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.

Family: the Greatest value of our Times
Summary
Love is a complex and multidimensional phenomenon. It constitutes the basic need of the human heart, therefore every human wants to love and be loved. Marriage satisfies the need for unity which is rooted deeply in every human. The family which is built on the foundation of marriage, a deep and complementary relationship of a man and woman, is the basic unit of the social life.
In the modern society, the family has undergone fundamental transformation. The change in the hierarchy of values as well as even greater focus on self-realisation of an individual and fulfilling individual needs has occurred. Many families become introverted thinking only about the improvement of living conditions and concentration of efforts on exclusive possession of goods.
However, the family as a basic and irreplaceable educational community constitutes the environment which creates the best conditions for conveying sustainable values which help people shape their identities. The family built on love brings with itself the future of the society.

DIE HAUSKIRCHE ALS GRUNDLEGENDES GEBIET DER FAMILIENKATECHESE.
Zusammenfassung
Die Lehre der Kirche über die Hauskirche beruft sich heute oft auf den Hl. Johannes Chrysostom, der die Familie als „kleine Kirche” benannte, in sie die religiösen Tätigkeiten aus der liturgischen Vereinigung überträgt und die Fortführung des Lesens und der Lehre in der Häuslichkeit empfiehlt. Im Vaterhaus soll nämlich die Anfangskatechese, wie auch die Vertiefung der religiösen Kenntnisse und Ergänzung der religiösen Erziehung stattfinden, das ist die Familienkatechese. Keine andere Katechese wird heutzutage die erwarteten Resultate, ohne eine bewusste und verantwortungsvolle Mitwirkung der Familie erlangen. Dem hat auch Papst Johannes Paul II Ausdruck gegeben, indem er unterstrich, dass sogar das einfache Treffen von Eltern und Kindern nicht nur eine Gelegenheit zum gegenseitigen sich Öffnen und zum Dialog ist, sondern auch zur gemeinsamen tiefen Reflexion, die gewisse formative Elemente einführen kann. Besonders ein in der Familie herrschendes angemessenes Klima schafft eine Chance für die Aufnahme der Familienkatechese.
Eine weittragende Bedeutung hat hier auch die ständige Zusammenarbeit der Eltern mit den Seelsorgern und Katecheten in der Pfarrei. Diese Zusammenarbeit sollte dazu aus dem Rahmen der Katechese herauslaufen, das heißt inhaltlich und formell die humanistischpädagogischen Gebiete des Wissens und der Formation umfassen, die die Familie zur Ausfüllung bestimmter erzieherischer und religiöser Funktionen vorbereiten.
Mit der Wiedereinführung der Katechese in den Schulen stellte sich in Polen eine Lage ein, die die Katechese nicht nur im Pfarr-Kontext, sondern auch im neuen Familien-Kontext darstellen muss. Das Gebiet der Bildung und Erziehung gehört nämlich ohne Zweifel zu den wichtigsten Gebieten des Menschenlebens. Die erste und entscheidende Stimme in der Erziehung muss man der Familie geben. Diese Katechese ist auch durch das II Vatikanische Konzil als wichtigste behandelt. Durch ihre Erfüllung in der Familie wird ein eigenartiges „Katechumenat” geführt, welches die Kinder in die Anfangs-Christenheit einführt und sie lehrt, das ganze Leben mit Christus weiterzugehen.

CONCERN FOR A RELIGIOUS CLIMATE IN A FAMILY
Summary
Pope Benedict XVI in the Encyclical Caritas in veritate says that „there are certain religious cultures in the world today that do not oblige men and women to live in communion but rather cut them off from one other in a search for individual well-being” (No. 55). This well-being leads people to rejection of God and a religious life. „Without God – in the pope’s opinion – man neither knows which way to go, nor even understands who he is” (No. 78). For human creation, having a spiritual nature, accomplishes itself In the fullest way most of all in relations with God and interpersonal relations. This relates in a special way – as we read in the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church Lumen gentium – to a family community in which every child through the sacrament of baptism enters the living relation with God and the Church. It is at home where parents are to be witnesses of the faith and love of Christ to one another and to their children (see No. 35).
A family has got special capacities to fulfil its didactic functions. They result from the fact of responsibility of a family for a young person. The Declaration on Christian Education Gravissimum educationis underlines the fact that „since parents have given children their life, they are bound by the most serious obligation to educate their offspring and therefore must be recognised as the primary and principal educators” (No. 3).
Therefore from the earliest years Christian parents should teach their children respect and reverence to God and neighbours. As the first educators and catechists of their children they should be aware of their religious knowledge, educational skills, responsibility for their child and its religious upbringing. They should also understand the need of creating a Christian climate in their families. Pope Benedict XVI calls Christian parents to help their children to believe, to accompany them on a road to Jesus and with Jesus, because life in a family – according to the pope – becomes more open and joyful if God is present in it and if one experiences His closeness, especially in a prayer.

