Product Overview
What if marriage is more than a simple contract between two people, based on romance, mutual fulfillment, and basic attraction? What if woven into the very design of your humanity is a purposeful desire for you to be united with your beloved, creating something new, mysterious, and holy? What if your marriage is designed to be a vital part of God’s work in the world?
In 12 sessions, Beloved explores the essential realities of marriage, dealing with the deepest spiritual, emotional, and practical aspects of what the sacrament means for those preparing to get married as well as those who yearn for a richer married life. Through Scripture, Tradition, and Church teaching, God’s plan for marriage will come alive.
You’ll see firsthand how to experience the mystery, happiness, and joy of this sacrament—from that first “I do” through the rest of your lives. Informative and inspirational, Beloved will help you live out the Sacrament of Marriage more profoundly, so that your love story is drawn ever more into the greatest love story of all… God’s own love for us.
Episode Listing:
| The Mystery and Meaning of Marriage | Living Marriage |
| EP1 // Does Marriage Matter? (34:19) | EP1 // Christ at the Center (18:26) |
| EP2 // Entering the Story of Marriage (33:28) | EP2 // A Deeper Unity (18:00) |
| EP3 // Love Revealed (36:38) | EP3 // Conflict and Communication (19:05) |
| EP4 // Total Gift of Self (48:40) | EP4 // Building a Thriving Marriage (18:30) |
| EP5 // A Sacramental Bond (34:32) | EP5 // Protecting the Bond (20:41) |
| EP6 // Real Challenges, Real Love (48:07) | EP6 // Sexuality and Authentic Love (20:22) |
Episode Guide:
The Mystery and Meaning of Marriage
Session 1: Does Marriage
Matter?
Long before governments and societies
ever discussed marriage, God put on the human heart a
longing for the unique lifelong commitment and total
self-giving love found in the Sacrament of
Matrimony.
Session 2: Entering the Story of
Marriage
Marriage isn't just one of the
world's great institutions. God actually created the world
for the union of husband and wife. From the beginning of
creation to the coming of Christ, God unveils his plan for
married couples to share in his very divine love and to be
a most profound sign of his love to the world.
Session 3: Love Revealed
God
reveals what love is most perfectly on the Cross. Jesus
Christ-the bridegroom-lays down his life in sacrifice for
his bride, the Church. And our human marriages are meant to
share in that sacrificial love of Christ for the Church and
reflect that love in the world.
Session 4:
Total Gift of Self
How do we really give
ourselves totally to our spouse? Putting our beloved's
needs before our own self-centered interests takes a lot of
work and a lot of sacrifice. But the total gift of self is
at the heart of the daily married life, affecting
everything from how we communicate and how we respond when
we are hurt, to how we approach the expression of
self-giving love in sexual intercourse.
Session 5: A Sacramental Bond
Marriage brings something new into existence that didn't
exist before: a real bond between the husband and wife. And
flowing from that sacramental bond is a font of grace to
help us as couples face whatever challenges may come our
way and to love and serve each other far beyond what we
could ever do on our own.
Session 6: Real
Challenges, Real Love
Marriage is absolutely
beautiful. But it's also messy. Conflict, difficulties
communicating, unexpected turns in life, and wounds from
the past are all a part of every good marriage. Will these
challenges be sources of division in our relationship-or
opportunities for our love to rise to a whole new level?
Living Marriage
Session 1: Christ at the
Center
Putting Jesus at the center of our
lives is crucial for maintaining a strong marriage. The
more we live in union with Christ, the more he helps us
give the best of ourselves to our spouse and draws us
closer to him through the many challenges and joys in our
marriage relationship.
Session 2: A Deeper
Unity
Like a good wine, a good marriage takes
much time and effort to develop. God is already working in
our relationships to form beautiful and lasting marriages,
but he also needs our individual commitment to each deepen
our union with our spouse.
Session 3:
Conflict and Communication
Conflict is
inevitable in any relationship, but it doesn't have to be
damaging or hurtful. With the art of good communication in
marriage, some tensions can be avoided and even conflict
situations themselves can become opportunities for
growth.
Strong marriages don't happen by chance. We generally get out of our relationship what we put into it. Becoming aware of our personal weaknesses, making it a priority to overcome them, and seeking God's help to do so can make all the difference between a marriage that just survives and one that truly thrives.
Session 5:
Protecting the Bond
Marriage is a priceless
gift. And one that is worth going out of our way to
protect. We must always be careful to not let other things
in life-a career, a hobby, social media, friendships with
the opposite sex-take up our attention in a way that starts
to divide our union with our spouse.
Session
6: Sexuality and Authentic Love
The physical
union of sexual intimacy is meant to express a total gift
of one's self spiritually, personally, and emotionally.
Following God's plan for sexuality helps us say
"yes" to authentic love-the love we are ultimately
longing for.
