By Ifeoma Ezenyilimba
In a bid to boost the spirituality of the parishioners, St Gregory De Great Catholic Parish, Enugwu-Nanka in Orumba North L.G.A of Anambra State, in a well-attended epoch-making Mass Wedding on Saturday, June 16, 2018, joined 11 couples in the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony.
The celebrated historic mass wedding featured exchange of marital vows, exchange of wedding rings, signing of the marriage register & certificate, cutting of the wedding cake by the couples, toast for the couples and cocktail party for all that graced the wedding.
Leading in the concelebrated Wedding Mass, the parish priest of St Gregory De Parish, Enugwu-Nanka, Rev Fr. Francis Ekejindu, thanked God that through the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony, 22 parishioners, who over the years did not share in the sacraments of the Church, were returned to the Sacraments of penance and Holy Eucharist.
Rev. Fr. Ekejindu, who received the vows of the 11 new couples, urged them to uphold the vows of love and fidelity which they took, and by so doing, be grateful to God, who blessed their marriages.
In his homily, the parish vicar, Rev. Fr. Hilary Kenechukwu Okwunalu, commended the parish priest, Fr. Ekejindu for the time he devoted to prepare the couples for the sacrament, which was a great spiritual achievement.
Pointing out that constant prayer life sustains marriages, Rev. Fr. Okwunalu enjoined the couples to always pray together as a family, and on the night of their wedding pray the Holy Rosary together, before they retired for the day, if they want their marriages to last to the end.
He urged the couples to learn from the lives of St. Monica, St. Rita of Cascia, & St. Priscila, and other saints, who though they encountered many difficulties in their lives, stood their ground in exemplary lives of faith and constant prayer life, and in the end, gained their rewards in heaven.
Fr Okwunalu, who further based his reflection in the Book of Sirach in the Holy Bible, advocated for prayerful wives, and not those who were talkative.
The 11 couples were Mr. Jonathan & Mrs. Patience Okeke, Mr. Boniface & Mrs. Emmanuella Nwankwo, Mr. Joseph & Mrs. Mary-Ann Okeke, Mr. Godwin & Mrs. Benedicta Ezekafor; Mr. Aloysius & Mrs. Anastacia Aguinam and Mr. Josephat & Mrs. Eucharia Ikeh.
They also include Mr. Sylvester & Mrs. Beatrice Ezeh; Mr. Peter & Mrs. Chiamaka Nwafor; Mr. Christopher & Mrs. Blessing Eyisi; Mr. Innocent & Mrs. Blessing Okafor and Mr. Nicholas & Mrs. Francisca Aggrey.
