Baltimore Catechism Volume Iii Part 34

Q. 1002. How do we know that there is a true priesthood in the Church?

A. We know that there is a true priesthood in the Church: (1) Because in the Jewish religion, which was only a figure of the Christian religion, there was a true priesthood established by G.o.d; (2) Because Christ conferred on His apostles and not on all the faithful the power to offer Sacrifice, distribute the Holy Eucharist and forgive sins.

Q. 1003. But is there need of a special Sacrament of Holy Orders to confer these powers?

A. There is need of a special Sacrament of Holy Orders to confer these powers: (1) Because the priesthood which is to continue the work of the apostles must be visible in the Church, and it must therefore be conferred by some visible ceremony or outward sign; (2) because this outward sign called Holy Orders gives not only power but grace and was inst.i.tuted by Christ, Holy Orders must be a Sacrament.

Q. 1004. Can bishops, priests and other ministers of the Church always exercise the power they have received in Holy Orders?

A. Bishops, priests and other ministers of the Church cannot exercise the power they have received in Holy Orders unless authorized and sent to do so by their lawful superiors. The power can never be taken from them, but the right to use it may be withdrawn for causes laid down in the laws of the Church, or for reasons that seem good to those in authority over them. Any use of sacred power without authority is sinful, and all who take part in such ceremonies are guilty of sin.

LESSON TWENTY-SIXTH.

ON MATRIMONY.

Q. 1005. {282} What is the Sacrament of Matrimony?

A. The Sacrament of Matrimony is the Sacrament which unites a Christian man and woman in lawful marriage.

Q. 1006. When are persons lawfully married?

A. Persons are lawfully married when they comply with all the laws of G.o.d and of the Church relating to marriage. To marry unlawfully is a mortal sin, and it deprives the souls of the grace of the Sacrament.

Q. 1007. When was marriage first inst.i.tuted?

A. Marriage was first inst.i.tuted in the Garden of Eden, when G.o.d created Adam and Eve and made them husband and wife, but it was not then a Sacrament, for their union did not confer any special grace.

Q. 1008. When was the contract of marriage raised to the dignity of a Sacrament?

A. The exact time at which the contract of marriages was raised to the dignity of a Sacrament is not known, but the fact that it was thus raised is certain from pa.s.sages in the New Testament and from the constant teaching of the Church ever since the time of the apostles. Our Lord did not merely add grace to the contract, but He made the very contract a Sacrament, so that Christians cannot make this contract without receiving the Sacrament.

Q. 1009. What is the outward sign in the Sacrament of Matrimony, and in what does the whole essence of the marriage contract consist?

A. The outward sign in the Sacrament of matrimony is the mutual consent of the persons, expressed by words or signs in accordance with the laws of the Church. The whole essence of the marriage contract consists in the surrender by the persons of their bodies to each other and in declaring by word or sign that they make this surrender and take each other for husband and wife now and for life.

Q. 1010. What are the chief ends of the Sacrament of Matrimony?

A. The chief ends of the Sacrament of matrimony are: (1) To enable the husband and wife to aid each other in securing the salvation of their souls; (2) To propagate or keep up the existence of the human race by bringing children into the world to serve G.o.d; (3) To prevent sins against the holy virtue of purity by faithfully obeying the laws of the marriage state.

Q. 1011. {283} Can a Christian man and woman be united in lawful marriage in any other way than by the Sacrament of Matrimony?

A. A Christian man and woman cannot be united in lawful marriage in any other way than by the Sacrament of Matrimony, because Christ raised marriage to the dignity of a sacrament.

Q. 1012. Were, then, all marriages before the coming of Christ unlawful and invalid?

A. All marriages before the coming of Christ were not unlawful and invalid. They were both lawful and valid when the persons contracting them followed the dictates of their conscience and the laws of G.o.d as they knew them; but such marriages were only contracts. Through their evil inclinations many forgot or neglected the true character of marriage till Our Lord restored it to its former unity and purity.

Q. 1013. What do we mean by impediments to marriage?

A. By impediments to marriage we mean certain restrictions, imposed by the law of G.o.d or of the Church, that render the marriage invalid or unlawful when they are violated in entering into it. These restrictions regard age, health, relations.h.i.+p, intention, religion and other matters affecting the good of the Sacrament.

Q. 1014. Can the Church dispense from or remove these impediments to marriage?

A. The Church can dispense from or remove the impediments to marriage that arise from its own laws; but it cannot dispense from impediments that arise from the laws of G.o.d and nature. Every lawmaker can change or excuse from the laws made by himself or his equals, but he cannot, of his own authority, change or excuse from laws made by a higher power.

Q. 1015. What is required that the Church may grant, when it is able, dispensations from the impediments to marriage or from other laws?

A. That the Church may grant dispensations from the impediments to marriage or from other laws, there must be a good and urgent reason for granting such dispensations. The Church does not grant dispensations without cause and merely to satisfy the wishes of those who ask for them.

Q. 1016. Why does the Church sometimes require the persons to whom dispensations are granted to pay a tax or fee for the privilege?

