The Declaration of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith Concerning the Invalidity of Baptism in the Context of Invalidity of a Mixed Marriage Entered into by a Catholic

Piotr Jaskóła

Abstract

In the Evangelical and Catholic teaching on marriage there frequently appears the category ìblessingî. Evangelical and Catholic liturgical texts used during the marriage ceremony also speak in many places about a blessing. Even ordinary language in use in both ecclesial circles uses phrases with the word ìblessing.î In this category, contemporary formulations of the theology of marriage see the possibility also of new ecumenical solutions. ìBlessingî would thus constitute the basis for the theology of mixed marriages, especially evangelic-catholic ones. The article verifies this thesis, firstly, by defining more precisely the biblical understanding of ìblessingî (1), secondly, its role in the liturgical texts used by both Evangelical Christians and Catholics during the marriage ceremony (2), showing the significance of the category ìblessingî accepted by both denominations (3 and 4), in order, finally, to show the significance of the theology of blessing for the theology of mixed marriages (5).