Bride Of Christ

[God's Beloved]

I don't know if I'd be comfortable in using a rainbow analogy since the rainbow is used today to signify sexual "diversity" or perversity, but I do understand your point and agree that each vocation must be understood for what it is.

 

Again, while I think it is important to understand the charism of the consecrated virgins, I am not sure we should use the word "redefine" to describe our understanding of our vocation.  "Redefine" in my way of thinking, has to do with changing our definition of something, which means that that thing has changed in essence or that the definition was seriously wrong in the first place.  I would say "refine" instead.  What the Fathers of the Church said is always true.  CVs are the Bride of Christ.  The point of this thread isn't to redefine "bride" but to clarify what is meant by the term and to make sufficient distinctions to give honor to the essence of other vocations such as religious life for women.

 

Hi AbrideofChrist,

 

Many terms which have rich meaning in Scripture and Tradition of the Church , when used by Secular forces ,seem to become banal or even sound perversive . [ sadly this includes the title Bride of Christ . In such cultures CV do not vocally use it to refer to themselves].

 

Also, the rainbow imagery is very prominent in movements like the Focolare that have Unity as their Charism. They also have various groups of different generations called Gen , applying different colours to each  Gen. I derive my liking for the rainbow from my friendship with them .In my culture the rainbow does not signify sexual diversity or perversity at all . Here the  concept of homosexuality is hardly known or seen. The rainbow also reminds me of the Covenant of God with Noah  and of Mary as Ark of the Covenant. The vocation of CV is so close to this understanding !

 

Anyway , this shows how important it is to use Symbols and Images in harmony with the various cultures in the world where the Church lives.

 

I'm not doubting that CV are called to BE Bride of Christ and that CV is a Covenant of Marriage between one man and one woman .She is gifted the three titles and charism of being  virgin, bride, mother  . She usually chooses which title to focus on , according to her culture . The three titles also reflect the threefold emphasis as per canon 604 # 1  on Consecration to God as a Virgin like Mary , mystical espousal with Christ as His Bride and Service to the Church as a Mother.

 

The theology of  the Sacrament of Matrimony  is derived from the theology of the Consecration of virgins . The spousal bond in CV is indissoluble / irrevocable  ----this is the reason why the Church also considers the spousal bond in the Sacrament of marriage very very seriously because it reflects the marriage of the Church with Christ which actually happens in the consecration of a virgin.

 

Religious life shares in the imagery like every baptized person in the Church. Religious reflect the Church as bride , only as a community,If a religious leaves her institute , she no more reflects the bride of Christ . By nature religious life in all religions is focused on Renunciation as a form of Asceticism . For Apostolic religious ,Celibacy is more of a freedom to be available for apostolic services . Several religious women do live the spousal spirituality as well , but this is Optional.

 

Regarding the 'terms'  re-define , refine etc  I think  I'd prefer to grapple with them  for some time since its not a priority at this moment  in the thread.

[God's Beloved]

The following is the suggested homily in the rite of consecration of virgins living in the world from  the Roman Pontifical [ latest version I think yr 2011-12  with some minor but very significant changes compared to the translation around yr 1970 . Emphasis in bold and red is mine , also comments in italics are mine ]

 

 

 

HOMILY OR ADDRESS

 

16 The Bishop then gives a short Homily to the candidates and the people on the gift of virginity and its role in the sanctification of those called to virginity and the welfare of the whole Church. He does so in these or similar words:

 

Dear brothers and sisters, today the Church consecrates these candidates to a life of virginity. They come from God’s holy people, from your own families. They are your daughters, your sisters, your relatives, joined by the ties of family or friendship.

 

God has called them to be more closely united to himself and to be dedicated to the service of the Church and of mankind. Their consecration is a call to greater fervor in spreading the kingdom of God and in giving to the world the spirit of Christ. Think of the good they will accomplish by their prayers and good works, and the abundant blessings they will obtain from God for holy Church, for human society, and for your families.

 

He then addresses the candidates:

 

And now we speak to you, dear daughters. Our words are not words of command but encouragement from the heart. The life you seek to follow has its home in heaven. God himself is its source. It is he, infinitely pure and holy, who gives the grace of virginity. Those to whom he gives it are seen by the Fathers of the Church as images of the eternal and all-holy God.

