THE FAMILY

Pope Benedict XVI, Shepherd of Truth

Notable quotations from Pope Benedict XVI and official
teachings of the Roman Catholic Church

LEARNING TO LOVE

The family is the privileged setting where every person learns to give and receive love.

"ABUNDANT HELP FROM GOD"

The family ... receives abundant help from God in the sacrament of Matrimony, which brings with it a true vocation to holiness.

"THE WHOLE TRUTH"

To proclaim the whole truth about the family, based on marriage as a domestic Church and a sanctuary of life, is a great responsibility incumbent upon all.

"GREAT SECURITY"

Would that our children might experience more the harmony and affection between their parents, rather than disagreements and discord, since the love between father and mother is a source of great security for children and it teaches them the beauty of a faithful and lasting love.

"AN INDISPENSABLE FOUNDATION"

The family is a necessary good for peoples, an indispensable foundation for society and a great and lifelong treasure for couples. It is a unique good for children,who are meant to be the fruit of the love, of the total and generous self-giving of their parents.

NOT ALONE

The challenges of present-day society... make it necessary to ensure that families do not feel alone....Here parishes have an important role to play, as do the various ecclesial associations, called to cooperate as networks of support and a helping hand for the growth of families in faith.

"FREE AND RESPONSIBLE PERSONS"

Together with passing on the faith and the love of God, one of the greatest responsibilities of families is that of training free and responsible persons. For this reason the parents need gradually to give their children greater freedom, while remaining for some time the guardians of that freedom.

"CANNOT OVERLOOK "

To hand down the faith to children, with the help of individuals and institutions like the parish, the school or Catholic associations, is a responsibility which parents cannot overlook, neglect or completely delegate to others.

(Source: Homily at Vigil of Prayer, World Meeting of Families, 7/6/06, Valencia, Spain)