates the mystery, it in its turn is illuminated by that mystery. The conjugal relationship which unites husband and wife should help us—according to the author of the Letter to the Ephesians—to understand the love which unites Christ to the Church, that reciprocal love between Christ and the Church in which the divine eternal plan for the salvation of man is realized. Yet the content of meaning of the analogy does not end here. The analogy used in Ephesians, illuminating the mystery of the relationship between Christ and the Church, contemporaneously unveils the essential truth about marriage. Marriage corresponds to the vocation of Christians only when it reflects the love which Christ the Bridegroom gives to the Church his Bride, and which the Church (resembling the "subject" wife, that is, completely given) attempts to return to Christ. This is redeeming love, love as salvation, the love with which man from eternity has been loved by God in Christ: "...even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him..." (Eph 1:4).
3. Marriage corresponds to the vocation of Christians as spouses only if that love is reflected and effected therein. This will become clear if we attempt to reread the Pauline analogy inversely, that is, beginning with the relationship of Christ to the Church and turning next to the relationship of husband and wife in marriage. In the text, an exhortative tone is used: "As the Church is subject to Christ, so let wives also be subject in everything to their husbands." On the other hand: "Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the Church...." These expressions make it clear that a moral obligation is involved. Yet, in order to recommend such an obligation one must admit that in the essence of marriage a particle of the same mystery is captured. Otherwise, the entire analogy would hang suspended in a void. The call which the author of Ephesians directed to the spouses, that they model their reciprocal relationship on the relationship of Christ to the Church ("as—so"), would be without a real basis, as if it had no ground beneath its feet. Such is the logic of the analogy used in the cited text of Ephesians.
4. As we can see, the analogy operates in two directions. On the one hand, it helps us to understand better the essence of the relationship between Christ and the Church. On the other, at the same time, it helps us to see more deeply into the essence of marriage to which Christians are called. In a certain sense, the analogy shows the way in which this marriage, in its deepest essence, emerges from the mystery of God's eternal love for man and for humanity. It emerges from that salvific mystery which is fulfilled in time through the spousal love of Christ for the Church. Beginning with the words of Ephesians (5:21-33), we can move on to develop the thought contained in the great Pauline analogy in two directions: either in the direction of a deeper understanding of the Church, or in the direction of a deeper understanding of marriage. In our considerations, we will pursue the latter first of all, mindful that the spousal relationship of Christ to the Church is at the basis of an understanding of marriage in its essence. That relationship will be analyzed even more precisely in order to establish—presupposing the analogy with marriage—in what way the latter becomes a visible sign of the divine eternal mystery, as an image of the Church united with Christ. In this way Ephesians leads us to the foundations of the sacramentality of marriage.
5. Let us undertake, then, a detailed analysis of the text. We read in Ephesians that "the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the Church, his body, and is himself its Savior" (Eph 5:23). The author has already explained that the submission of the wife to the husband as head is intended as reciprocal submission "out of reverence for Christ." We can presume that the author goes back to the concept rooted in the mentality of the time, to express first of all the truth concerning the relationship of Christ to the Church, that is, that Christ is the head of the Church. He is head as "Savior of his Body." The Church is exactly that Body which—being submissive in everything to Christ as its head—receives from him all that through which it becomes and is his Body. It receives the fullness of salvation as the gift of Christ, who "gave himself up for her" to the last. Christ's "giving himself up" to the Father by obedience unto death on the cross acquired here a strictly ecclesiological sense: "Christ loved the Church and gave himself up for her" (Eph 5:25). Through a total giving up of himself because of his love, he formed the Church as his Body and continually builds her up, becoming her head. As head he is the Savior of his Body, and, at the same time, as Savior he is head. As head and Savior of the Church, he is also Bridegroom of his Bride.
