Wednesday, May 26, 2004
Papal Wisdom: Pius XI on Christian Marriage
Part 2a. The Blessings of Marriage - That of Children
After outlining the scope of his encyclical on Marriage, and some introductory remarks, Pius XI then goes on to discuss the three 3 primary blessings of marriage. The first we shall examine is that of children.
One wonders why Pius XI chose children as that first blessing of marriage, and indeed the primary. Many today feel that the primary blessing of marriage is that of the conjugal love for each other, rather than the bearing and raising of children. This is no doubt a great blessing, and Pius XI covers this right after children. The reason I submit he mentions children as the first blessing is because it is indeed a monumental blessing. Through the act of love, a child made in the image of God is brought upon this earth. Christ himself identifies with this act, as he himself was once a child, sharing in the great mystery and blessing. The mother cares for the child just as the Blessed Mother herself cared for the Baby Jesus. The Father cares for the child, and teaches him discpline just as Joseph taught Jesus.
There is an old painting I remember of Jospeh and Jesus working late at night, Jospeh holding a lamp so that Jesus can see what he is doing. This was obviously work that Joseph could have done himself, yet Joseph, in the role of a Father, teaches his son the value of work, of labor to secure and promote the family. Through the birth of children we are witnesses(and at times in the case of women actual partakers) of a great miracle, in which a child in the image of God is brought to Earth. In raising children, we partake in the same joy that the Holy Family themselves participated in. With this in mind, let us begin our analysis of the Encyclical.
"11. Thus amongst the blessings of marriage, the child holds the first place. And indeed the Creator of the human race Himself, Who in His goodness wishes to use men as His helpers in the propagation of life, taught this when, instituting marriage in Paradise, He said to our first parents, and through them to all future spouses: "Increase and multiply, and fill the earth." As St. Augustine admirably deduces from the words of the holy Apostle Saint Paul to Timothy when he says: "The Apostle himself is therefore a witness that marriage is for the sake of generation: 'I wish,' he says, 'young girls to marry.' And, as if someone said to him, 'Why?,' he immediately adds: 'To bear children, to be mothers of families'"
Here Pius XI adds yet another aspect of the blessing of children, in that through humans, God uses us to accomplish the goal of propogation of life. We participate in a most special way in this task. Through this act we are fulfilling one of God's first obligations to humanity. We shall see why this is so important later.
"12. How great a boon of God this is, and how great a blessing of matrimony is clear from a consideration of man's dignity and of his sublime end. For man surpasses all other visible creatures by the superiority of his rational nature alone. Besides, God wishes men to be born not only that they should live and fill the earth, but much more that they may be worshippers of God, that they may know Him and love Him and finally enjoy Him for ever in heaven; and this end, since man is raised by God in a marvelous way to the supernatural order, surpasses all that eye hath seen, and ear heard, and all that hath entered into the heart of man. From which it is easily seen how great a gift of divine goodness and how remarkable a fruit of marriage are children born by the omnipotent power of God through the cooperation of those bound in wedlock. "
Many today when they hear about "the dignity of man" they start to head for friendlier waters, as today's post-modern society is obsessed with worshipping itself. Yet the idea of man's dignity is not something false, but indeed the root of all Catholic social teaching. It covers man's dignity, and his resposbility to God and his fellow man. God gave us a rational nature and a soul so that we could know him, and know all that which is true. God is very active in the lives of his creation. Furthermore, God without a doubt wishes that he and he alone be worshipped. Hence, in the miracle of birth, and in raising children, not only is the wellbeing of the family enhanced, but the worship of God is as well, which is the primary end of all we should do. Through the miracle of child bearing, and the act of conception itself, we partake in a supernatural event, and in the raising of child, we wish to raise them to their true calling, made in the Image of God.
