Marriage and family in the view of Pope Francis

Abstract

Marriage and families were close to Pope Francis’ heart. In the summer of 2013, just a few months after his election, he announced that he wanted to convene a synod of bishops to address the vocation and mission of the family in the Church and the modern world. The importance he placed on this issue became clear early on when he proposed a synodal process involving two synods to thoroughly examine the theological, pastoral, and ethical questions in this area: an extraordinary one on the pastoral challenges of the family in the context of evangelisation (5-19 October 2014) and an ordinary general assembly on the vocation and mission of the family in the Church and the world today (4-25 October 2015). The months in between were intended to serve as a period of reflection and preparation.