Celebrating the gift and grace of matrimony
By Veronika Cox
Couples marking significant milestones in their married life renewed their vows at marriage Masses held in Hobart and Launceston last month.
Archbishop Julian said the Masses offered an opportunity to rejoice in God’s wonderful gift of marriage.
“It is with joy that they renew the love that inspired their marriage,” he said in his homily.
“They thank God for their spouse and they ask that God will continue to be with them in the times ahead.”
The Masses were celebrated at St Mary’s Cathedral in Hobart on 13 February, and the Church of the Apostles in Launceston on 20 February.
“Through the Sacrament of Matrimony a husband and wife are answering a calling that God has made to them,” Archbishop Julian said.
“That calling becomes a call to love as He loves. The “yes” pronounced by the bride and groom to each other on their wedding day finds concrete expression every day in the effort of loving each other despite all their fragility and weaknesses.”
Archbishop Julian noted this call to love is sustained by the grace of Christ offered through the Sacrament.
“Spouses welcome this Grace which enables them to learn, with perseverance and humble patience, to love one another: to love as Jesus loves,” he said.
“For a couple of faith it is comforting to know that, despite the normal hardships and inevitable moments of difficulty, the presence of Christ remains always with them to provide essential support and incomparable comfort.”
Archbishop Julian said this year, we can reflect on marriage from the aspect of family, with the Tenth World Meeting of Families to be held in Rome from 22 to 26 June.
“Marriage is, of course, oriented towards family,” he noted.
“The path to holiness is found precisely within the context of our lives. As we celebrate the gift and grace of marriage, we are reminded that it is the path of love and a path towards holiness.”
Val and Reg: A journey of love and faith
Love, faith, and a little bit of craziness.
That’s the recipe for an enduring marriage, if you ask Val and Reg Nash.
“Well, a lot of crazy actually – there’s no two ways about it,” Val laughed.
“We are just so blessed that we can never thank God enough for the love we have shared and the time we have had together.”
The couple, who celebrate their 65th anniversary in April this year, renewed their vows at the Marriage Mass at St Mary’s Cathedral in Hobart on 13 February.
“Faith is most definitely an important influence in both of our lives, and in our marriage,” Val said.
“I talk to God all the time. You don’t have to make any amendments – you can just talk and ask for what is absolutely needed. We have very strong faith.”
The journey has not always been smooth for Val and Reg, but their relationship with God and with each other never faltered.
“I had a very serious illness when our first child was 14 months old, and I was rushed to hospital with a haemorrhaging cyst on the ovary,” Val explained.
“I almost died. I kept calling to see a priest.”
Val, who was Anglican at the time, drifted in and out of consciousness, waking to “a beautiful tall nun” begging a priest, “Father, she is so desperately ill – please baptise her.”
“I was baptised there and then. Thanks be to God – I survived,” Val said.
The specialist took Reg aside and said the couple would never be able to have another child.
“But four years later, a voice woke me in the middle of the night,” Val said.
“I turned to Reg and said I want to have a baby. He said you know we can’t. But of course, we did.”
The pair also adopted two beautiful daughters.
“We have been very, very fortunate. And of course, none of that could have happened without God,” Val said.
“We have just been very lucky to love each other and have faith.
“People that don’t have faith don’t know what they are missing. You have to pray so hard that they will get it. You just hope that one day they are struck with the faith and really know that God is there for them.”
Barry and Maureen: Honesty, adventure and a lifetime of love
Seventy-two years ago, Barry Symons walked into his town’s local dance and saw a girl in a blue dress.
“She had buck teeth and she was covered in freckles, and I had never seen someone so attractive to me before,” he said fondly.
“The third time we met – the eve of her sixteenth birthday – I walked her home. From then on, it was history. There has never been anyone else for me.”
Barry and Maureen celebrated 66 years of marriage this year, renewing their vows at the Marriage Mass on 20 February at the Church of the Apostles in Launceston.
“We take each and every opportunity to renew our vows,” he said.
“Our faith has given us strength through all our years of married life.”
The pair were married in 1955 at St Finn Barr’s Church in Invermay.
“I can tell you a wonderful story there,” Barry said.
“I was born in 1934 and baptised by Fr William Ryan. I didn’t realise for some time that 21 years later, the very same man married us. Mum hadn’t told me until years later.”
Fr William also officiated the couple’s 25th wedding anniversary.
“He had to be there – he was part of us,” Barry said.
After they were wed, Barry and Maureen had two daughters and one son, who were followed by ten grandchildren.
“There is no special magic to a lasting marriage,” Barry said.
“It is just meeting someone and loving them. Be honest and love each other – it all goes from there.”
Barry said he and Maureen had a quiet life, with a good dose of adventure.
“We have seen a lot of the world – always together,” he noted.
“I couldn’t imagine going anywhere by myself. I wouldn’t enjoy it.”
They have also shared some memorable marriage milestones, including receiving a Papal blessing on their 60th anniversary.
Despite the many years of memories, the couple’s first meeting remains crystal clear in Barry’s mind.
“I walked in and saw her standing there with another lass,” he said.
“We started to fall in love, and we knew very soon that we wanted to spend our lives together.”
How does he feel now, after 66 years married to his girl in the blue dress?
“I love her more than ever.”
