Marriage for all we know is the union between a man and woman. This is also the calling to mind God’s approval to this relationship when He declared;” “They were created male and female from the beginning” (Genesis 1vs27). God is love and He wants His children joined in this holy union to remain in love also, so long as they live. In our world today, marriage means different things to different people. Simply put; today’s couples are different from the couples of old. Some marriages that are supposed to be blissful relationships between husbands and wives, unfortunately, have turned to tales of woes. Regrettably also, many rush in and out of this union almost on a daily basis. This development lamentably, undermines the teaching of the Catholic Church, the natural contract of marriage that has been elevated to the dignity of a sacrament by our Lord Jesus Christ, having committed the care of this as well as all the other sacraments to His body, the Church. Those going into marriage often times forget that compromise really is what each partner needs at all times for the union to subsist and succeed. It is a place of tolerance and not to count errors as it is the case today.
Your husband must be your friend, so also your wife. Each one involved must understand the fundamental reason why he/she decided to go into marriage. One must not allow the societal pressure to define his or her union because marriage goes beyond wedding ceremonies and the usual snapping of pictures that follows. Marriage experts believe that there is no perfect marriage but that each one involved has the responsibility to work on his own to succeed, despite the inherent challenge therein. For example, the issues of financial burden, poor communication, infidelity, sexuality problems, ignoring boundaries, gambling, quarreling, lack of trust, abuse, argument etc, would continue to rear their ugly heads in a union where love and friendship is lacking. By and large, our values as Africans demands that when one marries, it is a relationship between two families, even though parents of both families are admonished on the wedding day to give their children a chance, and not to interfere in their marriage. But in practical terms, it is absolutely difficult to stand alone when you are married to a family no matter how social media has tried to influence our lives.
That is why couples are expected to mature mentally and spiritually before saying “I do”. Marriage involves a lot of responsibilities and indeed, sacrifices. Each partner is expected to know when to draw the line, even though they have been joined together as one body in Christ, bearing in mind that the advent of social media and other conventional outlets are now forces threatening most marriages, sadly. In real sense, there is no bed actually prepared for anyone or roses lined up on any bed for anyone to pick in marriages. What is there, interestingly, is for each couple to strive at all times, in love to make their marriage a pleasant one, despite the inherent challenges, whether real or imagined associated with it.
