I just finished teaching a six week course to catechists on Sacraments. We finished up marriage today. My two least favorite sacraments to teach are marriage and annointing of the sick. They are both so fuzzy that you have to leave the podium littered with more questions that one would like. Theologians are still hashing out marriage which makes it difficult to make some definite statements. For instance ecclesiatical law can be an impediment to a valid marriage. How?? e.g. Archbishop Milingo gets married, but because he has taken of vow of celibacy and perhaps other things he signed(?) ecclesiastical law prohibits him from marrying. So that the Vatican could claim that his marriage was not valid in the first place. I can see how natural law can be the basis for annulment, for instance, two man marrying would not take, I just don't see how or why an ecclesiastical law can make a marriage invalid. I know that I haven't fully articulated what concerns me but . . .

For the last class, I have the students do a presentation on the one sacrament that has the most significance for them. That is always enlightening. The way people work sacramental experience out in their lives is very interesting and instructive. I alsways learn a thing or two.