 

When the fullness of time had come, the almighty Father showed, in the mystery of the Incarnation, his love for this great virtue. In the chaste womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary, by the power of the Holy Spirit, the Word was made flesh, in a marriage covenant uniting two natures, human and divine.

 

Our Lord himself taught us the high calling of such a life, consecrated to God and chosen for the sake of the Kingdom of Heaven . By his whole life, and especially by his labors, his preaching, and, above all, by his Paschal Mystery, he brought his Church into being. He desired it to be a virgin, a bride, and a mother: a virgin, to keep the faith whole and entire; a bride, to be one with him forever; and a mother, to raise up the family of the Church.

 

 

 

The Holy Spirit, the Paraclete, through Baptism has already made you temples of God’s glory and children of the Father. Today through our ministry he anoints you with a new grace and consecrates you to God by a new title. He gives each one of you the dignity of being a bride of Christ and binds you to the Son of God in a covenant to last forever.

 

[this consecration as Bride does not 'renew' the grace of baptism as it is in Religious Profession , but is an 'added' NEW grace and title ]

 

 

 

 

The Church is the Bride of Christ. This title of the Church was given by the fathers and doctors of the Church to those like you who speak to us of the world to come, where there is no marrying or giving in marriage. You are a sign of the great mystery of salvation, proclaimed at the beginning of human history and fulfilled in the marriage covenant between Christ and his Church.

 

Make your whole life reflect your vocation and your dignity. Our holy mother the Church sees in you a chosen company within the flock of Christ. Through you the Church’s motherhood of grace bears its abundant fruit. Imitate the Mother of God; desire to be called and to be handmaids of the Lord. Preserve the fullness of your faith, the steadfastness of your hope, the single-heartedness of your love. Be prudent and watch: keep the glory of your virginity uncorrupted by pride. Nourish your love of God by feeding on the body of Christ; strengthen it by self-denial; build it up by study of the Scriptures, by untiring prayer, by works of mercy. Let your thoughts be on the things of God. Let your life be hidden with Christ in God. Make it your concern to pray fervently for the spread of the Christian faith and for the unity of all Christians. Pray earnestly to God for the welfare of the married. Remember also those who have forgotten their Father’s goodness and have abandoned his love, so that God’s mercy may forgive where his justice must condemn.

 

Never forget that you are given over entirely to the service of the Church and of all your brothers and sisters. You are apostles in the Church and in the world, in the things of the Spirit and in the things of the world. Let your light then shine before men and women, that your Father in heaven may be glorified, and his plan of making all things one in Christ come to perfection. Love everyone, especially those in need. Help the poor, care for the weak, teach the ignorant, protect the young, minister to the old, bring strength and comfort to widows and all in adversity.

 

You have renounced marriage for the sake of Christ. Your motherhood will be motherhood of the spirit, as you do the will of your Father and work with others in a spirit of charity, so that a great family of children may be born, or reborn, to the life of grace.

 

Your joy and your crown, even here on earth, will be Christ, the Son of the Virgin and the Bridegroom of virgins. He will call you to his presence and into his Kingdom, where you will sing a new song as you follow the Lamb of God wherever he leads you.

[God's Beloved]

Interesting to note that nowhere in this Ancient Rite for virgins is there a mention of  vows in terms of the evangelical counsels as in religious life which developed centuries later . The  resolution or proposito however  mentions the Following of Christ  with everything that this implies.

[BarbTherese]

All the baptized are called to poverty, chastity and obedience or evangelical counsels not to their radical following perhaps as vowed in religious life - or they may be called to a radical following outside of religious life.

 

 

 http://www.ewtn.com/library/PRIESTS/FR91203.TXT

If Christ proposes the way of the counsels to all the faithful, it is difficult
to avoid the conclusion that choosing not to embrace it is, at the very least, a
sign of lesser zeal. A lay person, simply by remaining lay, fails somehow to
seek perfection; an idea not uncommon among monastic writers, but firmly
rejected by the Magisterium.[7]

 

Catholilc Catechism

1973 Besides its precepts, the New Law also includes the evangelical counsels. The traditional distinction between God's commandments and the evangelical counsels is drawn in relation to charity, the perfection of Christian life. The precepts are intended to remove whatever is incompatible with charity. The aim of the counsels is to remove whatever might hinder the development of charity, even if it is not contrary to it.

