Terence McGoldrick – “The ascent of marriage as vocation and sacrament. Francis de Sales’ christian humanist theology of marriage. A new and old Vision between two competing traditions on the highest vocation from the Apostolic Church to Erasmus” in “Salesianum”

This article explores two traditions on Marriage from the New Testament to Francis de Sales. It shows that although the Doctor of love’s position that marriage is a vocation and sacramental way to fully live in Jesus is at odds with the council of Trent, which holds that religious life is the highest state, the Salesian theology of marriage is in fact robustly represented in a multifaceted Patristic Tradition. It explains how de Sales resolves issues presented by 1 Corinthians chapter 7 and the Neo-platonists to interpret the whole Gospel as the vocation to live God’s love in marriage by and through one another and in family life. It thus argues that the Salesian positive view represents a Christian humanist theology of marriage that is both traditional and original.

CONTENTS:

1. Introduction
2. Two Traditions of Christian Marriage and Sexuality
3. A Patristic Tradition for the Excellence of Marriage
4. Conclusion

Reference time period: 1700 – 2015

Reference institution:
Università Pontificia Salesiana (UPS)