Particular attention will be given to the scriptural foundations of this sacrament to underpin an understanding of how the Catholic Church discerned the sacramentality of marriage within the historical process of the development of Christian doctrine. More recent teaching on the sacrament of marriage from the Second Vatican Council, Popes and theologians will be presented, together with relevant canonical questions and the relationship between Christian marriage and civil marriage. Contemporary pastoral and ecumenical issues, such as inter-Church marriages and preparation for marriage in a secular context, will be presented within this wider sacramental perspective.

Undergraduate Prerequisites

Graduate and Postgraduate Prerequisites (CD356)

CD101 or CD350

Requirements

2 hours per week

Undergraduate Assessment

Graduate and Postgraduate Assessment (CD356)

Equivalent to 4,000 words.
See Coursework Assessment for Graduate and Postgraduate Students.

Bibliography

• Elliott, Peter J. What God Has Joined: The Sacramentality of Marriage. New York: Alba House, 1990.
• John Paul II. Familiaris consortio. Apostolic Exhortation. 1982.
• ———. The Theology of the Body. Boston: Pauline Books & Media, 1997.
• Kasper, Walter. Theology of Christian Marriage. Translated by David Smith. London: Burns & Oates, 1980.
• Paul VI. Humanae vitae. Encyclical Letter. 1968.
• Pius XI. Casti connubii. Encyclical Letter. 1930.
• Olsen, Glenn W., ed. Christian Marriage: A Historical Study. New York: Crossroad, 2001.
• Schillebeeckx, Edward. Marriage: Human Reality and Saving Mystery. 2 vols. Translated by N. D. Smith. London: Sheed & Ward, 1965.
• Scola, Angelo. “The Nuptial Mystery at the Heart of the Church.” Communio 25 (1998): 630–62.