6. Inasmuch as the Church is herself, so, as Body, she receives from Christ her head the entire gift of salvation as the fruit of Christ's love and of his giving himself up for the Church, the fruit of his giving himself up to the last. That gift of himself to the Father by obedience unto death (cf. Phil 2:8) is contemporaneously, according to Ephesians, a "giving himself up for the Church." In this expression, redeeming love is transformed, I would say, into spousal love. Giving himself up for the Church, through the same redeeming act Christ is united once and for all with her, as bridegroom with the bride, as husband with his wife. Christ gives himself through all that which is once and for all contained in his "giving himself up" for the Church. In this way, the mystery of the redemption of the body conceals within itself, in a certain sense, the mystery "of the marriage of the Lamb" (cf. Rv 19:7). Because Christ is the head of the Body, the entire salvific gift of the redemption penetrates the Church as the Body of that head, and continually forms the most profound, essential substance of her life. It is the spousal form, given that in the cited text the analogy of body-head becomes an analogy of groom-bride, or rather of husband-wife. This is demonstrated by the subsequent passages of the text, which will be considered next."
After the catechesis, Papa Giovanni Paolo II greeted the pilgrims in various languages:
Ai fedeli di lingua francese
Chers Frères et Sœurs,
Je suis heureux de vous accueillir ici: prêtres, religieux, religieuses, laïcs, pères et mères de famille, enfants et jeunes de nombreux pays. Vous faites l’expérience d’un rassemblement “catholique”, au sens d’universel. Je vous souhaite de mieux découvrir le mystère de l’Eglise, et, par elle, les réalités de la foi chrétienne.
Aujourd’hui, j’ai poursuivi en italien une réflexion amorcée depuis plusieurs mercredis sur les rapports familiaux, d’après la Lettre aux Ephésiens. On y lit: “Soyez soumis les uns aux autres dans la crainte du Christ. Que les femmes le soient à leurs maris, comme au Seigneur . . . et maris, aimez vos femmes comme le Christ a aimé l’Eglise et s’est livré pour elle”. En somme, l’analogie du mariage éclaire le mystère de l’amour éternel de Dieu envers l’humanité; et notamment l’amour du Christ. Le Christ s’est donné à son Père jusqu’à l’obéissance extrême; et par là, il a formé l’Eglise, comme son corps; il l’édifie continuellement, en alimentant sa vie comme son Chef. Il est son Chef parce qu’il est son Sauveur, et un Sauveur qui, à la manière d’un Epoux, s’est uni une fois pour toutes à l’Eglise, par amour. Réciproquement, le mystère du Christ, ayant un rapport réel avec le mariage, éclaire beaucoup sa vérité essentielle, sa sacramentalité. Cela suppose que les époux chrétiens vivent vraiment un amour analogue, comme soumission réciproque et don de soi.
Après ces souhaits pour les époux, je salue de façon particulière les Sœurs de la Société du Sacré Cœur de Jésus, bien connues à Rome comme leur fondatrice, sainte Madeleine Sophie Barat; ainsi que les Sœurs Marianistes, Filles de Marie Immaculée, d’Agen. L’une et l’autre congrégation viennent d’avoir leur chapitre général. Aux nouvelles responsables, à toutes leurs Sœurs, j’offre mes vœux pour une vie religieuse toujours plus profonde, à l’école du Cœur de Jésus, du Cœur de Marie, et pour leur service apostolique, notamment leur engagement éducatif et missionnaire.
J’ai également plaisir à saluer les nombreux membres de l’Union Sainte-Cécile du diocèse de Strasbourg qui fête son centenaire, accompagnés de l’Evêque Coadjuteur. Chers amis d’Alsace, continuez à exprimer à pleine voix et avec art la louange de Dieu et les joies des hommes; vous contribuez, pour une part, à élever le monde, à unir les hommes.
De tout cœur, je donne à tous les pèlerins de langue française ma Bénédiction Apostolique.
Ai fedeli di lingua inglese
Dear brothers and sisters,
I greet all of you who have come here today: the priests, the religious, the parents, the young, and the old - each and every one of you, and I ask God to bless you.
The Letter to the Ephesians sees a parallel between the relationship between husband and wife and that between Christ and the Church. The marriage relationship helps us to understand the mutual love that unites Christ and the Church. In turn, the union between Christ and the Church throws light on Christian marriage. The Church is seen as forming one body with Christ. Christ, we are told, loved the Church and gave himself up for her. The love by which he redeemed us is here seen as a husband’s love for his wife. By the very act of giving himself up to redeem her, he united himself once and for all with the Church. The mystery of redemption includes the mystery of “the marriage of the Lamb”.
