What the Catechism Teaches About Marriage
A comprehensive walk through the Catechism of the Catholic Church on marriage — from God's original plan through the celebration, consent, unity, openness to life, and the domestic church.
The Series
Read in order for a complete understanding, or jump to any topic.
God created marriage as a covenant of love between man and woman, blessed from creation and woven into the fabric of human nature.
Sin disrupted the original harmony of marriage, yet God prepared his people through the Old Covenant for the full restoration in Christ.
The liturgical celebration of marriage is a sacramental act within the Church, normally within Mass, where the couple enters the covenant before God.
The free, full, and irrevocable consent of both spouses is the indispensable element that "makes the marriage." No human power can replace it.
From valid consent arises a bond that is permanent and exclusive, sealed by God himself and sustained by sacramental grace.
The two essential properties of marriage — unity (one man, one woman) and indissolubility (until death) — flow from God's design and Christ's love for the Church.
Marriage is ordered to the procreation and education of children, and conjugal love is inseparably both unitive and procreative.
The Christian family is the first place of faith, prayer, and virtue — a "domestic church" where parents are the first heralds of the Gospel.
Chastity integrates sexuality within the person and orders it toward faithful, fruitful love — both within marriage and in every state of life.
Virginity for the sake of the Kingdom and Christian marriage both point to the same eternal wedding feast — they illuminate and enrich each other.
Marriage is one of the seven sacraments instituted by Christ, belonging to the sacraments at the service of communion alongside Holy Orders.
The Catechism names specific sins against marriage — adultery, divorce, polygamy, incest, and cohabitation — explaining why each wounds the covenant.
This series draws from the Catechism of the Catholic Church to help engaged and married couples — and anyone curious about Catholic teaching — understand the Church's vision for marriage.