An Apologetical Explanation of

Marriage

Why is marriage considered a divine institution?

God blessed [Adam and Eve], and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth.”  (Gn 1:28)

“From the beginning of creation, ‘God made them male and female.’  ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.’  So they are no longer two but one flesh.  What therefore God has joined together, let not man put asunder.”  (Mk 10:6-9)

In his creation God instituted marriage between Adam and Eve.  By his design marriage is an exclusive, lifelong, and fruitful commitment of self-giving love between a man and a woman that reflects the very image and likeness of God.  The Blessed Trinity is a communion of three divine Persons, and marriage is a communion of a man and a woman together with their children.

The Book of Genesis indicates that God created man and woman for marriage since God saw that “it is not good that a man should be alone” (Gn 2:18).  According tot he teachings of Christ, a husband is “joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh” (Mk 10:7; cf. Mt 19:5).  The truth of this teaching can be seen in the vital role that marriage has played in our history: It is the original cell of social life, and it has been such from the very beginning of human existence.  (Cf. CCC 1604-1608, 2207)

St. Paul pointed out that this union of a man and a woman is meant to be a sign of Christ’s love for his Church:

Be subject to one another out of reverence for Christ.  Wives, be subject to your husbands, as to the Lord.  For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the Church…. Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her…. This is a great mystery, and I mean in reference to Christ and the Church. (Eph 5:21-33; cf. CCC 1616-1617, 1642)

Reflecting Christ’s total self-giving to his Church, marriage is a permanent, lifelong, and indissoluble union of two persons.  God has willed that marriages be fruitful, open to the bearing and raising of children within the family.  Through marriage and parenthood, a husband and a wife participate in God’s work of creation.  In his publish ministry Christ reaffirmed the divine origin of marriage (cf. Mk 10:6-9), elevated its meaning, and emphasized its nature as a lifelong covenant and vocation.  (Cf. CCC 1617, 1639, 1652, 1661)

The Catechism addresses this question in paragraph 1603.

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