Finally, a special greeting to the boy scouts and girl guides from the Toronto area. I greet you as young people who are taking an active interest in making the world a better place to live in, by first of all developing your own talents and abilities. May God bless you and all who are pursuing the same goals.
Ai pellegrini giapponesi
Dio sia lodato!
Dilettissimi pellegrini della diocesi di Kagoshima e tutti voi pellegrini del Giappone che partecipate a questa udienza, auspicando che sia con voi l’abbondante grazia di Dio, di cuore vi benedico.
Dio sia lodato!
Ai fedeli di lingua tedesca
In herzlicher Freude begrüße ich auch alle Besucher deutscher Sprache. Ich wünsche euch ein eindrucksvolles Erleben dieser Stadt und eine sichere Heimkehr zu euren Familien und den täglichen Aufgaben.
Diese abendliche Begegnung gibt mir die gute Gelegenheit, euch einige Gedanken aus dem Schatz unseres christlichen Glaubens mit auf den Weg zu geben. Ich gehe dabei aus von der berühmten Stelle aus dem Epheserbrief, die ihr bestimmt schon einmal in einer Brautmesse als Lesung gehört habt. Dort heißt es: ”Ihr Frauen, ordnet euch euren Männern unter wie dem Herrn (Christus); denn der Mann ist das Haupt der Frau, wie auch Christus das Haupt der Kirche ist“ (Eph. 5, 22). Hier wird mancher protestieren und rufen: ”Das ist doch eine überholte Sicht!“ (Ibid. 5, 22. 25).
Aber hören wir ruhig weiter, wie der heilige Paulus in seinem Brief erklärt, auf welche Weise Christus ”das Haupt der Kirche “ist:” Er (Christus) hat sie (die Kirche) gerettet; denn sie ist sein Leib - er hat die Kirche geliebt und sich für sie hingegeben“. Paulus selbst interpretiert das so streng klingende ”Haupt“ -Sein Christi als die liebende Zuwendung des Bräutigams an seine Braut, der er alles gibt, was er ist und was er hat. So wird sie gleichsam zu seinem eigenen Leib. Die Folgerung für die christliche Ehe ergibt sich nun wie von selbst; sie wird bereits im Epheserbrief gezogen: ”Ihr Männer, liebt eure Frauen, wie (eben) Christus die Kirche geliebt und sich für sie hingegeben hat“ (Ibid. 5, 25).
So wird die ”Unterordnung“ der Frau dem Mann gegenüber schon in der Heiligen Schrift selbst ausbalanciert durch die liebevolle Zuwendung und Hingabe des Mannes an die Frau. Diese gegenseitige Unterordnung und Hingabe an den Partner ist gewiß nur im Licht wahrer und selbstloser Liebe zu verstehen und zu leben, einer Liebe, wie sie uns Christus auf seinem Erlöserweg vorgelebt hat. Versucht, in euren Ehen und Familien etwas von dieser Liebe aufleuchten zu lassen! Dazu begleite euch alle mein besonderer Segen!
Ai pellegrini di lingua spagnola
Amadísimos hermanos y hermanas,
Saludo con afecto a todos los peregrinos de lengua española aquí presentes y procedentes de varios Países.
Decíamos el miércoles pasado, al analizar los diversos elementos de la Carta a los Efesios, que la mutua relación entre los esposos - marido y mujer - debe ser entendida entre los cristianos como una imagen de la unión existente entre Cristo y la Iglesia. Esta relación es, en efecto, una revelación y realización en el tiempo del misterio de salvación, de la elección de amor, “escondida” desde la eternidad.
De ahí que la analogía usada por el autor de la Carta a los Efesios, a la vez que aclara el misterio de la relación que se da entre Cristo y la Iglesia, nos descubre simultáneamente la verdad esencial sobre el matrimonio; es decir, que el matrimonio corresponde a la vocación cristiana, sólo cuando refleja el amor que Cristo-Esposo da a la Iglesia, su Esposa, y que ésta, al igual que la mujer, quiere recambiar con Cristo.
