Pope Francis to host big fat Italian wedding

 AP

The Vatican has announced that Pope Francis will marry 20 couples on September 14 at St Peter's Basilica.

The couples are all from the diocese of Rome, of which the Pope is also bishop.

Francis is not the first Pope to perform a wedding ceremony, but it's not exactly common. His predecessor, Benedict XVI didn't preside over any wedding ceremonies.

Pope John Paul II married eight couples in October 2000, to coincide with the celebration of the Jubilee for Families, and led another joint ceremony in 1994.

At a special audience on St Valentine's Day this year for 10,000 engaged couples, the Pope spoke about the need for Christian marriages built on 'the rock of love'.

Responding to three questions from couples getting married, the Pontiff said: "Just as God's love is stable and lasts forever, we want the love on which a family is based to be stable and to last forever. We must not allow ourselves to be conquered by a 'throwaway culture'.

"This fear of 'forever' is cured by entrusting oneself day by day to the Lord Jesus in a life that becomes a daily spiritual path of common growth, step by step. Because 'forever' is not simply a question of duration! A marriage does not succeed just because it lasts; its quality is also important. To stay together and to know how to love each other for ever is the challenge Christian married couples face!

"In the Our Father prayer we say, 'Give us this day our daily bread'. Married couples may also learn to pray, 'Give us this day our daily love', teach us to love each other, to care for each other. The more you entrust yourselves to the Lord, the more your love will be 'for ever', able to renew itself and to overcome every difficulty."

related articles
\'You are all one family\'. Pope Francis calls for reconciliation between North and South Korea
'You are all one family'. Pope Francis calls for reconciliation between North and South Korea

'You are all one family'. Pope Francis calls for reconciliation between North and South Korea

\'Two or three years and I\'ll be off to the Father\'s House\' – Pope Francis jokes about his own death
'Two or three years and I'll be off to the Father's House' – Pope Francis jokes about his own death

'Two or three years and I'll be off to the Father's House' – Pope Francis jokes about his own death

Should Oscar Romero be beatified? Pope Francis seems to think so...
Should Oscar Romero be beatified? Pope Francis seems to think so...

Should Oscar Romero be beatified? Pope Francis seems to think so...

Pope Francis \'deeply pained\' following death of young relatives
Pope Francis 'deeply pained' following death of young relatives

Pope Francis 'deeply pained' following death of young relatives

\'I appeal to you with my heart full of pain\' – Pope\'s plea to Iraqi President
'I appeal to you with my heart full of pain' – Pope's plea to Iraqi President

'I appeal to you with my heart full of pain' – Pope's plea to Iraqi President

Top Vatican official may face extradition for child sex abuse allegations
Top Vatican official may face extradition for child sex abuse allegations

Top Vatican official may face extradition for child sex abuse allegations

News
Church leaders call on Russia to return Ukrainian children
Church leaders call on Russia to return Ukrainian children

The forced transfer of Ukrainian children to Russia was described as a “deep wound inflicted upon the image of God".

Nearly 40% of Gen Z women identify as atheist, agnostic or have no faith - Barna
Nearly 40% of Gen Z women identify as atheist, agnostic or have no faith - Barna

As they grapple with a profound disconnection from their parents and older adults in general, nearly 40% of young adult women in Generation Z — those born between 1999 and 2015 — now identify as religiously unaffiliated, according to new data released by Barna Research.

Cultivating the fruits of the Spirit: peace in the chaos
Cultivating the fruits of the Spirit: peace in the chaos

Continuing our journey through the fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22–23), we now turn to another precious gift — peace.

Nordic Catholic Church offers 'refuge' to conservative Anglicans in Church of England
Nordic Catholic Church offers 'refuge' to conservative Anglicans in Church of England

The fallout from the appointment of a woman with liberal values as Archbishop of Canterbury continues.