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I leaned back, feeling the weight of my words settle in the room. The fire flickered, casting dancing shadows on the walls. I could see my brothers’ eyes upon me, filled with questions and, perhaps, a newfound understanding.
“We are called to serve,” I began again, my voice steady. “Not just God, but each other as well. Our reverence for Christ is what binds us together.”
The men around me nodded, their faces serious in the firelight.
“But let me speak to you about marriage,” I continued. “A bond that reflects the relationship between Christ and the Church.”
My gaze fell on a young couple sitting near the fire. They were newly married, their love for each other clear in their joined hands and shared glances.
“Wives,” I said, looking at the young woman. “Submit to your husbands as you do to the Lord.”
A few murmurs echoed through the room at my words. But I held up a hand for silence.
“For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church,” I explained. “As we submit to Christ, so too should wives submit to their husbands.”
Turning my gaze to her husband, I continued. “Husbands, love your wives as Christ loved the Church.”
The young man nodded solemnly, his grip on his wife’s hand tightening.
“Christ gave himself up for us,” I said softly. “He made us holy, cleansing us through his word. He presented us to himself as a radiant church without stain or wrinkle.”
The words hung in the air for a moment before I spoke again.
“In this same way,” I told him. “You should love your wife as your own body.”
A profound silence settled over us as I let my words sink in.
“He who loves his wife loves himself,” I continued. “No one ever hated their own body but feeds and cares for it, just as Christ does the church. We are members of his body.”
A pause, then I added, “For this reason, a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.”
I looked around the room, meeting each pair of eyes. “This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church.”
A moment passed before I concluded. “Each one of you must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.”
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