How does a married woman love Christ?

[Elishua]

Hello,

Can a married woman love God the way a religious woman does or is there always a difference?

I am a young woman. I am thinking about religious life but I love children and motherhood so maybe I will marry. I love Christ deeply and intimately. I know that He is my Beloved. Is it OK to get married and still love God like that? Is a married woman with children able to love Him so closely?

I have had this question for many months but Father Vincent Serpa’s answer about the lay Dominicans brought it up again. Thank you.

-Elishua

 

[Fr.Vincent_Serpa]

Hi,

The married woman loves Jesus directly as her God and savior as all Christians should. She also loves Him by means of her union with her husband and through the children that union produces.

The professed woman religious loves Him as well. But by the consecration of her vows, she worships Him directly in all that she is. The married couple will do this also when they reach heaven and are united to Him for all eternity. The goal of both vocations is the same: union with God. Their journey to Him differs. The journey of the religious is just more direct. Both vocations are sacred. In fact the vocation to the religious life is dependent on the vocation of marriage. As a professed religious and ordained priest, I am very much aware of the presence of my parents’ marriage in my way of life and ministry.
My vocation rests on theirs.

Your question isn’t, “Where will I love God the most?” It’s really, “Where will I be most myself?” You are in our prayers.

Fr. Vincent Serpa, O.P.