end of mass, before giving the last blessing, she addresseth likewise both of them, saying, "May the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob be with you, and may He fulfil his blessing in you, that you may see your children's children to the third and fourth generation; and afterwards enter the possession of eternal life, through the assistance of our Lord Jesus Christ, who, with the Father and the Holy Ghost, liveth and reigneth one God forever. Amen." Such are the laws and ceremonies prescribed by the church for Catholic marriages. Would to God they were faithfully observed by Christians! There would not be so many unhappy marriages and scandals in Christian society.

Having considered matrimony under its two-fold aspect, as a contract and as a sacrament, under the Christian dispensation; its essential qualities of unity, sanctity, and indissolubility; the different erroneous doctrines opposed to the same as an institution of God; the power and zeal of the Catholic church in protecting Christian marriage by prudent and wise laws, it seems to us that our object would remain yet imperfect unless we placed before the reader the duties resulting from Christian marriage, the knowledge of which may greatly contribute to direct those who feel themselves called to that state, how they ought to proceed with the utmost care, rectitude of intention, and guided by religion in embracing it. This is what we are going to do in the following lines:

The duties resulting from matrimony, called by Saint Paul a "Yoke" (2d Cor. c. 6, v. 14), are of such importance and so arduous that the disciples of our Lord hearing him speak of them, and especially of those

resulting from its perpetuity, said to him, "If the case of a man with his wife be so, it is not good to marry;" that is to say, it is better not to marry. To whom the Lord, approving their opinion, said, "All receive not this word, but they to whom it is given" (Matt. c. 19, vv. 10, 11); and hence He took occasion to extol and enhance celibacy over the matrimonial state, saying: "There are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake," and encouraged them to celibacy, adding, "He that can receive it, let him receive it." (Same, v. 12.) St. Paul also recommends celibacy and virginity over the matrimonial state, as being more apt to attend to the service of God and to one's salvation, saying, "He that is without a wife is solicitous for the things that belong to the Lord, how he may please God; but he that is with a wife is solicitous for the things of the world, how he may please his wife, and he is divided. And the unmarried woman and the virgin thinketh on the things of the Lord, that she may be holy both in body and spirit; but she that is married thinketh on the things of the world, how she may please her husband." (1st Cor. 7.) Concerning this, however, there is no commandment, except for such who freely, of their own choice, impose upon themselves the obligation and vow chastity and celibacy to the Lord, having received the gift from him; but it is only advised as more perfect and pleasing to God. "Now concerning virgins," says the same Apostle (Same), "I have no commandment of the Lord, but I give counsel, as having obtained mercy of the Lord to be faithful. I would that all men were even as

myself," that is to say, unmarried; "but every one has

his proper gift from God, one after this manner, and another after that; but I say to the unmarried and to the widows, it is good for them if they so continue, even as I. But if they do not contain themselves, let them marry; for it is better to marry than to burn. ... If thou take a wife, thou hast not sinned; and if a virgin marry, she hath not sinned; nevertheless, such shall have tribulation of the flesh. . . . . Therefore, both he that giveth his virgin in marriage, doeth well; and he that giveth her not, doeth better. .... A woman is bound by the law as long as her husband liveth; but if her husband die, she is at liberty; let her marry to whom she will, only in the Lord. But more blessed shall she be if so she remain, according to my counsel; and I think that I also have the Spirit of God."

....

This is the doctrine by which the church hath always been guided in strenuously defending, against the ancient heretics, the dignity of matrimony, and against the modern reformers, the supremacy of celibacy and virginity over the matrimonial state. Against the former, namely, the Manicheans, who, as Saint Paul says (1 Tim. 4), "giving heed to spirits of error and doctrines of devils, speaking lies in hypocrisy," were "forbidding to marry as a diabolical institution, the church declared that matrimony is an institution of God, sanctified by our Lord, and raised by himself into the dignity of a sacrament under the Christian dispensation; and against the latter, who, preferring matrimony to celibacy and virginity, not on account of the sacrament, which dignity they also denied to matrimony, but merely as something more congenial to them, and opposing celibacy, which they had vowed to God and were not

willing to keep, and therefore they condemned it, together with virginity, as contrary to their inclinations, by which they measured the gospel truths, the church declared, according to the above doctrine of our Lord and his blessed Apostle, celibacy and virginity to be preferable to matrimony, saying (Conc. Trin. Sess. 24, Can. 10), "If any one say that the original state is to be preferred to the state of virginity or celibacy, and that it is not better and more blessed to live in virginity or celibacy than to contract matrimony, let him be anathema."

According to this gospel's doctrine, blessed are they who are called to the state of celibacy, whether male or female, either to the ecclesiastical state or to the state of a religious life, and persevere faithful to their holy vocation. Such is the preeminence of celibacy over matrimony, that when accompanied with solemn vows in religion, even after a previous marriage contracted but not consummated, by virtue of the vows the tie of matrimony is dissolved, so that the party remaining in the world after the vows of the other can contract matrimony with another. Whether this be merely by virtue of the excellency of the religious vows over matrimony, or by divine disposition in favor of the religious life implied in that recommendation made by Jesus Christ of renouncing all things, father, mother, brother, sister, wife, and even one's life to follow Him (Matt. c. 19, v. 29, Luke, c. 14, v. 26), or lastly by virtue of a condition always implied in the marriage contract, namely, "I contract for life, unless previous to the consummation of matrimony I would consecrate myself to God in religious life," certain it

is that matrimony contracted but not consummated is dissolved by solemn religious vows, as the church has declared according to the above said doctrine, condemning as heretics those who would dare to deny it: "If any one say that matrimony contracted, but not consummated, is not dissolved by the solemn religious profession of one of the contracting parties, let him be anathema." (Con. Trin. Sess. 24, Can. 6.) The reason of the dissolution of such marriage in favor of the more blessed state of religious life, is because the union of Jesus Christ with his church is fully represented and perfected only by consummation, by which the contracting parties become "one flesh," as also the members of the church, with relation to Christ, are said to be by the Apostle" of his flesh and of his bones" (Eph. c. 5, v. 30); and from said consummation results the absolute indissolubility of the matrimonial tie. Hence also comes the opinion of some divines, who affirm that the supreme pontiff, by virtue of the supreme power of the keys conferred on him by our Lord, can dissolve, in some extraordinary cases, the tie of said matrimony contracted, but not consummated; and sustain their opinion by facts which prove the exercise of said power.

Returning to our subject, we say, according to the above said doctrine of our Lord, and that of the Apostle, that blessed are they who are called to a state of celibacy; but, as all have not received this gift from God, so they are to be satisfied whom God hath called to a married life; it is also a gift of God, although not so perfect; they shall have tribulation of the flesh, as Saint Paul says. But they do well marrying when called; and they shall find therein also, the means of sanctifica