Este es, en definitiva, el amor redentor y salvador, con el que el hombre ha sido amado desde la eternidad por Dios en Cristo. Un saludo ahora a las religiosas de Cristo Rey, que están terminando su Capítulo General.
Que los trabajos de este Capítulo os confirmen en vuestro Carisma fundacional, para establecer el reino de Cristo en el individuo, la familia y la sociedad, sobre todo por medio de la educación. Con mi cordial aliento, doy a vosotras y a todo el Instituto mi especial Bendición.
Ai fedeli di lingua portoghese
Amados irmãos e irmãs de língua portuguesa,
A todos desejo do coração, saúde, paz e bênção, em Jesus Cristo, nosso Senhor e Salvador!
Continuamos a reflectir sobre o texto da Epístola aos Efésios em que se compara a relação de amor homem-mulher, no matrimónio, com a relação de amor de Cristo para com a sua Igreja: expressão e realização no tempo, do eterno amor de Deus para com o homem.
Inserido neste mistério salvífico, vislumbram-se aí as bases da sacramentalidade do matrimónio. Mas a primeira verdade que sobressai no texto em análise é esta:
Cristo, Cabeça do seu Corpo, que é a Igreja, ama-a incessantemente, como Salvador; e a Igreja, por sua vez, recebe de Cristo o dom da Salvação, fruto de um amor levado “até à última prova” - com que o mesmo Cristo se ofereceu ao Pai e se entregou por ela - e sente-se obrigada a viver esse amor redentor e esponsal.
Trata-se de uma analogia, destinada a ilustrar a verdade essencial do matrimónio, para inculcar uma obrigação moral: o matrimónio corresponderá à vocação cristã dos cônjuges, na medida em que nele se reflectir o amor de Cristo para com a Igreja e, em reciprocidade, o amor da Igreja para com o mesmo Cristo.
Ad un gruppo di giovani slovacchi
Un benvenuto e un saluto al gruppo dei giovani slovacchi, partecipanti al campo-scuola organizzato dall’Istituto slovacco dei santi Cirillo e Metodio.
State godendo il meritato riposo, ma lo utilizzate anche nell’istruzione e nell’approfondimento religioso e culturale. Vi sia anche la visita della Città Eterna a incoraggiamento e a rafforzamento della fede e della fedeltà all’eredità dei padri.
Di tutto cuore vi imparto la mia benedizione.
Ai fedeli polacchi
Matko Wniebowzięta!
Łączę się w duchu ze wszystkimi, którzy na mojej ziemi ojczystej czczą Dzień 15 sierpnia jako wielkie Święto Kościoła i Narodu.
Wniebowzięcie Bogarodzicy jest równocześnie świętem dojrzałości polskiej ziemi: w tym dniu błogosławi się kłosy zebrane na polach i owoce przyniesione z ogrodów.
Biorę udział w tym błogosławieństwie płodów ziemi.
A równocześnie myślę o tym wszystkim, co dojrzewa w ludziach: co dojrzało w myślach i sumieniach moich Rodaków w ciągu ostatnich trudnych lat.
Człowiek jest powołany do tego, aby żył w prawdzie i wolności. Bóg dał mu godność syna Bożego, aby dojrzewał w tej godności.
Matko Jasnogórska! Pragnę i proszę, aby błogosławieństwo Twego Wniebowzięcia spoczęło nade wszystko na tym wszystkim, co dojrzało w myślach, sumieniach i sercach polskich.
Niech to pozostanie jako owoc trwały! Owoc dojrzałości ducha, którego nie można zniszczyć i zdeptać żadnym poniżeniem ani gwałtem. Niech ten owoc wśród obecnych przeciwności jeszcze bardziej dojrzewa. Tak jak dojrzał owoc świadectwa bł. Maksymiliana w oświęcimskim bunkrze śmierci.
Matko Wniebowzięta! Ofiaruję Ci owoce polskiej ziemi! Jeszcze bardziej ofiaruję Ci na Twą Uroczystość trudny owoc dojrzałości polskich dusz. Przyjmij i pobłogosław! I spraw: niech nie przestaje przynosić owocu polska ziemia! Niech nie przestaje dojrzewać człowiek!
Della preghiera dl Papa pubblichiamo qui di seguito una nostra traduzione italiana.
