‘‘JoyThe Loveof ’’ AT THE HEART OF THE FAMILY A brief journey through “Amoris Laetitia” uring the Jubilee Year of Mercy, in his post-synodal exhor- tation Amoris Laetitia (The Joy of Love),1 Pope Francis invited us, in the manner of a kindly grandfather, to rediscover the immense beauty of God’s plan – a plan that meets the Daspirations of the human heart from generation to generation. One word sums up the 325 paragraphs of this unique document filled with respect, tenderness and practical wisdom about love in the family: HOPE! Pope Francis walks resolutely in the footsteps of Saint John Paul II, Benedict XVI, Paul VI and the Second Vatican Council, to support Christian spouses and families, inviting them “to value the gifts of mar- riage and the family, and to persevere in a love strengthened by the virtues of gener- osity, commitment, fidelity and patience”. — 1 — “The Joy of Love experienced by families is also the joy of the Church”(1). The Holy Father “seeks to encourage everyone to be a sign of mercy and closeness wherever family life remains imperfect or lacks peace and joy” (5). One cannot appreciate adequately this reminder about marriage, sex- uality and family without situating it in the context of the New Evan- gelization. This perspective allows us to understand the depth of com- passion, the patience to wait as we accompany, and the boldness of the invitation to conversion that inform each statement that the Holy Father addresses to each of us and to our families. Pope Francis is well aware of the complexity of current family situa- tions, of the challenges and vulnerabilities of families; he asks that we be sowers of hope by being close to families, and to invite them to discover what Christ can do for them: “no family drops down from heaven per- fectly formed; families need constantly to grow and mature in the ability to love. … Let us make this journey as families, let us keep walking to- gether. What we have been promised is greater than we can imagine. May we never lose heart because of our limitations, or ever stop seeking that fullness of love and communion which God holds out before us” (325). This papal exhortation seeks to help and accompany families in their response to the beautiful teaching on marriage and family offered by Christ and His Church. What Christ commands is synonymous with happiness, and we will not reach it without the help of spiritual forces stronger than our own, that is, without grace – grace available to us freely in prayer and in the sacraments. We are never alone. — 2 — LET US WALK IN THE LIGHT OF THE WORD OF GOD ove stories and family crises have been around since Adam and Eve; the Scriptures amply illustrate this fact. This is why Pope LFrancis chose to begin his apostolic Exhortation “The Joy of Love” by drawing on the word of God and the teachings of the Church founded by the Son of God: “Have you not read that the Creator from the beginning made them male and female?” (Mt 19:4)… “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and cleave to his wife, and they become one flesh” (Gn 2:24) (9)… “The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it’’ (Gn 2:15) (23). The conjugal union envisioned by God is a “voluntary gift of love” (13), and the children born of that union are “living stones” in the edifice of the family (1Pet 2:5). With the parents as foundation, the Christian fa- mily becomes a domestic Church. Here “the parents are called to become their children’s first teachers in the faith” (16). The Gospel teaches unequivocally that “children are not the property of a family, but have their own lives to lead”: their personal Christian vocation (18). In the Bible, “we have contem- plated the relationship between human families and the divine Trinity. The word of God tells us that the family is entrust- ed to a man, a woman and their children, so that they may become a communion — 3 — of persons in the image of the union of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Begetting and raising children, for its part, mirrors God’s creative work. In an attitude of mercy, forgiveness and tenderness, the family is called to join in daily prayer, to read the word of God and to share in Eucharistic communion, and thus to grow in love and become ever more fully a temple in which the Spirit dwells” (29). Unfortunately, sin and a spirit of domination can generate “the pres- ence of pain, evil and violence that break up families and their commu- nion of life and love” (19), and thus cause suffering. Unemployment and work insecurity can have a similar effect. In such difficult circumstances, the word of God is a comforting “travelling companion”. This companion shows us not only the purpose of life, but also what lies ahead, when God “will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourn- ing nor crying nor pain any more” (Rev 21:4) (22). “My beloved is mine and I am his … . I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine” (Song 2:16; 6:3). — 4 — FEET FIRMLY ON THE GROUND: FACING LIGHT AND DARKNESS nasmuch as the future of the world and of the Church depends in large measure on the welfare of the family, how can we help but be Iconcerned about the challenges and threats of contemporary “cul- tural decadence”? “Families face many challenges, from migration to the ideological denial of differences between the sexes (“ideology of gen- der”); from the culture of the provisional to the anti-birth mentality and the impact of biotechnology in the field of procreation; from the lack of housing and work to pornography and abuse of minors; from inattention to persons with disabilities, the lack of respect for the elderly; from the legal dismantling of the family, to violence against women,”2 not to men- tion drug, alcohol and gambling addictions. — 5 — Let us not forget the impact on all of us of narcissism and extreme individualism, which have led to confusion between true freedom ground- ed in objective truth and the concept that everything is of equal value and thus legitimate “as if there were no truths, values and principles to provide guidance, and everything were possible and permissible” (34), as noted in chapter two of Amoris Laetitia. In the context of such a culture, one could easily come to doubt “the ideal of marriage, marked by a com- mitment to exclusivity and stability” and fail to see that marriage is a dy- namic path, allowing human development as well as providing a sense of fulfilment. On the one hand, people fear loneliness and long after a haven of safety and fidelity, but on the other hand, there is “a growing fear of entrapment in a relationship that could hamper the achievement of one’s personal goals” (34). Clearly, it is urgent that we find the words, the reasons and the witness- es to touch the hearts of young people, “appealing to their capacity for generosity, commitment, love and even heroism and in this way inviting “As Christians, we can hardly stop advocating marriage simply to avoid countering contemporary sensibilities, or out of a desire to be fashionable or a sense of helplessness in the face of human and moral failings. We would be de- priving the world of values that we can and must offer. … What we need is a more responsible and generous effort to present the reasons and motivations for choosing marriage and the family, and in this way to help men and women better to respond to the grace that God offers them” (35). — 6 — them to take up the challenge of marriage with enthusiasm and courage” (40). The state bears the responsibility of creating laws, family policies and employment conditions “to ensure the future of young people and help them realize their plan of forming a family” (43). After stating that we cannot “placidly” compare common-law unions or those of same-sex partners to marriage, Pope Francis regrets the wide- spread “failure to realize that only the exclusive and indissoluble union between a man and a woman has a plenary role to play in society as a stable commitment that bears fruit in new life” (52), thus ensuring the future of society. Pope Francis invites us to rediscover the true meaning of family and the way toward its renewal, reminding ourselves that its strength “lies in its capacity to love and to teach how to love. For all a family’s problems, it can always grow, beginning with love” (53). Hence the importance of focusing not only on doctrinal, bioethical and moral issues, but also of encouraging spouses to be open to God’s grace, and to better train their consciences (37). — 7 — MARRIAGE: A CALL TO HOLINESS n this third chapter, Pope Francis explains that “the mystery of the Christian family can be fully understood only in the light of the Father’s Iinfinite love revealed in Christ, who gave himself up for our sake and who continues to dwell in our midst” (59); we are invited to imitate Jesus in order to successfully transmit the Gospel of the Family. Born into a Naza- rene family, “he looked upon the women and men whom he met with love and tenderness, accompanying their steps in truth, patience and mercy as he proclaimed the demands of the Kingdom of God” (60).