 

1974 The evangelical counsels manifest the living fullness of charity, which is never satisfied with not giving more. They attest its vitality and call forth our spiritual readiness. The perfection of the New Law consists essentially in the precepts of love of God and neighbour. The counsels point out the more direct ways, the readier means, and are to be practiced in keeping with the vocation of each:

 

[God] does not want each person to keep all the counsels, but only those appropriate to the diversity of persons, times, opportunities, and strengths, as charity requires; for it is charity, as queen of all virtues, all commandments, all counsels, and, in short, of all laws and all Christian actions that gives to all of them their rank, order, time, and value.

 

 

 

Vita Consecrata

http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/apost_exhortations/documents/hf_jp-ii_exh_25031996_vita-consecrata_en.html

The Order of Virgins; hermits and widows

7. It is a source of joy and hope to witness in our time a new flowering of the ancient Order of Virgins, known in Christian communities ever since apostolic times.Consecrated by the diocesan Bishop, these women acquire a particular link with the Church, which they are commited to serve while remaining in the world. Either alone or in association with others, they constitute a special eschatological image of the Heavenly Bride and of the life to come, when the Church will at last fully live her love for Christ the Bridegroom.

 

 

 

http://catholicdistanceu.com/2013/02/04/237/
 

A consecrated virgin, like St. Agatha, is considered an image or sign of the relationship between Christ and his Church (923). She is meant to be an image of the life that each of us ideally will have in the future Kingdom of God.

This is the reason the Church places such importance on the consecrated life and on these women who are essentially married to Christ—we are all and each of us meant to be his bride.  St. Paul writes of this relationship beautifully in his Letter to the Ephesians (5:22-33). It is a relationship of communion.

The word communion is often used lightly today, but the relationship we are to have with Christ is one that is so much more than we find in today’s relationships. It is one of intimate sharing—the one that is witnessed to by those in consecrated life on a daily basis. They have been called, in a more perfect way, to experience this communion with their Lord while on earth. How amazing!

In essence, this means that they hold a great responsibility. These men and women are called to set the example for us.  By their example, Christ is calling us to respond. Their vocation is a reminder to love God more perfectly and to live our lives preparing for intimate communion with Christ. No wonder the Church dedicates a day of prayer for them.

 

 

[God's Beloved]

Dear Klarisse,

 

The following is from the Introduction to the Rite of Religious Profession

 

I. Nature and import of Religious Profession

1. In response to God's call many Christians dedicate themselves to his
service and to the welfare of humanity through the sacred bonds of religious
life and seek to follow Christ more closely through the evangelical counsels.
This leads to the grace of baptism achieving richer results in them.

2. The Church has always esteemed the religious life, which, under the
guidance of the Holy Spirit, has taken various forms in the course of history

 

3.It has raised religious life to the rank of a canonical state and approved a great
number of religious institutes and protected them by wise legislation

For it is the Church that receives the vows of those who make
religious profession, begs God's grace for them by its public prayer, puts them
in God's hands, blesses them, and unites their offering with the Eucharistic
sacrifice.

 

 

Also according to the Ritual in general for women and men :

6. After the period prescribed by law, final profession is made, by which
religious bind themselves permanently to the service of God and the Church.
Perpetual profession reflects the unbreakable union between Christ and his
Bride, the Church

 

Canon  law 654  : By religious profession members make a public vow to observe the three evangelical counsels. Through the ministry of the Church they are consecrated to God , and are incorporated into the institute with the rights and duties defined by law.

 

Nowhere in Canon law, CCC or the Rite of Religious Profession is it stated that an 'individual' religious woman is in Essence a bride of Christ . When spousal imagery is mentioned , it is about Religious life  as a vocation in the church  reflecting the Church who is the Bride of Christ.

[abrideofChrist]

God's Beloved-

 

Great posts.  Thank you for spelling it out.  It helps when you highlight the Rites and their own words so that people can follow what the Rites are actually saying.  :)

[abrideofChrist]

 

The theology of  the Sacrament of Matrimony  is derived from the theology of the Consecration of virgins . The spousal bond in CV is indissoluble / irrevocable  ----this is the reason why the Church also considers the spousal bond in the Sacrament of marriage very very seriously because it reflects the marriage of the Church with Christ which actually happens in the consecration of a virgin.

