Unit-1-notes.docx

UNIT 2 Fundamental Christian Dimension of the Family LESSON 1 FAMILY AS A SOCIAL INSTITUTION According to the Vatican II Decree on the Apostolate of the Laity, Apostolicam Actuositatem (11), “Since the Creator of all things has established the conjugal partnership as the beginning and basis of human society, the family is the first and vital cell of society.” FAMILY Family is a social institution that binds people together. It is also a group of people, who support, and love each other unconditionally. Through marriage, a man and a woman who are completely independent to each other, bind themselves together and create new lives and establish their own family. FAMILY: SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE Family as a socially recognized group (usually joined by blood, marriage, or adoption) that forms an emotional connection and serves as an economic unit of society. A family of orientation refers to the family into which a person is born (Consanguineal Kin). A family of procreation describes one that is formed through marriage (Affinal Kin). FAMILY AS A SOCIAL INSTITUTION The progress of our society depends completely on how strong the families are. If good values such as kindness, generosity, honesty and the like, could be practiced in every family life, this will result in having a tolerant, self-giving, fair and just society as an outcome. Otherwise, both family and society will become dysfunctional. Parents must see to it that they guide their children in order to bring them up in the spirit of Christian maturity. The family is the mirror of society.

STRUCTURE ROLE RELATIONSHIP

TRADITIONAL FILIPINO FAMILY

MODERN FILIPINO FAMILY

Large number of children with 2 generations living together (Extended Family)

Small number of children (1 or 2) and living separately from relatives (Nuclear Family)

Man is the breadwinner and woman is the housewife

Equal role of man and woman where both work and share household chores

Family lives and work together; family relationship is attached (CLOSE-KNIT)

Parents work all day and children learn whole day; no time to spend time with each other

PROBLEMS OF FILIPINO FAMILIES According to Bishop Mylo Vergara of Pasig, Jan. 10, 2017 Philippine Star“What are the threats that confronts Filipino families?”

THREE ESSENTIAL WORDS: ‘PLEASE’, ‘THANK YOU’, ‘SORRY’ ACCORDING TO AMORIS LAETITIAE 132 “In our families when we are not overbearing and ask: ‘May I?’; in our families when we are not selfish and can say: ‘Thank you!’; and in our families when some- one realizes that he or she did something wrong and is able to say ‘Sorry!’, our family experiences peace and joy”.

LESSON 2 FUNCTIONS OF THE FAMILY REGULATION OF SEXUALITY Conjugal Act – is an essential part of love in which man and woman commit themselves totally to one another until death. Must be done only within the confines of marriage. An expression of mutual love and respect between husband and wife.

Theology of the Body – JPII There is sexual complementarity between the husband and the wife. Give themselves to one another and to receive one another and to carry out responsibilities as spouses and parents. Marital consent gives them the new identity of spouses who are committed to each other. The marital act honors the UNITIVE meaning of human sexuality (Two flesh becomes one). Each martial act must be OPEN TO PROCREATION; the possibility of creating a new life. Man & woman in partnership with God have the power to produce a new human life. As co-creators with God, sex is not merely something good, it is something sacred & holy. When the sense of the sacredness of sex is lost, the sanctity of marriage is also forgotten. PURPOSE OF THE MARITAL INTERCOURSE For Procreation = Act of Virtue For Mutual Comfort = Act of Justice For the Excitement of the Lust = Venial Sin For Illicit Ends = Mortal Sin RESPONSIBLE PROCREATION Familiaris Consortio #14 Procreation is not the only purpose of marriage, it is one of the benefits that can result from marriage. Parents have the responsibility to decide on the number of children they can care for as they cooperate with God in this noble task DUTIES OF THE PARENTS TOWARDS THEIR CHILDREN The moral education and spiritual formation of their children. To create a home where tenderness, forgiveness, respect, fidelity, and disinterested service are the rule. They must regard their children as children of God and respect them as human persons. Parents have a grave responsibility to give good example to their children. SOCIALIZATION The family is the original cell of social life. The family is the community in which, from childhood, one can learn moral values, begin to honor God. And make good use of freedom. Family life is an initiation into life in society (CCC 2207) The family is the cradle of life and love where they are born and grow. The family has a crucial role in society by being a model of love for their children. ECONOMIC COOPERATION According to Pope Francis in “The Joy of the Gospel” (220) “responsible citizenship is a virtue, and participation in political life is a moral obligation”. We have to be reminded that there is no one who is poor, that he has nothing to give and no one is so rich that he cannot receive. Man has a social nature. He needs the company of others (societas), he has duties towards this society. The virtue inclining the will to fulfill these social duties is called General Justice, because it aims at the general, social, or common good, and also because it directs man’s actions to that good in a general way. LESSON 3 POSITIVE CONTRIBUTION OF FAMILY TO THE SOCIETY MAJOR CONTRIBUTION OF FAMILIES IN SOCIETY: SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE Regulation of sexual reproductive behavior – children should be conceived & born. Socialization & education – all human beings must learn the values, norms & languages of their culture & develop the skills to become useful in society. Status conferral – families confer on the children a place in society.

