Studia Pastoralne
Rocznik Wydziału Teologicznego UŚ

FAMILY AS COMMUNION OF LIFE AND LOVE IN THE HOME CHURCH OF LIGHT MOVEMEN.
Summary
Family in itself is the fulfilment of one of the most basic human needs, since a man in his ontological dimension is homo familiaris. It may serve its purpose due to the fact that it is a privileged place of realization of human love and at the same time a place opened to receiving life. Thanks to this family is able to fulfil the need of an emotional bond with one’s neighbours, mutual understanding, security, a desire to have children as well as religious needs, including initiation into mysteries of religious and ecclesial life. In order to meet these aims a family must become „a community of life and love” (KDK 48). The foundation of this community is a communion of spouses with God which in turn will manifest itself in communion between spouses and communion between parents and their children. This personal vision of marriage and a Christian family, based on the idea of father Franciszek Blachnicki, is the aim of the Home Church. For families participating in the movement a nuptial communion is the foundation of communion of the whole family, and from even broader perspective, an opportunity to build an ecclesial community. This is why a family can and should call itself a home Church. In view of the above the basic aspect of the charism of the Home Church was described as „the self-gift in a marriage and a family”. The basis of formation of a marriage and a family is a nuptial spirituality, which is aspiring to holiness together with one’s spouse. The nuptial communion is built through the so called obligations. They are as follows: daily private prayer, daily family prayer, monthly nuptial dialogue, the rule of life and participation, at least once a year, in a formation retreat. Thanks to implementation of these tasks spouses get closer to one another and to God. The obligations are met by a daily effort of spouses and mutual support of other married couples gathered in the circles of the Home Church.

Methodology of promoting the Spirituality of Communion in the Light of “Novo millennio ineunta” and the letter of John Paul II to priests for Holy Thursday 2005, “A Formula of Consecration: A ‘Formula of life’”
Summary
At the close of the Great Jubilee of the Year 2000 in his letter Novo millennio ineunte John Paul II pointed at pastoral priorities and paths to follow (compare: NMI 29-41) to make the Church the home and the school of communion. He issued a strong warning against the temptation of activism: “Before making prac-tical plans, we need to promote a spirituality of communion […]. Let us have no illusions: unless we follow this spiritual path, external structures of communion will serve very little purpose. They would become mechanisms without a soul, ‘masks’ of communion rather than its means of expression and growth” (NMI 43). It follows that promoting the spirituality of communion should be “the guiding principle of education wherever individuals and Christians are formed, wherev¬er ministers of the altar, consecrated persons, and pastoral workers are trained, wherever families and communities are being built up” (NMI 43). According to the pastoral priorities defined by the Pope, the perspective of sainthood can be related to the attitude of “believing”; the priority of prayer can be associated with “remembering”; the sacrament of reconciliation with “forgiving”; listening to the word of God with “receiving”; Eucharist with “giving thanks”; the priority of grace with “giving”; preaching the word of God with “going out”. Similarly, following the suggestion made by John Paul II, a tool to implement the spirituality of com¬munion can be “a formula of life” hidden in the words of the consecration: “to take bread in one’s hand” is to let the Holy Spirit lead us especially in prayer; “saying the blessing” means to listen; “broke” means to be purified; “giving bread away” means to evangelize; “this is my Body” means to create communion; “take this, all of you, and eat of it” means to spread mercy; “do this in memory of me” means to love by the love of Christ and in the power of the Spirit of God. Following the said attitudes, we have become promoters of the spirituality of communion on the basis of which we are able “to make the Church the home and the school of communion” (NMI 43).

CATECHESIS INTRODUCING THE CHILD TO THE SACRAMENTS OF PENANCE AND OF THE EUCHARIST IN THE LIGHT OF THE POST-VATICAN II DOCUMENTS OF THE CHURCH
The reflection taken up in this article shows that the documents of the Church which have been published after the II Vatican Council are a rich source of information concerning the preparation of children to the Sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation and to the Sacrament of the Eucharist. In Church teaching after the Council we find not only indicated the content, which should be present in the preparation of children to Penance and the Eucharist, but also its forms and method. The documents of the Church generally outline a certain program or direction of sacramental formation, so the demands given need to be supplemented by a catechetical and pastoral reflection, which would lead to more detailed and practical suggetstions, possible to use in pastoral and catechetical ministry. Although each elaboration must take into consideration elements that are characteristic for the introdution formation of the child to the reality of Penance and the Eucharist, which - in accordance with requirements given in the Church documents after the Council - regard above all the following issues:
- the preparation of children to the Sacraments of Penance and of the Eucharist takes place through a number of stages, which can be called: far, close and direct;
- the formation of penance and eucharistic attitudes begins already in the first months and years of the children's lives, thus the important role of parents and family;
- in the process of introducing children to the reality of Penance and the Eucharist initiation catechesis has a principal role;
- on each of the stages of preparation one has to take into consideration the situation of the catechized, the level of personal development and family environment.