{"id":1715,"date":"2018-06-03T05:00:21","date_gmt":"2018-06-03T09:00:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sjcmetheology.wpengine.com\/?p=1715"},"modified":"2019-03-21T13:35:12","modified_gmt":"2019-03-21T13:35:12","slug":"love-in-marriage-magnificat-booklet-a-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.sjcme.edu\/theology\/love-in-marriage-magnificat-booklet-a-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Love in Marriage (Magnificat Booklet): A Review"},"content":{"rendered":"

Love is patient, love is kind\u2026 <\/span><\/i>yet, despite <\/span>St. Paul\u2019s clear enumeration of its characteristics<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>love is<\/span><\/i> \u2013 for most of us \u2013 somewhat elusive. We try to describe it, we try to live and experience it – but it\u2019s not as easily apprehended by us as we\u2019d like. \u00a0Love thrills us, confuses and disappoints us, warms our hearts and speaks to our deepest longings. We <\/span>think<\/span><\/i> we know what Love is, how it should guide our lives and inform how we treat each other; but we don\u2019t know the half of it. Reading St. Paul\u2019s beautiful First Letter to the Corinthians won\u2019t help our understand<\/span>ing unless we\u2019re willing to take a deep dive into Love\u2019s <\/span>mystery<\/span><\/i>, and reflect on it honestly and with purpose. But how can we do that, especially if we\u2019re not used to reading the Scriptures, or if Biblical language doesn\u2019t always \u201chit home\u201d with us? Enter Pope Francis and his Apostolic Exhortation, <\/span>Amoris Laetitia: The Joy of Love<\/span><\/i><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span>This sweeping document explores the Scriptural, Magisterial and Pastoral implications for living andloving authentically, especially in the context of marriage and family life. It\u2019s an important document, and one that will be studied by theologians and those involved in ministry to families for years to come. For the average layperson in the pew, however, reading <\/span>any<\/span><\/i> Papal document (especially one over 200 pages long) is a daunting task. Thankfully, that task is made easier with M<\/span>\"\"agnificat\u2019s companion booklet,\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Love in Marriage, Pope Francis on living and growing in love<\/span><\/a>. At a little more than 100 pages, this tiny booklet makes the Pope\u2019s thought and words accessible to everyone. It also unpacks one particular aspect of the Papal document and makes it manageable: the meaning of <\/span>Love<\/span><\/i>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Love in Marriage<\/span><\/i> focuses specifically on Chapter 4 of <\/span>Amoris Laetitia,<\/span><\/i> in which the Pope fleshes out St. Paul\u2019s \u201ccharacteristics\u201d of Love in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7, and its implications for how we love as married couples, children, priests and religious, and single people. He begins by acknowledging that the passage is<\/span>\u00a0\u201clyrical\u201d – and certainly its poetic beauty probably leads many Roman Catholic couples to choose it as one of their wedding readings. But a closer look reveals that the Apostle isn\u2019t peddling poetry or \u201cpretty words.\u201d As Pope Francis goes through the brief passage line-by-line, he breaks open its words and introduces us to their deeper meaning for our lives. We learn that the words Paul uses to describe love (patient, kind, not irritable or resentful, hopeful, etc.) go far beyond the \u201csurface reading\u201d we often give them, challenging us to consider our relationships with those close to us as well as people we don\u2019t know, and learning to love everyone as God loves. This reflection on Love is given in the context of a document focused on marriage and family; but Love is our common, human experience, and a way in which we image God. The Pope\u2019s words call us to a deeper understanding of Love, and how each of us can love generously and well, whatever our state in life. For this reason, Magnificat\u2019s companion booklet is an invaluable resource for anyone seeking to follow Christ by learning to love as He does.<\/span><\/p>\n

