Bridegroom and Bride

By Ronald Knox “Every marriage is an event in human history,” declares Monsignor Ronald Knox by way of articulating the animating principle of Bridegroom and Bride; “in the tapestry which Divine Providence weaves out of our lives, love of man for woman and love of woman for man are warp and woof.” In this collection of twenty-four wedding sermons (each of which being “the kind of thing for which five minutes is too short, and ten minutes is too long”), Knox preaches with his customary charm and aplomb on the goodness and beauty of human love. Taking its cues from the features and Scripture readings of the nuptial liturgy, Bridegroom and Bride offers clear instruction on the perfecting power of the Sacrament of Marriage and of the grace of the covenant to sanctify and strengthen bride and bridegroom and their family unto eternal life. Marriage…is self-surrender. Bride and bridegroom minister the sacrament to one another, not so much by accepting, each in turn, the gift made, as by standing there in silence and making, each in turn, the gift that is being accepted. (Ronald Knox) Inspiring improvisations on “a set of commonplace truths; obvious enough, and yet, because of our human frailty, not seldom obscured,” Bride­groom and Bride is a befitting book for both engaged couples and married couples as well as all seekers of genuine human affection.   Ronald Knox (1888–1957) was an English Catholic priest, theologian, and author, and one of the most prominent twentieth-century converts from Anglicanism to Catholicism. Best known for his contemporary English translation of the Scriptures (the “Knox Bible”), he wrote numerous works of apologetics and collections of ser­mons, retreat conferences, and lectures, as well as six detective novels. * * * Paperback: 144pp. ISBN: 978-1685951580