Madre Assunta!
Mi unisco in spirito a tutti coloro che nella mia terra natale celebrano il 15 agosto come la grande festa della Chiesa e della Nazione.
L’Assunzione della Genitrice di Dio è, al tempo stesso, la festa della maturità della terra polacca. In questo giorno si benedicono le spighe raccolte nei campi e la frutta portata dai giardini.
Prendo parte a questa benedizione dei frutti della terra.
E contemporaneamente penso a tutto ciò che matura negli uomini: a ciò che è maturato nei pensieri e nelle coscienze dei miei connazionali nel corso degli ultimi difficili anni.
L’uomo è chiamato a vivere nella verità e nella libertà. Dio gli ha dato la dignità di figlio di Dio, perché maturasse questa dignità.
Madre di Jasna Góra! Auspico e prego che la benedizione della tua Assunzione si posi soprattutto su ciò che è maturato nei pensieri, nelle coscienze e nei cuori polacchi.
Che questo rimanga come un frutto duraturo! Frutto della maturità dello spirito, che non si può distruggere e calpestare con nessuna umiliazione né violenza. Che questo frutto maturi ancor più in mezzo alle attuali contrarietà, così come è maturato il frutto della testimonianza del beato Massimiliano nel “bunker” della morte a Oswiecim.
Madre Assunta, ti offro i frutti della terra polacca! Ancor di più ti offro, per la tua solennità, il difficile frutto della maturità delle anime polacche. Accetta e benedici! E fa’ che la terra polacca non cessi di portare frutti! Che l’uomo non cessi di maturare!
Ai gruppi italiani
Desidero ora salutare alcuni gruppi speciali provenienti da varie parti d’Italia: rivolgo anzitutto il mio pensiero ai pellegrini della diocesi di Acireale e al loro Vescovo Monsignor Giuseppe Malandrino, i quali, diretti al Santuario Mariano di Lourdes, hanno voluto fare una sosta a Roma per esprimermi di persona i loro sentimenti di fede e di affetto.
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Una parola di compiacimento va poi al gruppo di fedeli di Terlizzi, in provincia di Bari, aderenti al “Rinnovamento nello Spirito”, che in questi giorni si sono dati convegno a Roma per un “Ritiro-Vacanza” presso la “Domus Pacis”.
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Saluto inoltre, augurando ogni bene, le suore Figlie di Cristo Re, le quali partecipano qui a Roma al proprio Capitolo Generale.
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Carissimi, questo incontro avviene all’indomani della festività della beata Vergine Assunta in cielo. So che tutti voi: sia quelli diretti a Lourdes, sia coloro che sono convenuti a Roma per approfondire la loro spiritualità, ne siete devoti! Voi, da parte vostra, confidate in lei e ripetete con lei: “Magnificat anima mea Dominum!”. Magnificate anche voi il Signore, ed egli non mancherà di riservarvi un giorno la gloria del cielo, accanto alla Madre sua e Madre nostra, Assunta in Paradiso.
Vi benedico tutti di gran cuore.
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Mi rivolgo ora a tutti i giovani qui convenuti per confermare la loro fede, conferendo così significato religioso alle loro vacanze. Nel manifestarvi riconoscenza per tali vostri sentimenti, vi esorto a prepararvi con rinnovato vigore alle responsabilità che vi attendono e a pregare perché la divina assistenza le renda feconde di bene per voi stessi, per i vostri cari, per la società. Con la mia benedizione apostolica.
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Per voi, cari ammalati, nell’additarvi la glorificazione della Madre di Dio mediante l’assunzione al cielo, testé celebrata, formo l’auspicio che il vostro corpo, afflitto dalla sofferenza, ma sempre tempio vivo dello Spirito Santo, sia eletto strumento di bene per la Chiesa e per le anime. In quest’opera di carità ecclesiale vi conforti la mia benedizione apostolica.
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Non posso dimenticare voi, carissimi Sposi novelli, tuttora esultanti per la speciale grazia del matrimonio. Nell’invitarvi a guardare sempre al modello della Famiglia di Nazaret, vi porgo i più fervidi auguri di bene e di felicità. Con la mia benedizione apostolica.
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