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The thing I like about the Catholic wedding mass is the part when the couple takes their vows. The priest encourages all other married couples in the congregation to renew their vows with this couple who are about to take theirs for the first time. Every time, I mean every time I get all choked up thinking about the taking and renewing of vows, the sacredness of doing this in a community, and the toll these vows take from the moment we make them.

I attended a wedding near Pittsburgh recently. One of the readings comes from Fr. Pedra Arrupe, titled "A Meditation On Love":

"Nothing is more practical than finding God, that is, than falling in love in a quite absolute, final way. What you are in love with, what seizes your imagination, will affect everything. It will decide what gets you out of bed in the morning, what you will do with your evenings, how you will spend your weekends, what you read, who you know,what breaks your heart, and what amazes you with joy and gratitude. Fall in love, stay in love and it will decide everything."

I love this meditation because is so subtly suggests the toll the vow of love takes. It is overwhelming and it guides everything. There's a paradox here because what and who we love dictate our every action. It's exhausting, it's exciting, it's annoying, it's beautiful, it's boring, it's crazy, it's expensive, it's devastating, it's in everything and it's everywhere.