Buda Mendes/Getty Images(ROME) — The Vatican is preparing for the marriage ceremony of 20 couples in St. Peter’s Basilica this weekend that will be presided over by none other than the pope himself.
Pope Francis will oversee the marriage celebration as leader of the Catholic Church for the first time.
Among the couples who will be wed is a former single mother and a man who was married before and had the matrimony annulled by the Catholic Church. While getting remarried with a child out of wedlock does not breech Catholic law, Vatican observers view the inclusion of the couple as part of Francis’ greater inclusion of divorced people in the Church.
Since becoming pope, Francis has strongly urged people to marry, calling it a patient, beautiful art.
Earlier this year, he even handed out advice to married couples, telling them if they’ve been fighting, to never end the day without making peace.
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