I was an RCIA sponsor for a man who was then in his 50s joining the church. He and his wife, a cradle Catholic, both had previous marriages. I got to know him very well - it was like bringing my father into the Church, he was even from the same part of the Midwest - and there was no question that both of them were practically unrecognizable compared to what they had been at the time of their first marriages.
They had not received Communion since their marriage, and the whole congregation at the Easter Vigil was sniffling when they went up together.
To be honest, I sometimes wonder if I’m “really” married, in spite of the assurance from some very respectable priests. But in the case of Ted Kennedy, good gravy, a sociopath is incapable of contracting Christian matrimony ... maybe even of legal marriage. Being stone cold nuts is always an exception.
“To be honest, I sometimes wonder if I’m ‘really’ married, in spite of the assurance from some very respectable priests.”
LOL. Don't feel bad. I've entertained similar doubts, myself. My wife and I were so naive, so young, so stupid, so immature when we got married. We always say that we grew up together (especially having known each other since age 16).
But the bottom line is, we knew what marriage was, we knew it was permanent, we knew that in a Catholic marriage, there are three - you, me and God (kids come later, one hopes). We knew it was a vocation, and we believed that we were called to that vocation with each other, and that it is through marriage that spouses become holy.
After 30 years, it's worked for my wife!! She's a SAINT! Me? Well,... I'm married to a SAINT who prays for me all the time, so there's hope for me, too!
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