As discussions continue as to what pastoral care the Church can and should offer to couple preparing for marriage and to help strengthen families, Smenos Publications has published a Father Joseph Briordy's Marriage and Family in Sacred Scripture: Biblical Foundations for Catholic Tradition.
This succinct book of just fifty-four pages is written in a simple but not simplistic style and, as such, should be accessible to everyone.
Father Briordy begins with a brief reflection on the proper interpretation and application of Scripture, particularly noting that while Jesus endorsed "the law of God, he criticizes merely human law (4, emphasis original).
With this perspective in mind, he explores the Catholic anthropology - the view of man - as found in the Creation accounts. He discusses the differences between man and woman, the purpose and meaning of sexuality, the effects of sin (so often ignored today), the natural law and obligations incumbent on everyone, and the view of the family in both the Old and New Testaments. Of particular interest is his discussion of a covenant and of the wedding feast of the Lamb in relation marriage between men and women.
With numerous quotations and references from the Bible and from Benedict XVI and others, this book lays out the Catholic and true understanding of marriage and the family as expressed in the Word of God clearly and compellingly. It will be a useful book for couples in proximate preparation for marriage and also for a book club or Bible study group.
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