The year of listening” “

Two documents issued by the episcopates of Scotland, England and Wales, in favour of life and the family: 2004 has in fact been chosen by the Church of Scotland as the year “of life and the family” and by the English and Welsh Church to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the UN Year for the Family in 1994. 250,000 COPIES OF A MESSAGE BY THE SCOTTISH BISHOPS on “Marriage and the Family” were distributed in all Scottish Catholic parishes last weekend. The message follows up the commitment made by Cardinal Keith O’Brien together with the other Scottish bishops last December to turn 2004 into the year of “life and the family”. The cardinal had also invited Scottish faithful to use the pamphlet distributed as a stimulus to begin debates, discussions and initiatives in homes, in parishes, in schools and in offices, to support marriage and the family, and to promote a culture of life. In their message the bishops recall the significance of the Feast of the Presentation, which is defined as the “occasion chosen by Mary and Joseph to thank God for the gift of life as many parents still do today, recognizing in their child someone made in the image and likeness of God. In the Holy Family we have a model for the Christian family”. The message also refers to the meaning of marriage for society, for spouses and for the Church, to the role of sexuality for husband and wife, to the importance of preparation for marriage, and to the “compassionate recognition of couples that have not succeeded in achieving this ideal in their lives”. Speaking of the marriage that the great three monotheistic religions “honour as an elementary component of society”, the bishops define it as “an equal, exclusive and eternal union between a man and woman that God has wished to transform into a sacrament”. The Church, continues the document, “tries to protect sexuality as source of intimacy between husband and wife and means for spouses to participate in the creative capacity of God. Compassion and pastoral care are promised by the Church to those who find themselves alone after the failure of their marriage”. “Anyone who intends to marry”, continues the document, “deserves a high level of preparation” which ought not to be limited to pre-matrimonial courses but endure for the whole of the life of married couples”. The document ends with words of thanks for the “gift of matrimony and family life, and for the witness given by many couples, even by those who, for various reasons, have seen their own union fail”. THE BISHOPS’ CONFERENCE OF ENGLAND AND WALES has also issued a document dedicated to the family on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the United Nations Year for the Family in 1994. It is called “Listening 2004: my family, my church”, and asks Catholic couples to make their own voice heard, through the services placed at their disposal by the Church, and to assess the assistance that the Church gives to families. In presenting the project, Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor, Catholic Primate of England and Wales, emphasised the importance of the family of origin in the life of each person and the need for families to have the support of society. “Preparation for marriage is an important means to teach young couples how to live their relationship”, said the Cardinal. Bishop John Hine, chairman of the committee of the Bishops’ Conference for marriage and family life recalled the changes to which the family is being subjected, “the new role of women and men” in society, the gap between rich and poor, and a contemporary culture based on the pursuit of pleasure as an end in itself. In the second part of the document Elizabeth Davies, in charge of the “Marriage and Family Life” project, describes the new initiatives being promoted in favour of the family, and national telephone hotlines from which help and support services can be requested. The project is supported by “Marriage Care”, the Catholic organization funded by the government to help couples, the “Association of separated and divorced Catholics”, the ecumenical association “Churches together for families” and “Worldwide Marriage Encounter”, which organizes meetings for couples in difficulty.