Amoris Laetitia
(“The Joy of Love”) is a deep and important document.
It comes at a critical time, when the meaning of marriage,
family and human love is confused and disputed in our society. So I welcome
this document as a gift to the Church but also to everyone who wants to
understand what God really intends for our true happiness as men and women.
Pope Francis writes beautifully, as a wise pastor, about the
meaning of married love, the joys of motherhood and fatherhood, and the gift of
children. He is realistic in considering the challenges we face in our society
but he is confident in God’s grace and guidance.
He reminds us again and again
that strong marriages and loving families are at the heart of God’s plan for
our lives and the health of our society.
The Pope has asked us to read his reflections slowly and
carefully and I am going to continue to do that.
Personally, I was encouraged by what the Pope has to say
about preparing men and women for marriage and about our need to accompany
couples, especially during those early years when they are just starting out on
the path of their life together.
I was also touched by our Holy Father’s call
for all of us in the Church to reach out with compassion to wounded families
and persons living in difficult situations.
In the days and weeks ahead, I pray that all of us will
reflect on our Holy Father’s words and continue to look for ways to speak to
the hearts of the men and women of our time.
We need to inspire people to see
marriage and family as God’s way for their lives, and to call them to this
adventure in life-long love that grows deeper through the sharing of joys and
trials and the bringing of new life into the world.
We all have a lot to learn from Amoris Laetitia.