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Wedding of Josh and Amanda
Gorby
Our Lady of Grace Church
Genesis 2:18-24; 1
Corinthians 12:31-13:8a; Matthew 7:21, 24-29
December 30,2012
Houses Built on Rock
By (Rev. Msgr.) Nicholas P.
Amato
The Home
Exactly
6 weeks ago this evening, I was invited to dinner at Josh and Amanda’s new
home. I didn’t know then that it would be the foundation of this wedding
homily.
I
began from my home in the Amish area of southeastern PA, following the winding
road country road of Route 851 west toward York and observing the beautiful
countryside as the sun set before me.
I
remember seeing the house for the first time, drenched in candlelight spread
over a beautiful patch of farmland.
I
was wined and dined by wonderful hosts and the conversation was faith-filled.
It was a delightful evening.
It
was reflecting on my drive home that I thought to myself, “They’ve put a lot into this house”: lots of money, tons of time,
and the hard work of two sets of parents, who’d be millionaires if they had
been paid minimum wage!
And
then I remembered the words of Jesus in the gospel they chose for their wedding:
“Everyone who listens to these words of
mine and acts on them will be like a wise person who built their house on rock.
The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house, but
it did not collapse; it had been set solidly on rock.”
A
bit of anxiety came over me as I thought, “Gosh, I hope Josh and Amanda don’t
get caught up in the beauty and excitement of the home, without realizing what
supports and keeps it in place, namely, the ground or rock on which it is built.
For
that will, when all is said and done, determine whether it stands or falls.
The Bedrock of Joy
We
have only to look at the “words” that Jesus is referring to in order to see the
“bedrock” he’s talking about.
The
first rock-like sub-strata for your home is the joy you experience in each
other.
When
God is looking for a suitable mate for Adam, God tries over and over and Adam’s
not pleased with any of the things God comes up with.
But
then God brings him Eve and his response? “This
one, at last, is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh!” And then that
marvelous sentence that follows: “That is
why a man leaves his father and mother and clings to his wife, and the two of
them become one body.”
So
God’s creating you for each other and you having recognized that, is cause for
you to leave your families, venturing out to begin one family of your very own.
The
bedrock of the joy you feel for each other, the venturing out on your own
together is the bedrock. Nothing must every come between the joy you feel for
each other. Not parents – all due respects – not friends, not careers, not even
children.
The Bedrock of Love
The
second rock-like sub-strata on which your home is to rest is the forbearing
love you have for each other and which you pledge today.
Notice
I qualified “love” with “forbearing” – forbearing love!
It
is a love expressed in your second reading from Paul to the Corinthians.
He
cites lots of gifts a follower of Jesus might have, including the eloquence of
angels, ability to foretell the future, faith to move mountains – now there’s a
gift! – the act of giving away everything you own, but even with all these,
without a forbearing love are nothing, you gain nothing!
Your
love – at this glorious moment – is a love wants to bear all things, believe
all things, hope all things, and endure all things.
Make
such a love part of the bedrock of the foundation of your home, and your home will
never fail no matter what it looks like, wherever it may be located, or the
furnishings it contains.
The Bedrock of Prayer
A
third and final source of the bedrock will be the quality of your life in Jesus
Christ.
You
already share a common faith tradition. You already embrace the Lord as your
savior and guide.
Nurture
this relationship for you are now to be married in Christ. Your married life is
the sacramental presence of Jesus to your families and friends and eventually
to your children.
Father
Sam and I would encourage you to continue to receive the Eucharist each week,
to offer thanks and prayer to God before every meal, to take time for silent
reflective prayer.
Conclusion
On
this note I’d like to conclude.
Let
the word that expresses the season as well as this marriage be joy, J-O-Y.
Let
the “J” stand for Jesus, the “Y” for you, both individually and as a couple,
and the “O” stand for “zero” meaning that nothing divide you from Jesus, your
Lord.
In
this symbol, which Fr. Sam and I give you as an ornament for your first
Christmas tree as husband and wife, be an annual reminder of the bedrock on
which your home, wherever it is, stands.
