2016-09-16 16:27:00

The Indian Church "committed to strengthening the family"‎


An official of India’s Latin rite bishops says that  the nation’s Catholic Church "is committed to strengthening family life, despite the many challenges it faces”.   Fr. Milton Gonsalves, the executive secretary of the Commission for Family of the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India (CCBI), talked to Asianews, about the main problems that families face and also offered possible solutions. 

The priest who has been travelling extensively around the country since 2014, organizing training on marriage preparatory courses and family apostolate and also interacting with families, said one of the "common problem" is the decline in spirituality and prayer life in the family.  He said imparting of good Christian and moral values to children should begin from birth,  and that the spirituality of family is strengthened by prayer.  Good relations between couples is essential in helping face challenges in marriage, the priest added.   Another common problem Fr. Gonsalves noted in Indian families is "alcoholism", which bring about “rift in spousal relationship" and consequently affects children and others in family.  

He said the that the Indian Church has been making “concerted effort to pastorally guide families that would really live the mystery of Christ and the faith in a tangible and feasible way," Father Gonslaves said.  One of the priorities of the CCBI Commission for Family, he said, is to create pastoral structure in family apostolate in every parish in India.  They have developed a common manual or syllabus for the marriage preparatory course for both participants and trainers, he said.  India’s Latin Rite bishops will be focusing attention on the family during the next biennial meeting of the CCBI, to be held in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, January 31 to February 7, 2017.  The CCBI is also working with family apostolate groups such as the Couples for Christ (CFC) which has a membership of 30 thousand families.  (Source: AsiaNews)








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