Monday, January 26, 2015

Monumental Love: Liturgy of the Word

In order to make our nuptial mass helpful to any other Catholic brides, I'll be including our readings, song choices, and some of the prayers.  And in order to make all of that manageable to write and read, I'll be splitting our ceremony up into three posts.  Today, I've got the liturgy of the word to share with you, which includes the scripture readings and the priest's homily.

After we had all taken our place at the altar, Father Philip started us off with a few welcoming statements and a prayer.

All photos by Eau Claire Photographics.

Of course, within the Catholic church, couples are limited in choosing their readings, but we carefully considered the options, and I think the ones that we chose made for a beautiful and well-rounded set of passages.


You'll notice the arrangements for our bridal party: maid of honor and best man were on kneelers beside Sphinx and me, and the bridesmaids and groomsmen were seated on chairs in front of the first pew.  That's just the way our church preferred to do it, but I sure was glad to have Curls close by for all the veil/train adjusting that would be necessary with the kneeling and standing going on.

Aside: I like how the dresses we picked showed off the tattoos on Duffy and Perk! 
If you recall, we didn't decide on our readers until the dang week of the wedding because we're useless.  We chose Mrs. Pythagoras for the first reading; she was my high school math teacher (who has since become a close friend of the family) because she is a good speaker and someone I admire for her spirituality.  As a plus, plenty of my friends also had her as a teacher, so I figured they were all in the habit of listening to her and that would help them pay attention.  We chose BM Dino for the second reading, because she has spent some time on the stage as an actress and I knew she'd do a great job even though it was a last-minute request.


Another awesome bit that isn't caught on video: the reason why Sphinx and BM Skittles are laughing here.  The two readers walked up to the pulpit after the opening prayer.  As Dino made her way onto the altar, she realized that she was still carrying her bouquet and that it would probably get in the way while trying to read.  So of course, the logical thing was to toss it back over the ledge to BM Taco who swiped it out of the air with one hand.  I believe Curls and I are stifling laughs because it was just so Dino to do something like that. 
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FIRST READING: TOBIT 8:4B - 11


On their wedding night Tobiah arose from bed and said to his wife,
“Sister, get up. Let us pray and beg our Lord
to have mercy on us and to grant us deliverance.”
Sarah got up, and they started to pray
and beg that deliverance might be theirs.
They began with these words:


“Blessed are you, O God of our fathers;
praised be your name forever and ever.
Let the heavens and all your creation
praise you forever.
You made Adam and you gave him his wife Eve
to be his help and support;
and from these two the human race descended.
You said, ‘It is not good for the man to be alone;
let us make him a partner like himself.’
Now, Lord, you know that I take this wife of mine
not because of lust,
but for a noble purpose.
Call down your mercy on me and on her,
and allow us to live together to a happy old age.”
They said together, “Amen, amen.”
The word of the Lord.


In our preparation, Sphinx voiced his interest in this reading, and I was happy to use it.  It's obviously logical, because it deals with a man and his new wife, but it also reminds us that the marriage is a mutually beneficial arrangement to love and support one another.

RESPONSORIAL PSALM


The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.
May your kindness, oh Lord, be upon us who have put our hope in you.


The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.

SECOND READING: CORINTHIANS 12:31 - 13:8A 

A reading from the first Letter of Saint Paul to the Corinthians

Brothers and sisters:
Strive eagerly for the greatest spiritual gifts.
But I shall show you a still more excellent way.
If I speak in human and angelic tongues
but do not have love,
I am a resounding gong or a clashing cymbal.


And if I have the gift of prophecy
and comprehend all mysteries and all knowledge;
if I have all faith so as to move mountains,
but do not have love, I am nothing.
If I give away everything I own,
and if I hand my body over so that I may boast
but do not have love, I gain nothing.


