Vatican
City, 25 February 2014 (VIS) – Pope Francis has written a letter to
families asking them to pray for the next Synod of Bishops, which
will be celebrated in the Vatican in October, and the theme of which
will be “The pastoral challenges of the family in the context of
evangelisation”. The letter, dated 2 February, Feast of the
Presentation of Jesus in the Temple, is published in full below:
“Dear
families,
With
this letter, I wish, as it were, to come into your homes to speak
about an event which will take place at the Vatican this coming
October. It is the Extraordinary General Assembly of the Synod of
Bishops, which is being convened to discuss the theme of “pastoral
challenges to the family in the context of evangelization”. Indeed,
in our day the Church is called to proclaim the Gospel by confronting
the new and urgent pastoral needs facing the family.
This
important meeting will involve all the People of God – bishops,
priests, consecrated men and women, and lay faithful of the
particular Churches of the entire world – all of whom are actively
participating in preparations for the meeting through practical
suggestions and the crucial support of prayer. Such support on your
part, dear families, is especially significant and more necessary
than ever. This Synodal Assembly is dedicated in a special way to
you, to your vocation and mission in the Church and in society; to
the challenges of marriage, of family life, of the education of
children; and the role of the family in the life of the Church. I ask
you, therefore, to pray intensely to the Holy Spirit, so that the
Spirit may illumine the Synodal Fathers and guide them in their
important task. As you know, this Extraordinary Synodal Assembly will
be followed a year later by the Ordinary Assembly, which will also
have the family as its theme. In that context, there will also be the
World Meeting of Families due to take place in Philadelphia in
September 2015. May we all, then, pray together so that through these
events the Church will undertake a true journey of discernment and
adopt the necessary pastoral means to help families face their
present challenges with the light and strength that comes from the
Gospel.
I
am writing this letter to you on the Feast of the Presentation of the
Lord in the Temple. The evangelist Luke tells us that the Blessed
Mother and Saint Joseph, in keeping with the Law of Moses, took the
Baby Jesus to the temple to offer him to the Lord, and that an
elderly man and woman, Simeon and Anna, moved by the Holy Spirit,
went to meet them and acknowledged Jesus as the Messiah. Simeon took
him in his arms and thanked God that he had finally 'seen' salvation.
Anna, despite her advanced age, found new vigour and began to speak
to everyone about the Baby. It is a beautiful image: two young
parents and two elderly people, brought together by Jesus. He is the
one who brings together and unites generations! He is the
inexhaustible font of that love which overcomes every occasion of
self-absorption, solitude, and sadness. In your journey as a family,
you share so many beautiful moments: meals, rest, housework, leisure,
prayer, trips and pilgrimages, and times of mutual support…
Nevertheless, if there is no love then there is no joy, and authentic
love comes to us from Jesus. He offers us his word, which illuminates
our path; he gives us the Bread of life which sustains us on our
journey.
Dear
families, your prayer for the Synod of Bishops will be a precious
treasure which enriches the Church. I thank you, and I ask you to
pray also for me, so that I may serve the People of God in truth and
in love. May the protection of the Blessed Mother and Saint Joseph
always accompany all of you and help you to walk united in love and
in caring for one another. I willingly invoke on every family the
blessing of the Lord.”
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