"The tragedies we experienced at the Martins' house strengthened us on our path of prayer and surrender."
A testimony from Jeremy and Priscille
When we wrote our letter of intent for marriage 10 years ago, we had in mind a phrase we had once heard from the young Saint Carlos Acutis: « Être toujours unis à Jésus, voilà mon programme de vie ». We then decided to make the same wish.
We discovered Louis and Zélie's motto many years later: God first served. They were given priority in everything: in their family life, in the way they spoke to each other, and finally in their work. Louis, for example, closed his shop on Sundays, right in the middle of market day when he could make the best deals. For those of us who seek to remain faithful to Christ, their devotion shows us that it is possible, that it makes sense, and that it bears fruit!
Jeremy: The beginning of our marriage wasn't easy: I went through phases of struggle where nothing made sense to me anymore. I doubted everything: my abilities, our commitment to each other. There were times when I questioned everything, even having thoughts of hurting Priscille.
One thing remained, however: her prayer and her faith in Christ against all odds; she was at peace. And that was all it took to bring me back up to speed.
Deep down, we knew we should never let an argument go unresolved. So something stronger pulled us from our hiding places EVERY NIGHT, making us turn to each other and say: I'M FORGIVENESS.
We now know that this experience was pivotal for the rest of our married life. Was it our respective, overly sincere, genuine, and profound personalities that led us to react this way? Perhaps partly, but the other, more important factor is the sincere "Yes" to Jesus from the very beginning of our relationship, a faith we dared to welcome into our home, believing that He can do anything.
Jesus is like that rope with a third strand holding the other two together. He is the grace of the sacrament of marriage: when the impossible becomes possible. When the invisible reality becomes visible in the one who receives it. What is beautiful about receiving the sacrament of marriage is that Jesus only asks for a YES from us. He forces no one.
With the arrival of our fourth child, we had to say yes to Jesus again. A much more difficult yes to give. Accepting that our little Naomi was going directly to Heaven to join her Creator. The One who gave her the breath of life was asking us to take her back. To say yes to Jesus once more. And through this yes, we discovered God's infinite love for us. We felt sadness and distress turn into joy. The joy of Heaven, because our daughter was going there directly. Through her, the Lord reminds us of our own vocation to holiness, a vocation to join Him for eternal life! We then fully realize what the communion of saints is: the people here below clinging on as best they can, and the people above, who await us and pray for us! Heaven is, in fact, a great place of prayer… Little and great saints, pray for us!
It was in this context that we learned about Louis and Zélie Martin. The tragedies we experienced during Zélie's pregnancy strengthened us on our path of prayer and surrender. This was the Martin couple's path, never complaining, remaining in praise and trust, despite the loss of young children, war, and illness. And their perseverance produced a great saint for the world. It is not easy to stay the course. What is crucial is prayer. Our own, but also and especially the prayers of those close to us and even acquaintances. We realized how important it is, as a Christian couple, to share and exchange our joys and sorrows, to pray for one another, and to encourage each other in good times and bad. Our immediate reaction to the loss of our daughter was to cry out for help to all our Christian contacts: a chain of prayer arose, and the Lord answered us a hundredfold!
The culmination of all this is this encounter between Christian brothers and sisters that we also experience every Sunday through the Eucharist: God who gives himself.
Christian marriage is not a stage of life; for us, it is a commitment rooted in the truth of God's Word. We were once told what it means to live a life guided by the Lord. We want to choose the right GPS. The entire Bible is a covenant between God and humanity, and despite human weakness, God did not give up and went so far as to give his own Son on a cross to say to each and every couple: I love you. What a beautiful proof of love we can experience as a couple in the sacrament of marriage!
Jeremy and Priscille