Love is patient, love is kind.
It is not jealous, is not pompous,
it is not inflated, it is not rude,
it does not seek its own interests,
it is not quick-tempered, it does not brood over injury, it does not rejoice over wrongdoing
but rejoices with the truth.
It bears all things, believes all things,
hopes all things, endures all things.
Love never fails.
The word of the Lord.


I know, Vince Vaughn totally lost lost money on that one, but it's a classic and we both wanted to use it.  Also, I feel like the first part of the reading doesn't get enough attention, so I liked being able to reflect on the passage (the parts both familiar and not so much) before our wedding.  Letting the words sink in as Dino read them really made them hit home for me. They weren't just something cute in a movie; these are the words to live our married lives by.

GOSPEL ACCLAMATION


Alleliua, Alleliua, Alleliua, Alleliua
Alleliua, Alleliua, Alleliua, Alleliua



If we love one another, if we love one another, God will live in us, and our love will be strong.  


Alleliua, Alleliua, Alleliua, Alleliua
Alleliua, Alleliua, Alleliua, Alleliua

GOSPEL READING: MATTHEW 22:35 - 40
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew.


One of the Pharisees, a scholar of the law, tested Jesus by asking,
“Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?”
He said to him,
“You shall love the Lord, your God,
with all your heart,
with all your soul,
and with all your mind.
This is the greatest and the first commandment.


The second is like it:
You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments.”
The Gospel of the Lord.


This reading was my pick, and although it doesn't deal with a couple or a marriage, I liked the reminder within our ceremony that we should strive to be the best person we each can be within our marriage.  Loving the Lord and loving our neighbors are ways to becoming that person. 

HOMILY 

I won't transcribe the entirety of Father Philip's address here, but I would like to include some as I believe we had a very meaningful and heartfelt homily*.  The majority of the remarks pertained to how Saint Paul's famous words could be updated from their ideal state, into something that would be more real for our daily lives.  

Love is patient.  Despite the small things that may get on your nerves.  Like socks on the floor, grinding teeth, being kept waiting for breakfast or the bathroom, or even the kickoff of an LSU game.
Love is kind.  Even in the midst of disappointment and hurt.  Love comforts when either one of you is down and upset.  Love supports when either one of you is overwhelmed.  
Love is not jealous or pompous.  Especially when you're right and the other is most definitely wrong.

Love doesn't smother.  It's not possessive.  It refuses to manipulate.  Love remains humble and it is grounded in gratitude for one another.  Love manages to survive despite how selfish and ill mannered people can be at times.  
Love is not thin-skinned, nor does it go for the jugular.  Love never takes the other person for granted.  Love find its happiness and joy in the other person, in fulfillment in the dreams of the other.  
Love sees the world as "Us and Ours," not "Me and Mine."  Love lets go.  It encourages, it comforts, and it consoles. 
Love forgives. It does not tolerate estrangement or division. You will fight, and you will argue but love will always compel both of you to take that step toward healing and reconciliation.  

Love doesn't rejoice in being right or with who is smarter or more powerful.  Love doesn't care who brings home the bigger paycheck or who cooks the dinner.  Love only cares about the home that you will build together and the blessings of your marriage. 
My friends, such love never fails.  Keep your faith in God and your faith in one another. Always place God at the center of your marriage, and I promise it will never fail.
As Jesus tells us in the Gospel tonight, "Love God with all your heart, with all your mind, and with all your soul, and then love others." My prayer for both of you is that when today is a distant memory, and when life becomes unbearably hard, and when you hold each other for the last time, that love may never, ever fail you. 


And now let us become faithful witnesses of this beautiful event, as Evan and Lauren declare their love before God and this holy church.  
Next up - the part where we get married for really real.  The vows!

*I was especially impressed with our priest's homily, because he had to come up with new "material" after he performed a nuptial mass two weeks before with many of the same groom's guests in attendance - the wedding of his nephew, GM Shark, and our friend M!

Previously on the Pyramid Wedding:
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