United States Catholic Catechism for Adults

Chapter 30. Sixth Commandment: Marital Fidelity • 415

of Matrimony. God seals the consent that the bride and groom give to each other in this Sacrament. • “The acts in marriage by which the intimate and chaste union of the spouses takes place are noble and honorable; the truly human performance of these acts fosters the self-giving they signify and enriches the spouses in joy and gratitude” (CCC, no. 2362, citing GS, no. 49). • God calls the married couple to be open to children. In this way, they share the creative power and fatherhood of God. In giving birth to children and educating and forming them, they cooperate with the love of God as Creator (cf. CCC, no. 2367). • “In relation to physical, economic, psychological and social condi tions, responsible parenthood is exercised either by the thoughtfully made and generous decision to raise a large family, or by the deci sion, made for grave motives and with respect for the moral law, to avoid a new birth for the time being or even for an indeterminate period” (HV, no. 10) MEDITATION At a time in history like the present, special attention must also be given to the pastoral care of the family , particularly when this fundamental institution is experiencing a radical and wide spread crisis. In the Christian view of marriage, the relationship between a man and a woman—a mutual and total bond, unique and indissoluble—is part of God’s original plan, obscured throughout history by our “hardness of heart,” but which Christ came to restore to its pristine splendor, disclosing what had been God’s will “from the beginning” (Mt 19:8). Raised to the dignity of a Sacrament, marriage expresses the “great mys tery” of Christ’s nuptial love for his Church (cf. Eph 5:32). On this point the Church cannot yield to cultural pres sures, no matter how widespread and even militant they may be. Instead, it is necessary to ensure that through an ever more complete Gospel formation Christian families show convinc ingly that it is possible to live marriage fully in keeping with God’s plan and with the true good of the human person—of