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By Suzanne Haugh, Staff Writer
LILBURN—Journeying two by two, Father Jim Fennessy, pastor at
St. John Neumann Church, Lilburn, commissioned married couples to be “21st
century disciples” at a nuptial Mass held June 3 at the church.
The celebration marked an opportunity for couples at the parish to
renew their marriage vows and commitment to their vocation in married life.
Cantor Sam Hagan, accompanied by organist Alan Brown, sang the
“Ave Maria” as more than 170 couples settled into the pews. Once
Father Fennessy and Father Jack Durkin, who concelebrated the Mass, processed
into the church, flowers were presented to the couple married the longest and
the couple most recently wed.
Lectors for the first and second readings were Lilia and Arnold
Manangan and Glenn and Rhonda Klein.
In his homily, Father Fennessy praised the commitment of couples
present, which represented more than 4,882 years of marriage.
He thanked them for “being sacramental couples seeking to
live your vocation in life.”
It is good to come back and remember how it all began, Father
Fennessy said, and also to recall that each couple’s journey in marriage
includes being disciples of Jesus Christ. He referred to the commitment made
during the sacrament of marriage, which reflects the relationship of Jesus and
the church.
“That man and woman are to be one, to live in union as
‘flesh of one flesh, bone of one bone,’ to love as much as is humanly
possible.”
A sacramental couple is “a tremendous tribute to faith in
God, to one another and to constantly living out that lifestyle,” he said.
“The truth underlining is to love with an everlasting love. That you be
committed to desiring to love one another, to seek one another, to forgive one
another so you can experience joy.”
Father Fennessy referred to the many jokes one hears about
marriage and how, after the ceremony, “the honeymoon’s over, that
everything has to be dull and serious.”
“Jesus has other plans better than that: to love one another,
enjoy one another.”
He said marriage is a gift and to praise God for its goodness. A
marriage requires each person in the relationship to be submissive, said Father
Fennessy, joking that, as a priest, he may sometimes have “a terrible time
with it.”
But being obedient to God’s calling, whether in marriage or
in the priesthood, is crucial.
“Submission is really at the heart of the sacramental life,
the life of Jesus Christ,” he said.
Father Fennessy recalled twice how Jesus remained committed to God
when Satan tempted him in the desert and on the night of Judas’ betrayal.
Being completely independent from God, his Father, Jesus could have had
anything in the world he wanted, but he said no to Satan out of love for God
and because it was not God’s will. While Jesus first asked that this
“cup pass from him” that night in the garden, he submitted to
God’s will.
“There’s not only the submission of marriage but the
submission of ordination,” Father Fennessy said.
“We are called to defer to one another; a husband is called
to love his wife as his own body ... and you are to be submissive to her
thoughts and opinions.”
Recalling the example of the early church, Father Fennessy said
that Christians then “came together in prayer, in love, to submit to the
will of God. Therefore, you should seek to be true to that always. When true to
God and true to one another then joy comes. Turn away from making yourselves
the center of the union, but make God the center of your lives and your joy
will be complete.”
Following the homily, couples had the opportunity to renew their
marriage vows, first in Spanish and then in English.
Following the Liturgy of the Eucharist and the dismissal, the
couples enjoyed a catered reception in Lind Hall. Amid a fountain of punch, a
towering wedding cake and hors d’oeuvres, couples mingled with one another
and danced.
“It’s been a special night,” said Julia Hanley,
coordinator of the event along with her husband, Joe. “It’s exceeded
our expectations.”
Her hope for the evening was that by renewing their vows, married
couples would rekindle their love for each other. “They might experience
the same feelings they felt on their wedding day, maybe even deeper now since
they have shared so many more experiences, like having children.”
Hanley credited Father Fennessy with initiating the evening.
“He really had the idea originally to do something in the Jubilee
Year.”
While the WEDS group, a group comprised of couples who have made a
Marriage Encounter weekend, helped to organize the evening, others were
involved. Altar servers were Chris Curtis, Andrew Klein and Taylor Peterson,
children of couples present.
Having just celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary a few days
prior, Claire and Stanley Wovtak were honored for being the longest married
couple of the evening. They recalled their nervousness before the ceremony, the
flowers in the Chicago church where they were married, dancing the polka at the
reception, and Stanley chimed in remembering how couples “held together no
matter what.” |