 

Religious life shares in the imagery like every baptized person in the Church.

 

Indeed, this is very significant.  I would not say that the theology of marriage is derived from the theology of the Consecration of Virgins.  But I would agree that the spousal bonds in both must be understood in light of each other.  For one thing, the Catechism teaches this (check out numbers 1601-1666 for information on how the Church understands marriage and virginity).  As the prayer of Consecration of a Virgin says, she forsakes marriage for the union of which marriage is a sign.  Consecrated virginity is not a sacrament because it IS what the Sacrament is trying to signify.  It is a more perfect representation of the Church herself. 

[BarbTherese]

 

.........edit................ The spousal bond in CV is indissoluble / irrevocable  ----this is the reason why the Church also considers the spousal bond in the Sacrament of marriage very very seriously because it reflects the marriage of the Church with Christ which actually happens in the consecration of a virgin.

 

Religious life shares in the imagery like every baptized person in the Church.

 

 

Good post.

The Church IS the Bride of Christ and CV's an image or reflection of The Church.  All the baptized share in this image in some way as images or reflections themselves.  Each of the vocations speak to each other and all ideally point to The Church as THE Bride of Christ as we each live out our own vocation in quite unique ways as MEMBERS OF The Mystical Body of Christ on earth.  Just as the human body has ears, eyes, nose, emotions etc. etc., so the various vocations or calls in the Mystical Body of Christ on earth have different functionsm witnessing and imaging, reflecting, in different manners - and  EITHER building up or attacking from within (through deliberate sin)The Mystical Body of Christ on earth.

 

The spousal imagery and the word "marriage" itself can lead some amiss at times.  These words and images mean "Unity with Christ" which is effected in the Consecration of a Virgin - however we all remain faulted and weak creatures and this "Unity with Christ" can either build up the Body of Christ on earth or attack it from within.  Consecrated Virginity, and indissoluble, is indeed a tremendous responsibility and therefore accountability for Graces received - as is indeed every vocation.

 

A question.  As with marriage can the Consecration of a Virgin (once investigated on application) be declared annulled (as with some marriages) ?  Meaning, of course, that at the time of consecration there was some circumstance present indicating that the consecration was not valid.

Edited August 11, 2013 by BarbaraTherese

[BarbTherese]

Catholic Catechism:

1619 Virginity for the sake of the kingdom of heaven is an unfolding of baptismal grace, a powerful sign of the supremacy of the bond with Christ and of the ardent expectation of his return, a sign which also recalls that marriage is a reality of this present age which is passing away.¹¹⁶

 

1620 Both the sacrament of Matrimony and virginity for the Kingdom of God come from the Lord himself. It is he who gives them meaning and grants them the grace which is indispensable for living them out in conformity with his will.¹¹⁷Esteem of virginity for the sake of the kingdom¹¹⁸ and the Christian understanding of marriage are inseparable, and they reinforce each other:

 

Whoever denigrates marriage also diminishes the glory of virginity. Whoever praises it makes virginity more admirable and resplendent. What appears good only in comparison with evil would not be truly good. The most excellent good is something even better than what is admitted to be good.¹¹⁹    

[BarbTherese]

To bring about an "ontological change" in the consecrated virgin, wouldn't the consecration need to be a Sacrament?

 

 

[abrideofChrist]

Barbara Therese, Sr. Marie Catherine, Laurie, and others explained that ontological change is not limited to Sacraments.  Here is a Dominican explanation of the Sacrament of Marriage and the ontological change it effects on the married SPOUSES. 

[God's Beloved]

Indeed, this is very significant.  I would not say that the theology of marriage is derived from the theology of the Consecration of Virgins.  But I would agree that the spousal bonds in both must be understood in light of each other.  For one thing, the Catechism teaches this (check out numbers 1601-1666 for information on how the Church understands marriage and virginity).  As the prayer of Consecration of a Virgin says, she forsakes marriage for the union of which marriage is a sign.  Consecrated virginity is not a sacrament because it IS what the Sacrament is trying to signify.  It is a more perfect representation of the Church herself. 

 

Dear AbrideofChrist,

 

I have to travel soon to be with my family in another city. My Mom has an angiography scheduled for tomorrow[ hope there's no block ].She has been ill since two weeks. I trust in Jesus to take care and to heal her.