Economic activity – family members work together to accomplish their goals. Protection. Affection & companionship. WELL-BEING OF SPOUSES Genesis 2:24 The Lord has Commanded Husbands and Wives to be ONE! According to Pope Benedict XVI, the love between a married couple can be fully understood in the light of the love of the crucified Christ (Deus Caritas Est 2). Marriage becomes the image of the relationship of God and his people. God’s way of loving becomes the measure of human love (Deus Caritas Est 11). MAJOR KEYS TO HAPPINESS IN MARRIAGE “Mutual Respect” is a sign of true conjugal love. To put down one’s spouse is to degrade him/her as a person. “Fidelity” is the greatest gift a father could give to his children is to love and to be faithful to his wife. This may also be his way of showing respect to his wife’s dignity as a person and to the family as a whole. Marriage is a partnership of equals. WELL-BEING OF CHILDREN “Never forget these little ones are the sons and daughters of God and that yours is a custodial relationship to them, that He was a Parent before you were parents and that He has not relinquished His parental rights or interest in these little ones.” Children are entitled to a loving relationship with their parents. WELL-BEING OF SOCIETY Marriage is the gift for life and the gift of life. It’s unique and irreplaceable - the fundamental institution for life. The family must live according to the teachings of the Church and should take steps to ensure that laws and institutions of the state are supporting and safeguarding the rights and duties of the family. According to Familiaris Consortio #45, “Both the state and society must defend the family and respect its identity and its autonomy as a way of fulfilling the requirements of the principle of subsidiarity.” LESSON 4 FAMILY AS A DOMESTIC CHURCH SEAT OF COMMUNION The couple that love; begets life and is a true, living icon – i.e., capable of revealing God the Creator and Savior. For this reason, fruitful love becomes a symbol of God’s inner life. The Triune God is a Communion of love, and the Family is its Living Reflection. SANCTUARY OF LIFE The child who is born “does not come from outside as something added on to the mutual love of the spouses, but springs from the very heart of the mutual giving, as its fruit and fulfillment…one cannot be denied without disfiguring that love itself.” From the womb to the tomb. AGENT 0F SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT The overall EDUCATION of Children is a “Most Serious Duty” and at the same time a “Primary Right” of parents. Schools Do Not REPLACE parents, but Complement them. LEAVEN OF EVANGELIZATION Within the Family which could be called a Domestic Church (Lumen Gentium 11), individuals enter upon an ecclesial experience of communion among persons, which reflects through: GRACE AND THE MYSTERY OF THE HOLY TRINITY

Endurance, The Joy of Work, Fraternal Love, Generosity, Forgiveness, Divine Worship in prayer, Offering of One’s Life