Christian family as a community of faith and evangelization in the teaching of pope Francis
Summary
In his teaching Pope Francis often emphasizes that the most important duty of the Church is preaching the Gospel. Its proclamation is a sign of maturity of the Church community. However in many situations it should have missionary character. Francis reports that in a secularized world all baptized people are called to give the testimony of faith. He believes that people learn the Gospel within families first and then they would proclaim it to the world. Pope Francis perceives the family as an environment of faith and evangelization. He indicates that raising awareness of Church in this aspect is confronted – especially in the western cultural and social context – with attacks against families which can fulfill their duties facing difficulties.
This aspect is raised in the first part of the article. In the second part, on the social and cultural background teaching of Pope Francis about the role of family as a community of faith and evangelization is presented.

CULTURAL ACTIVITY IN THE CONTEXT OF FAMILY LIFE
One of the most significant goals of community life and social development is creating and passing on cultural achievements to future generations (Christifideles laici, 44) which in turn makes human life better, both in terms the of individual and the community (Gaudium et spes, 53). The paper presents the results of surveys carried out in order to find the relations between cultural activity and family life, as well as local and parish community life. The project was conducted by the Silesian University and it was supported by the Regional Local Authorities of the Silesian Region. A group of 1030 women was chosen for the survey. Two extreme groups were selected: the first group featured low cultural activity whereas the second group had considerable cultural involvement. The results were compared regarding various aspects of family and community life. The results revealed that, in terms of the priesthood, there is a favorable correlation between cultural activity, family and community life. High cultural activity also improves family life satisfaction and the feeling of security among family members. However, the survey has also revealed that there can be a negative correlation between cultural activity and moral principles concerning marriage and love in the family. The survey results showed the negative influence of liberal ideology. Some liberal principles, such as tolerance, led to accepting uncritically any kinds of divergence including homosexual relations, abortion and divorce. It seems that culture in the broad meaning of the word, with all its aspects and the people involved in particular, lost its basic dimension and depth. This is contrary to John Paul II's preaching that moral principles are fundamental in any kind of cultural activity. The obtained results require further detailed research so that positive aspects and trends in contemporary culture can be examined and highlighted. A new approach to find ways of implementing and respecting moral principles regarding marriage and family should be looked for, since that is the only natural and indispensable environment for the development of any individual.

CATECHUMENATE FOR MARRIAGE.
Summary
After the restoration of catechumenate in the Church its ideas are still more often applied in a post-baptism formation according indications presented in the 4th chapter of the Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults. New suggestions appeared for marriage preparation since it should be similar to catechumenate.
The main rules of catechumenate are considered in this text concerning Christian formation and applied to an initiation to the „Church of the home”. The last should be analogous to Christian initiation, being the pre-marriage catechumenate, as is shown in Familiaris consortio. It is possible to fulfill all the required periods, degrees and celebrations during one year, as it is in formal catechumenate.
The article presents pastoral and liturgical foundations for such a formation.

EHE UND FAMILIE UND DIE WANDLUNGEN IN DER KULTUR VON HEUTE.
Zusammenfassung
Der heutige Mensch, der die christliche Ehe- und Familienberufung verwirklicht, steht vor einer Wahl. Die Wandlungen, die sich in der Kultur vollzogen haben, zwingen, damit der Mensch Werte auswählt. Die traditionelle Kultur bietet das Modell der Ehe und der Familie an, das nicht von allen in der christlichen Welt Großgezogen akzeptiert wird. In der heutigen Kultur hat Bedeutung anderes Wertesystem. Es bieten Anti-Werte an als Alternative zu der christlichen Moral. Die Kämpfe um das christliche Modell des Lebens heißen Kultur des Lebens, in die konträren Anstrengungen Kultur des Todes.
Die jungen Menschen müssen – wollend, nicht wollend – eine Wahl vollbringen. Die Kirche steht vor einer Herausforderung, wie den jungen Leuten helfen, so dass sie – in der Welt der Kultur des Lebens und der Kultur des Todes lebend – die richtige Wahl vollbringen.

The meaning of selected qualities of matrimonial communio personarum in the realization of tasks faced by a family as a “domestic Church”
Summary
Matrimony participates in the existence and mission of the Church. It actualizes itself as a Church and on that basis it is entitled to the title „home Church”. Christian spouses implanted in Christ through the power of baptism and included as „unity of the two” in betrothed bond of Christ with the Church through the power of the sacrament of matrimony – are gifted and obliged to perform functions specific for the whole Church. Thanks to their specific qualities they fulfill, in a unique way, prophetic, priestly and royal function of Christ. Among these qualities one can distinguish: the ability to adopt, listen and announce of the word of God, sanctifiction oneself through the sacrament of matrimony, sacrament of the Eucharist and the Penance and prayer, as well as through coming with the mutual help in the attitude of service.
It allows us to perceive essential and fundamental subject of priestly activities in the matrimony.

The Book of Tobit. Family in a foreign land
Summary
The author of the Book of Tobit, which should be taken as a model, wants to protect the values and wealth of Jewish families. In the Book we encounter God’s intervention in the life of Tobit, Tobias and Sarah living in a foreign land emphasised by the motive of burial, by the motive of the deprivation of the property, by the motive of blidness, by the motive of childlessness and abandonment and modelled on Genesis. Their religion is based on fidelity to Law, prayers and practising pious and good deeds. Such a religion does not exclude suffering, including the suffering of the righteous.