"14. For although Christian spouses even if sanctified themselves cannot transmit sanctification to their progeny, nay, although the very natural process of generating life has become the way of death by which original sin is passed on to posterity, nevertheless, they share to some extent in the blessings of that primeval marriage of Paradise, since it is theirs to offer their offspring to the Church in order that by this most fruitful Mother of the children of God they may be regenerated through the laver of Baptism unto supernatural justice and finally be made living members of Christ, partakers of immortal life, and heirs of that eternal glory to which we all aspire from our inmost heart. "
Though original sin effects us all, we are released from that curse in baptism. Therefore, when we bring children into the world, in wishing to raise worshippers of the True God and Savior, we are to present them for baptism. Since our love for children should be to it that they seek first the Kingdom of God, we are to look out for their eternal well being, and baptism is obviously the first step.
"16. The blessing of offspring, however, is not completed by the mere begetting of them, but something else must be added, namely the proper education of the offspring. For the most wise God would have failed to make sufficient provision for children that had been born, and so for the whole human race, if He had not given to those to whom He had entrusted the power and right to beget them, the power also and the right to educate them. For no one can fail to see that children are incapable of providing wholly for themselves, even in matters pertaining to their natural life, and much less in those pertaining to the supernatural, but require for many years to be helped, instructed, and educated by others. Now it is certain that both by the law of nature and of God this right and duty of educating their offspring belongs in the first place to those who began the work of nature by giving them birth, and they are indeed forbidden to leave unfinished this work and so expose it to certain ruin. But in matrimony provision has been made in the best possible way for this education of children that is so necessary, for, since the parents are bound together by an indissoluble bond, the care and mutual help of each is always at hand. "
The blessing of children is indeed a lifelong blessing. For not only is it the parents reponsibility to beget them, but also to educate them properly. It is not the village's responsibility to raise and educate a child (a la Hillary Clinton's phrase "It takes a village to raise a child") yet it is the job primarily of the parents. As was noted earlier, and will be covered by Pius XI in far greater detail elsewhere, the Society, by neccessity, must start with the family. It should only go to higher levels when those below are absolutely incapable of helping out. The reason it is primarily the right of the parent is that they were involved in that child's creation through the deep mystery of begetting a child in the Image of God. Furthermore, Pius XI tells us that God has instilled within those parents in Christian marriage the ability to educate those children. One could say this is part of the grace indeed that comes from the marriage sacrament.
For these reasons Pius XI concludes with the following statement, right from even Canon Law:
"The primary end of marriage is the procreation and the education of children."
Part 2a. The Blessings of Marriage - That of Children
After outlining the scope of his encyclical on Marriage, and some introductory remarks, Pius XI then goes on to discuss the three 3 primary blessings of marriage. The first we shall examine is that of children.
One wonders why Pius XI chose children as that first blessing of marriage, and indeed the primary. Many today feel that the primary blessing of marriage is that of the conjugal love for each other, rather than the bearing and raising of children. This is no doubt a great blessing, and Pius XI covers this right after children. The reason I submit he mentions children as the first blessing is because it is indeed a monumental blessing. Through the act of love, a child made in the image of God is brought upon this earth. Christ himself identifies with this act, as he himself was once a child, sharing in the great mystery and blessing. The mother cares for the child just as the Blessed Mother herself cared for the Baby Jesus. The Father cares for the child, and teaches him discpline just as Joseph taught Jesus.
There is an old painting I remember of Jospeh and Jesus working late at night, Jospeh holding a lamp so that Jesus can see what he is doing. This was obviously work that Joseph could have done himself, yet Joseph, in the role of a Father, teaches his son the value of work, of labor to secure and promote the family. Through the birth of children we are witnesses(and at times in the case of women actual partakers) of a great miracle, in which a child in the image of God is brought to Earth. In raising children, we partake in the same joy that the Holy Family themselves participated in. With this in mind, let us begin our analysis of the Encyclical.
"11. Thus amongst the blessings of marriage, the child holds the first place. And indeed the Creator of the human race Himself, Who in His goodness wishes to use men as His helpers in the propagation of life, taught this when, instituting marriage in Paradise, He said to our first parents, and through them to all future spouses: "Increase and multiply, and fill the earth." As St. Augustine admirably deduces from the words of the holy Apostle Saint Paul to Timothy when he says: "The Apostle himself is therefore a witness that marriage is for the sake of generation: 'I wish,' he says, 'young girls to marry.' And, as if someone said to him, 'Why?,' he immediately adds: 'To bear children, to be mothers of families'"
Here Pius XI adds yet another aspect of the blessing of children, in that through humans, God uses us to accomplish the goal of propogation of life. We participate in a most special way in this task. Through this act we are fulfilling one of God's first obligations to humanity. We shall see why this is so important later.
