We see the dignity of the sacrament in the fact that the spouses (1) share their lives together in Christ’s grace, and (2) imitate the love Christ has for His Church.

1. The spouses share their lives together in Christ’s grace.

In the Sacrament of Matrimony, Our Lord comes to live with the spouses, to give them His grace, and to help them faithfully fulfill their duties and responsibilities to God, to one another, and to their children, until death.

Christian marriage is a sacrament because the Holy Spirit breathes His own love into the love between husband and wife, so that each becomes a source of grace for the other. As a result, their many acts of self-giving strengthen their life together and cause them to grow in the life of God. Through His grace and love, He incorporates them as husband and wife in Christ and enables them to adjust to one another.

We see the dignity of the sacrament in the fact that the spouses (1) share their lives together in Christ’s grace, and (2) imitate the love Christ has for His Church.

2. The spouses imitate the love Christ has for His Church.

St. Paul tells us that the Sacrament of Matrimony is a sign of the relationship between Jesus and His Church: “Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her… This is a great mystery, and I mean in reference to Christ and the church” (Ephesians 5:25, 32).

The union between Christ and the Church, according to St. Paul, is a great mystery. He describes the Church as the Bride of Christ, decked out in splendor, and made beautiful by her Spouse. Our Lord has delivered Himself up for His Bride, that He might sanctify her and cleanse her of sin with His Precious Blood. Marriage is the best human example of love, because in it, we see a reflection of the deep and faithful love of Jesus for His followers.