A Note on Consecrated Widowhood

To understand the greatness of the consecration of widowhood, one must recall the promise of perfect fidelity that the wife made to her husband on their wedding day—signified by the “yes” she gave in response to the priest’s invitation.

This promise now bears fruit in widowhood through a total consecration to Christ. There is a close relationship between that promise—made in the past—and this consecration. Admittedly, the “yes” given did not foresee this painful eventuality; nevertheless, the consecration was already present within the promise, just as the fruit is present in the blossom.

It would be a mistake to see only an arbitrary, external, or extrinsic connection between the sacrament of marriage and consecrated widowhood. The relationship is close, logical, and intrinsic. The life shared within the Church, established by marriage, is “fulfilled” by this consecration—understanding “fulfillment” in the powerful sense it holds in Scripture: a transformation in which what came before finds its completion and perfection in the act by which the wife commits herself not to remarry, and in the consecrated life that this act inaugurates.

Yes, consecrated widowhood is truly the completion and perfection of the sacrament of marriage. This holds true on two levels: first, the bond of love between the wife and the husband, who is no longer visibly present, is purified, transformed, and wholly imbued with charity through the act of consecration; and second, the testimony the Christian couple is called to demonstrate within the ecclesial community takes on a new form—widowhood becomes a living image of the Church, faithful to her invisible Bridegroom and placing unwavering trust in Him as she awaits their definitive encounter. Consecrated widowhood thus offers a true flourishing of the sacrament of marriage. The sacrament—whose grace-filled potential was not exhausted by the spouse’s death—will yield abundant fruits of holiness, and the consecrated widow places her full trust in its sanctifying power.

Fidelity is the watchword of the consecrated widow’s spirituality. The grace of marital fidelity, which finds its source in the sacrament, shines forth in the widow’s consecrated life.

Henri Caffarel, Teams of Our Lady Archives, Paris