The booklet unpacks each section of Chapter 4 by reproducing the Pope\u2019s words, and offering opportunities for reflection. It takes Paul\u2019s characteristics of Love word by word, as the Pope does, and offers readers the opportunity to more fully understand Paul\u2019s meaning. Each section of the booklet begins with the papal text, then provides three modes of reflection: <\/span>On The Text<\/span><\/i>, <\/span>About My Life<\/span><\/i>, and <\/span>To Conclude<\/span><\/i>. Each area of reflection asks specific questions about the meaning of the Pope\u2019s teaching on that section of Paul\u2019s letter, how it applies to my life and relationships, and where Paul\u2019s (and the Pope\u2019s) words about Love lead me in prayer, and in taking positive steps toward acting on Love in my life. Some of the questions are specifically directed toward one\u2019s relationship with a spouse, but can be easily adapted for all of our relationships: between friends, family members, co-workers, and people we meet in the course of our everyday lives. (For example, one question asks <\/span>\u201cDo I make an effort to think and speak positively about my spouse?\u201d<\/span><\/i> We can easily replace the word <\/span>spouse<\/span><\/i> with boss, co-worker, best friend \u2013 or that person we find it especially hard to love.) The questions help readers to more deeply consider the demands of Love, and identify the areas where we need God\u2019s help to love each other better. Each time for reflection ends with a moment for prayer, first inviting readers to pray with one\u2019s spouse, or within the quiet of one\u2019s own heart – \u201c<\/span>I want to say: I thank you\u2026I\u2019m sorry\u2026Please\u2026\u201d – <\/span><\/i>and then providing a brief prayer to say alone or together.<\/span><\/p>\n

Whether one is married, single, widowed, or a priest\/religious, the act of speaking a thought or prayer aloud (or in our hearts) is powerful. Every one of us wants to say \u2013 <\/span>needs<\/span><\/i> to say \u2013 <\/span>I<\/span><\/i> thank you\u2026I\u2019m sorry\u2026Please<\/span><\/i>. In our world of noise, distractions, and rough-and-tumble interactions on social media, this moment of reflection on gratitude, sorrow and forgiveness, and asking for what we need \u2013 or how we can help another – is a welcome respite. For those of us for whom saying any of these words is difficult, their repetition throughout the booklet (after having reflected deeply on each aspect of Love) is helpful in breaking down our interior walls and leading us toward the healing God wants to give us (and to others <\/span>through us<\/span><\/i>) with His Love.<\/span><\/p>\n

Despite its title, <\/span>Love in Marriage<\/span><\/i> is for anyone who wants to grow in their experience of God\u2019s love, and learn how to better give and receive Love in their relationships. The booklet can be utilized in a number of ways, and would be an excellent diocesan\/parish resource for both marriage preparation and enrichment programs. Its study of Love is ideal for young adults discerning their vocation to marriage or priesthood\/religious life. It can be used in parish study groups, or by individuals who want to \u201cdip their toe\u201d into the water of Papal documents, and get a feel for how to read Scripture with a reflective heart. The booklet can help each of us to appreciate the call to Love found in every state in life, and how it is lived in marriage and family, consecrated life, and in the lives of those who are unmarried. <\/span>Love in Marriage<\/span><\/i> is a book for <\/span>everyone<\/span><\/i>, and it will help its readers to learn to love more openly, more fully, and with greater reliance on God.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the end, <\/span>Love is<\/span><\/i>\u2026<\/span>God Himself<\/b><\/a>, and He\u2019s calling each one of us to follow Him in the way of Love that leads us to an abundant life (<\/span>Cf. John 10:10<\/span><\/a> ) here and now \u2013 and on the path to an eternal life of Love with Him.<\/span><\/p>\n

Ann Koshute<\/strong>\u00a0teaches theology for\u00a0Saint Joseph\u2019s College Online Theology Program<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Love is patient, love is kind\u2026 yet, despite St. Paul\u2019s clear enumeration of its characteristics, love is \u2013 for most of us \u2013 somewhat elusive. We try to describe it, we try to live and experience it – but it\u2019s … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":48,"featured_media":1716,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,9,19,24,1],"tags":[166,168],"class_list":["post-1715","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-family","category-literature","category-sacraments","category-the-pope","category-uncategorized","tag-love-in-marriage","tag-magnificat"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/blogs.sjcme.edu\/theology\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2018\/06\/Love-in-Marriage.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sjcme.edu\/theology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1715","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sjcme.edu\/theology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sjcme.edu\/theology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sjcme.edu\/theology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/48"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sjcme.edu\/theology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1715"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sjcme.edu\/theology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1715\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sjcme.edu\/theology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1716"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sjcme.edu\/theology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1715"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sjcme.edu\/theology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1715"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sjcme.edu\/theology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1715"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}