December 12, 2014

Faith is at the forefront of couple’s commitment to each other

Gary and Kris Taylor had their prayers answered for a spouse at a retreat. (Submitted photo)

Gary and Kris Taylor had their prayers answered for a spouse at a retreat. (Submitted photo)

By John Shaughnessy

Before they arrived at the retreat, Gary and Kris Taylor had never met each other.

He had come with a request, praying that God would lead him to his spouse or direct him to continue his interest in the priesthood.

She came with a prayer, too—for God to lead her to “a good man.”

“My spirit moved within me the moment I laid eyes on my wife to be,” Gary recalls. “Each time we talked and spent time together, I knew she was the one. I went home from the retreat and told my family I had met the woman I was going to marry.”

Members of St. Patrick Parish in Salem, Gary and Kris have been married for 35 years.

“This 35-year journey has required unconditional love by both of us, more on her part than mine,” Gary says. “She always says it’s the other way around. I am a very convicted and rebellious man. Her courage to confront me when I was in habits that were not of God, and call me to accountability took great faith. My response to change through the help of the sacrament of reconciliation and grace received intensified our intimacy and our relationship.”

Faith is at the forefront of their lives now, he says. They share the readings of the Mass each day. They participate regularly in the Eucharist.

“Our faith and docility to the imminent Holy Spirit has brought simplicity, sanctity and service into our lives,” Gary notes. “Our wants are few, and God always meets our needs. Our fulfillment comes from our service to charity and justice.”

All those essential elements of their lives help fulfill the promise they saw in each other the first time they met, Gary says.

“The two of us are becoming one.” †

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