 

Request all here to Please do pray for her and for me to be strengthened to do my best to make her comfortable. I'll be able to read the posts from my smart-phone but not sure whether I'll be able to respond.

 

Please read this :

 

http://books.google.co.in/books?id=rkC6RW6G8dQC&pg=PA326&lpg=PA326&dq=solemn+prayer+of+blessing+or+consecration+of+the+professed&source=bl&ots=NmY6r1qvyj&sig=-z0A1Pa_Udn-Bm5nGlbfBP2IMpo&hl=en&sa=X&ei=IojhUOT5JcH5rAeS54H4DA&ved=0CDIQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=solemn%20prayer%20of%20blessing%20or%20consecration%20of%20the%20professed&f=false

 

Pg 331: mentions the liturgy of consecration of virgins as a theological locus for the theology of marriage.

Pg 337 : pt 3 : authentic meaning of the rite as the celebration of marriage between Christ and the consecrated virgin.

Ref pg 339 : pt 4 : Theological content

 

------------------------------------------------------------------

 Yr 306 AD : the Council of Elvira in Spain imposed sanctions on virgins who had been unfaithful to their consecration to God .

Yr 314 AD :Council of Ancyra declared that consecrated virgins who marry were guilty of bigamy.

Yr 364 AD : The civil law, under Valens, declared that anyone who married a consecrated virgin was subject to the death penalty.

[BarbTherese]

Barbara Therese, Sr. Marie Catherine, Laurie, and others explained that ontological change is not limited to Sacraments.  Here is a Dominican explanation of the Sacrament of Marriage and the ontological change it effects on the married SPOUSES.

 

Thank you BoC - bit slow catching up and catching on now and then - no theological training whatsoever and I thought I had understood the vocation of CV until I began reading these threads.  It can be difficult sometimes bearing with me, I know.  I don't read this thread all the time.  I'm just trying to understand because understanding the vocation of CV sheds light on my own vocation and on The Church and any viscissitudes if I can get things into correct context that is.  My own vocation is that of biological mother and foster mother as well as private vows to the evangelical counsels all in the lay state.

 

 

God bless - Barb :)

[BarbTherese]

I have to travel soon to be with my family in another city. My Mom has an angiography scheduled for tomorrow[ hope there's no block ].She has been ill since two weeks. I trust in Jesus to take care and to heal her.

 

Request all here to Please do pray for her and for me to be strengthened to do my best to make her comfortable

 

 

Daily prayer.  Safe trip and every blessing for your Mom and all - and your intentions.

[BarbTherese]

Wouldn't Grace bring about different levels of ontological change also?  The level and degree of change is dependant on the Grace received?  A conversion experience, for example, is a type of ontological change in that the person is dramatically different from the person beforehand - yet still a person but a different type of person? Just as a priest, consecrated virgin, religious etc. remains a person but a different type of person?  Just as a person in mortal sin after Confession remains a person, yet a different type of person? Etc. etc.   There may be a psychological change in some instances, but in itself is brought about by an ontological change i.e. Grace on the supernatural level.

To appearances nothing might change, yet there is an ontological change in the person through God's Grace.

  While understanding nothing about ontology really except that it might be to do with the nature of reality.

 

a

http://catholiceducation.org/articles/religion/re0442.html

Similarly, her ministers who stand "in persona Christi" (in the person of Christ) must be as faithful as the One they represent. God's people must have unfailing, consistent witnesses to the truth and to the transforming power of God's grace.

 

Therein lies the beauty of the priesthood: No man on his own can generate souls for the Father. No man on his own can change bread and wine into the Lord's body and blood. No man on his own can absolve another from his sins.

 

And no man on his own can say and be a perpetual "yes" to the Lord. This is all the work of grace, bringing to mind every day — for the priest and the whole community of Christ's faithful — that "apart from me you can do nothing" (Jn. 15:5).

 

The total and unswerving commitment of the priest as "alter Christus" (the other Christ) gives to the lay faithful the powerful example of saying and meaning "yes," and of relying on God's grace to do the seemingly impossible. In this way, young people learn how to say "no" to fornication. Married couples learn how to say "yes" to their vows and to new life. The elderly learn how to say "yes" to loneliness and misunderstanding.