"12. How great a boon of God this is, and how great a blessing of matrimony is clear from a consideration of man's dignity and of his sublime end. For man surpasses all other visible creatures by the superiority of his rational nature alone. Besides, God wishes men to be born not only that they should live and fill the earth, but much more that they may be worshippers of God, that they may know Him and love Him and finally enjoy Him for ever in heaven; and this end, since man is raised by God in a marvelous way to the supernatural order, surpasses all that eye hath seen, and ear heard, and all that hath entered into the heart of man. From which it is easily seen how great a gift of divine goodness and how remarkable a fruit of marriage are children born by the omnipotent power of God through the cooperation of those bound in wedlock. "
Many today when they hear about "the dignity of man" they start to head for friendlier waters, as today's post-modern society is obsessed with worshipping itself. Yet the idea of man's dignity is not something false, but indeed the root of all Catholic social teaching. It covers man's dignity, and his resposbility to God and his fellow man. God gave us a rational nature and a soul so that we could know him, and know all that which is true. God is very active in the lives of his creation. Furthermore, God without a doubt wishes that he and he alone be worshipped. Hence, in the miracle of birth, and in raising children, not only is the wellbeing of the family enhanced, but the worship of God is as well, which is the primary end of all we should do. Through the miracle of child bearing, and the act of conception itself, we partake in a supernatural event, and in the raising of child, we wish to raise them to their true calling, made in the Image of God.
"14. For although Christian spouses even if sanctified themselves cannot transmit sanctification to their progeny, nay, although the very natural process of generating life has become the way of death by which original sin is passed on to posterity, nevertheless, they share to some extent in the blessings of that primeval marriage of Paradise, since it is theirs to offer their offspring to the Church in order that by this most fruitful Mother of the children of God they may be regenerated through the laver of Baptism unto supernatural justice and finally be made living members of Christ, partakers of immortal life, and heirs of that eternal glory to which we all aspire from our inmost heart. "
Though original sin effects us all, we are released from that curse in baptism. Therefore, when we bring children into the world, in wishing to raise worshippers of the True God and Savior, we are to present them for baptism. Since our love for children should be to it that they seek first the Kingdom of God, we are to look out for their eternal well being, and baptism is obviously the first step.
"16. The blessing of offspring, however, is not completed by the mere begetting of them, but something else must be added, namely the proper education of the offspring. For the most wise God would have failed to make sufficient provision for children that had been born, and so for the whole human race, if He had not given to those to whom He had entrusted the power and right to beget them, the power also and the right to educate them. For no one can fail to see that children are incapable of providing wholly for themselves, even in matters pertaining to their natural life, and much less in those pertaining to the supernatural, but require for many years to be helped, instructed, and educated by others. Now it is certain that both by the law of nature and of God this right and duty of educating their offspring belongs in the first place to those who began the work of nature by giving them birth, and they are indeed forbidden to leave unfinished this work and so expose it to certain ruin. But in matrimony provision has been made in the best possible way for this education of children that is so necessary, for, since the parents are bound together by an indissoluble bond, the care and mutual help of each is always at hand. "
The blessing of children is indeed a lifelong blessing. For not only is it the parents reponsibility to beget them, but also to educate them properly. It is not the village's responsibility to raise and educate a child (a la Hillary Clinton's phrase "It takes a village to raise a child") yet it is the job primarily of the parents. As was noted earlier, and will be covered by Pius XI in far greater detail elsewhere, the Society, by neccessity, must start with the family. It should only go to higher levels when those below are absolutely incapable of helping out. The reason it is primarily the right of the parent is that they were involved in that child's creation through the deep mystery of begetting a child in the Image of God. Furthermore, Pius XI tells us that God has instilled within those parents in Christian marriage the ability to educate those children. One could say this is part of the grace indeed that comes from the marriage sacrament.
For these reasons Pius XI concludes with the following statement, right from even Canon Law:
"The primary end of marriage is the procreation and the education of children."
