Bishop of Mymensingh: the family, the foundation "of society and Church"

The family is the foundation "of society and the Church, if family is sustained, then Church will also be sustained", says Msgr. Ponen Paul Kubi, Chairman of the Episcopal Commission for family life (Ec-Fl) of the Conference of Bishops of Bangladesh.

Bishop Kubi urged the faithful to give birth to families who follow the principles of the Gospel and take Joseph and Mary of Nazareth as examples. Families should nourish the values ​​of love, mutual respect between parents, children and other family members. It must become a school of the Word of God, a house of prayer and a small domestic church, he said.

If the family is good and formed according to Christian values​​, says Msgr. Kubi, then society and the Church will benefit and the members of the family become the first witnesses of Christ. He also asked for prayers in view of the forthcoming Synod on the Family, scheduled from  October 5 to 19 in Rome.

Finally, the prelate - who is also the Bishop of Mymensingh - asked the Christian community in Bangladesh to become one family in which people come together "to pray, eat, talk and live in peace and joy".

The local Catholic Church will celebrate the National Day for the Family on 5 October, reaffirming a clear commitment of the Church leaders in this essential pastoral ministry. In view of the festivities priests and parishioners are preparing special activities and joint events he added.

The Bangladeshi Conference of Bishops’ Commission for Family Life (Ec-Fl) was established in 1973 to promote the welfare of the Christian family as a whole in Bangladesh, through proper guidance and animation. The role of Ec-Fl is also  to safeguard Christian families against errors and abuses and to uphold the Christian doctrine of marriage and family life and to become active protagonists of evangelization within the community and among non-Christians. (AsiaNews)