The California bishops committed the 2024-2025 pastoral year to revitalizing the experience of the gift of marriage among the Catholic faithful in California, citing the persistent attacks on marriage and the deterioration of faith in the Eucharist as motivation for the initiative. The initiative also weaved seamlessly into the Church’s 2025 Jubilee Year. The Radiate Love initiative celebrated and encouraged marriages and families through a variety of educational resources. In their letter to the Catholic faithful of California, the Bishops state that, “The institution of marriage is held dear by God…because it offers a penetrating glimpse into God’s identity as a communion of persons and a model for how He loves us and how we are to love Him and every neighbor.” God has entrusted each one of us the task of giving ourselves in love to Him and to one another.
The love that is experienced in marriage and in family life has the capacity to change spouses, children, the community and the world. Saint Teresa of Calcutta wisely said, “If you want to change the world, go home and love your family.” The family experience is essential for the human person to find his or her purpose and in most cases learn the meaning of unconditional love. This truth was reinforced by Pope Leo XIV during the Jubilee of Families, Children, Grandparents, and the Elderly Mass in St. Peter’s Square on Sunday, June 1st, when he highlighted that marriage represents “not an ideal but the measure of true love between a man and a woman: a love that is total, faithful, and fruitful.”
Above all, the Radiate Love campaign brought hope to the Catholic faithful of California, with each diocese celebrating and advocating for the sacrament of marriage. Our Diocese celebrated marriage by offering and supporting a variety of marriage enrichment events such as communication skills workshops, marriage & family enrichment talks, and marriage retreats. To continue celebrating marriage, the Bishops of California declared Saturday, July 26th as the Jubilee of Marriage Day, and our diocesan community gathered to celebrate this special day with a Mass to thank God for the gift of marriage at St. Christopher parish in Moreno Valley.
Bishop Rojas said this about the Sacrament of Marriage during the Radiate Love year, “As a priest and a bishop, I was not called to the vocation of marriage. However, my role in conferring God’s blessing upon the union and witnessing the bride and groom minister the Sacrament of Marriage to one another through their vows, has been a beautiful beacon of joy and hope in my ministry through the years.”
May the Lord continue to pour out His Holy Spirit over our marriages and families and give us the grace to be a total gift of ourselves to our spouse, our children, and others, just as Jesus became a total gift of Himself to The Church.
For more information on Marriage & Family Events please visit: https://www.sbmarriageinitiative.org/home or email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Paola Martinez is the Director of the Office of Marriage and Family Life Ministries in the Diocese of San Bernardino. Mario Martinez is the Director of Parish Life at The Holy Name of Jesus Parish in Redlands.