Marriage is a living sign that truly communicates the love of Christ and the Church.

For those with the purity to see it, a nursing mother is one of the most precious, most beautiful, and most holy of all possible images of woman.

In the sacraments, spirit and matter "kiss." Heaven and earth embrace in a union that will never end.

The idea that 'preaching the Gospel' has nothing to do with sex and that 'preaching about sex' has nothing to do with the Gospel betrays layers and layers of seriously misguided thinking. When we divorce God's love from sexual love, as Pope Benedict says, 'the essence of Christianity' becomes 'decisively cut off from the complex fabric of human life.'

Why was Christ so compassionate towards sexual sinners, especially women? Think of the woman caught in adultery. Think of the prostitute who wept at his feet. Could it be because Christ knew that these women, who had been deceived by counterfeit loves, were actually looking for him, the true Bridegroom?

If we want to know what's most sacred in this world, all we need to do is look for what is most violently profaned.

God's plan remains God's plan despite our sin.