For Catholics, marriage, family life a ‘biggie’

“The family is a biggie for Catholics!” That was how a Buddhist student in my class, Introduction to Catholicism, responded when asked why he chose marriage in the Catholic Church as the topic for his final project.

Students were asked to choose one aspect of Catholicism and develop a video or a power point on it. I was quite impressed that my Buddhist student, after reluctantly studying a required course on Catholicism for three months, identified the Sacrament of Marriage as the most important aspect of Catholicism.

When asked why he thought “marriage was a biggie for Catholics,” he replied, “it seems everything for Catholics begins and ends with marriage.”

In light of the Synod on the family, it is important that the Church embraces the challenges facing marriage and family in today’s world by developing a pastoral approach that is grounded on the principles of our faith and the traditions of the Church, and is sensitive to diversity of cultures. This pastoral approach must be sufficiently open to embrace new questions with sober discernment and humility.