A. The Church sometimes requires the persons to whom dispensations are granted to pay a tax or fee for the privilege: (1) That persons on account of this tax be restrained from asking for dispensations and may comply with the general laws; (2) That the Church may not have to bear the expense of supporting an office for granting privileges to a few.

Q. 1017. What should persons who are about to get married do?

A. Persons who are about to get married should give their pastor timely notice of their intention, make known to him privately whatever they suspect might be an impediment to the marriage, and make sure of all arrangements before inviting their friends.

Q. 1018. What timely notice of marriage should be given to the priest, and why?

A. At least three weeks notice of marriage should be given to the priest, because, according to the laws of the Church, the names of the persons about to get married must be announced and their intended marriage published at the princ.i.p.al Ma.s.s in their parish for three successive Sundays.

Q. 1019. Why are the banns of matrimony published in the Church?

A. The banns of matrimony are published in the Church that any person who might know of any impediment to the marriage may have an opportunity to declare it privately to the priest before the marriage takes place and thus prevent an invalid or unlawful marriage. Persons who know of such impediments and fail to declare them in due time are guilty of sin.

Q. 1020. What things in particular should persons arranging for their marriage make known to the priest?

A. Persons arranging for their marriage should make known to the priest whether both are Christians and Catholics; whether either has been solemnly engaged to another person; whether they have ever made any vow to G.o.d with regard to chast.i.ty or the like; whether they are related and in what degree; whether either was ever married to any member of the other's family and whether either was ever G.o.dparent in baptism for the other.

Q. 1021. What else must they make known?

A. They must also make known whether either was married before and what proof can be given of the death of the former husband or wife; whether they really intend to get married, and do so of their own will; whether they are of lawful age; whether they are sound in body or suffering from any deformity that might prevent their marriage, and lastly, whether they live in the parish in which they ask to be married, and if so, how long they have lived in it.

Q. 1022. What is particularly necessary that persons may do their duty in the marriage state?

A. That persons may do their duty in the marriage state, it is particularly necessary that they should be well instructed, before entering it, in the truths and duties of their religion for how will they teach their children these things if they are ignorant of them themselves?

Q. 1023. {284} Can the bond of Christian marriage be dissolved by any human power?

A. The bond of Christian marriage cannot be dissolved by any human power.

Q. 1024. Does not a divorce granted by courts of justice break the bond of marriage?

A. Divorce granted by courts of justice or by any human power does not break the bond of marriage, and one who makes use of such a divorce to marry again while the former husband or wife lives commits a sacrilege and lives in the sin of adultery. A civil divorce may give a sufficient reason for the persons to live apart and it may determine their rights with regard to support, the control of the children and other temporal things, but it has no effect whatever upon the bond and spiritual nature of the Sacrament.

Q. 1025. Does not the Church sometimes allow husband and wife to separate and live apart?

A. The Church sometimes, for very good reasons, does allow husband and wife to separate and live apart; but that is not dissolving the bond of marriage, or divorce as it is called, for though separated they are still husband and wife, and neither can marry again till the other dies.

Q. 1026. Has not the Church sometimes allowed Catholics once married to separate and marry again?

A. The Church has never allowed Catholics once really married to separate and marry again, but it has sometimes declared persons apparently married free to marry again, because their first marriage was null; that is, no marriage on account of some impediment not discovered till after the ceremony.

Q. 1027. What evils follow divorce so commonly claimed by those outside the true Church and granted by civil authority?

A. The evils that follow divorce so commonly claimed by those outside the true Church and granted by civil authority are very many; but chiefly (1) A disregard for the sacred character of the Sacrament and for the spiritual welfare of the children; (2) The loss of the true idea of home and family followed by bad morals and sinful living.

Q. 1028. {285} Which are the effects of the Sacrament of Matrimony?

A. The effects of the Sacrament of Matrimony are 1st, To sanctify the love of husband and wife; 2nd, To give them grace to bear with each other's weaknesses; 3d, To enable them to bring up their children in the fear and love of G.o.d.

Q. 1029. What do we mean by bearing with each other's weaknesses?

A. By bearing with each other's weaknesses we mean that the husband and wife must be patient with each other's faults, bad habits or dispositions, pardon them easily, and aid each other in overcoming them.

Q. 1030. How are parents specially fitted to bring up their children in the fear and love of G.o.d?

A. Parents are specially fitted to bring up their children in the fear and love of G.o.d (1) By the special grace they receive to advise and direct their children and to warn them against evil; (2) By the experience they have acquired in pa.s.sing through life from childhood to the position of parents. Children should, therefore, conscientiously seek and accept the direction of good parents.

Q. 1031. {286} To receive the Sacrament of Matrimony worthily is it necessary to be in the state of grace?

A. To receive the Sacrament of Matrimony worthily it is necessary to be in the state of grace, and it is necessary also to comply with the laws of the Church.

Q. 1032. With what laws of the Church are we bound to comply in receiving the Sacrament of Matrimony?

A. In receiving the Sacrament of matrimony we are bound to comply with whatever laws of the Church concern Matrimony; such as laws forbidding solemn marriage in Lent and Advent; or marriage with relatives or with persons of a different religion, and in general all laws that refer to any impediment to marriage.

Q. 1033. In how many ways may persons be related?