This week we celebrate the feast days of two men who were martyred – both beheaded – for defending the sanctity of marriage.

Monday the 22nd was the feast day of St. Thomas More, who refused to support the invalid marriage between King Henry and Anne Boleyn.

Today, the 24th, is the feast day of St. John the Baptist, who denounced the invalid marriage between the ruler Herod and Herod’s sister-in-law Herodias.

Both of these saints are great examples for our times. We live in an age in which destructive forces – primarily contraception, pornography and easy divorce – have been unleashed against the institution of marriage. It is now considered an accomplishment if a married couple makes it to their 10th anniversary. Yet both St. Thomas More and St. John the Baptist realized how important marriage is to our salvation. It is not an accessory in our path to heaven – it is a vital component on that path. Even those who forsake marriage for a higher calling in their own lives are to be raised within the confines of a loving, stable marriage.

Marriage has been with us since the creation of man and woman, but Christ elevated this natural institution to supernatural levels by making marriage a sacrament. He has infused it with untold graces so that we are given divine assistance in our own marriages. Please pray for all married couples today.

St. Thomas More and St. John the Baptist, pray for us and all marriages!