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“hardness of heart” and they prepare themselves to receive a “new heart”
through the celebration of the sacrament of matrimony.

The CCC also teaches that the family springs from the covenant of
5
marriage. The Southist family customs, in general, convey the idea that
marriage is the foundation of every family in society. Considering these two
particular practices, it can be noted that their accompanying prayers remind
the couple and the assembly that marriage is not merely a secular contract
which can be made and unmade by man, but is, in fact, sacred and religious.
It is attributed to God, and from the dawn of creation it has been part of
God’s plan for man. Thus, one approaches marriage with due preparation to
6
better enter into a covenant with God.

4.1.2 Communion between Husband and Wife

Magisterium Southist Family Custom
of Pope John Paul II

Familiaris Consortio 17 Song of Mylanchi (Ch. 3.7.3.3.1)
Feeding from One Cup (Ch. 3.7.9.5)
Gratissimam Sane 6, 7

Pope John Paul II repeated the expression of Gaudium et Spes 48
7
and called family an “intimate community of life and love”. The study of
the family ceremonies of the Southist community in the previous chapter
brought out several ideas of union and oneness between husband and wife.
Marriage as indissoluble is strong in the minds of Southist families. The
beautiful Song of Mylanchi sung on the eve of the marriage celebration
8
admirably shows that their idea of union is rooted in the Sacred Scripture.
9
The first few lines of this hymn affirm the teaching of “Primordial Duality”

5 Cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 1617.
6
Cf. LUKAS, P. U., Malayālatte Suriyāni Kristyānikalute Purātanappāttukal (Ancient
th
songs of the Syrian Christians of Malayalam, 1910), 7 Edition, Jyothi Book House,
Kottayam, 1992, p. 2. English Translation, L. K. ANANTHAKRISHNA AYYAR, The
Anthropology of the Syrian Christians, Ernakulam, 1926, pp. 301-302.
7
Cf. Familiaris Consortio, no. 17.
8 Cf. KOIKARA, M., The Sacredness of Marriage and Family in the Cultural Milieu of St.
Thomas Christians, Academia Alfonsiana, Rome, 1988, p. 78.
9 Cf. JOHN PAUL II, Letter to Families, Gratissimam Sane, no. 6, 2 February, 1994, in
AAS 86, 1994, pp. 868- 925.

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