Chapter 7 Called to Family Life

How to Truly Listen Concentrate on what the other person is saying more than what you will say next. Be mentally quiet. Avoid making snap judgments before someone finishes speaking. Listen respectfully. Reflect back on what you think the person said and meant, and find out if you understood it correctly.

How to Truly Listen Understand the person as well as the message. Give your undivided attention; if you can’t at the time, explain. Be honest but not ruthless when you don’t agree with what the person is saying.

Quick Check What does communication entail?

Quick Check What does communication entail? Communication is understanding each other through words and gestures, which allow us to share our thoughts and feelings. Effective communication is a two-way street.

Quick Check How can we listen to people ’ s message conveyed by words and actions?

Quick Check How can we listen to people ’ s message conveyed by words and actions? We can concentrate on what the other person is saying rather than on what we will say next. We can be mentally quiet, and avoid making snap judgments before someone finishes speaking. We can listen respectfully, and reflect back what we think the person said and meant to find out if we understood it differently.

Quick Check What are the different family structures in today ’ s world?

Quick Check What are the different family structures in today ’ s world? The nuclear family is a household of parents and their dependent children. The stepfamily is a household that includes relatives by a parent ’ s remarriage. The blended family includes both parents ’ children by their previous marriages and any new children they may have together. A single-parent family includes only one parent living in the household. An extended family is a group of relatives which may include a nuclear family, who live in the same household or near each other.

Quick Check What are some positive changes that have taken place in the way families function?

Quick Check What are some positive changes that have taken place in the way families function? Families now call for more participation and responsibility from each member. Husbands and wives share tasks more as equals. Children ’ s opinions are more valued than in times when it was better to “ be seen but not heard. ” The family has been strong and flexible enough to adjust to rapid social change.

Families Continue the Work of Christ As a domestic Church, families continue the work of Christ and carry out his mission through the ordinary events of life: The spouses have faith in God and believe he cares about them. They give him thanks when things are going well, and they turn to him when things are difficult. They love those around them and continue to believe in their value. In this way they model God’s love.

Families Continue the Work of Christ They foster intimacy, from their own physical and spiritual union to the appropriate affection among all members. Sharing who they are – the good and the bad qualities – and still being accepted is irreplaceable in forming a close relationship with Christ. They spread the message of Christ’s Good News by talking about God, acting based on Gospel values, and setting an example for children who will help them recognize God’s presence – often in surprising ways.

Families Continue the Work of Christ They educate through teaching and example, helping children learn and practice values necessary for Christian living. They pray together, thankful for blessings, yearning for strength, needing guidance; toddlers, teenagers, and adults gather together, trusting and searching in their own ways. They serve one another, sacrificing their own wants for the good of others, sometimes struggling to do so with love.

Families Continue the Work of Christ They forgive and seek reconciliation, letting go of hurts to make peace. By doing so family members come to believe that parents and God still love them no matter what. They celebrate life – birthdays, anniversaries, the first day of school or graduation, new jobs, old friends, holy days and holidays, when something tragic occurs, and in the joyful celebration of the sacraments. These celebrations typically involve gathering around a meal, and as they share food and stories, they grow as the community of love Jesus calls us to be.

Families Continue the Work of Christ They welcome others into their homes, caring for the needs of others. They act with justice by treating people in the community with respect, speaking out against discrimination, and working to end hunger, poverty, homelessness. They affirm life as God’s precious gift to us, going against what destroys or harms life; within their families they discourage violent words and actions and strive for peaceful ways to resolve conflict; in this way the peacemakers of the next generation are formed.

Families Continue the Work of Christ They honor vocations to the priesthood and religious life by encouraging their children to be open to God’s call, to listen for him and to respond to his grace; their encouragement comes through family prayer, involvement in parish life, and respectfully speaking of priests, sisters, brothers, and permanent deacons.

Quick Check How is family a path to God?

Quick Check How is family a path to God? The family is a path to God because it is the place where a person ’ s life and journey toward God begins. A man and woman in the Sacrament of Marriage become a new family, particular, unique, and unrepeatable. This new family is called to learn about God, love, and life together.

Quick Check What needs do children have and how can families address them?

Quick Check What needs do children have and how can families address them? Children not only have physical and emotional needs, but spiritual needs as well. These are first met through words of comfort, prayers prayed, care given, and the virtues that parents use to care for their children. Parents are called to teach their children about Jesus and faith, provide prayer experiences, and model and instill Christian virtues.

Quick Check Why is the family called the domestic Church?

Quick Check Why is the family called the domestic Church? The family is called the domestic Church because it is where children should first learn about faith. It is the first community of grace and prayer, a school of human virtues, and of Christian charity.

Quick Check How is the family called to be a community of grace and prayer?

Quick Check How is the family called to be a community of grace and prayer? A family is a community of grace and prayer by spreading the Good News, praying together, serving one another and others, celebrating life, affirming life, acting with justice, worshiping in the parish community, and so forth.

Quick Check What are the four cardinal virtues?

Quick Check What are the four cardinal virtues? The four cardinal virtues are prudence, justice, fortitude and temperance.

Quick Check How is the family called to be a school of virtue and charity?

Quick Check How is the family called to be a school of virtue and charity? The family is called to be a school of Christian virtue because it is there that children learn and experience the basics of faith, hope, love, prudence, justice, fortitude, temperance, and all the other virtues.

Quick Check How does the Fourth Commandment direct family life?

Quick Check How does the Fourth Commandment direct family life? The Fourth Commandment directs family life by telling children to honor and respect their parents, guardians, and proper authorities. Parents, in turn, must honor their parents and do nothing to provoke their children to disobedience.

Quick Check How do the sacraments guide family life?

Quick Check How do the sacraments guide family life? The sacraments enrich family life as sources of grace. They guide the daily interactions between family members. Participation in the Eucharist, the Sacrament of Penance, and Reconciliation provide forgiveness and strength for families — healing the hurts caused by sin.

Elements of Light for Today’s Families A more lively awareness of personal freedom Greater attention to the quality of interpersonal relationships within marriage Greater attention to the dignity of women Greater attention to responsible procreation More concern about the religious education of children

Elements of Light for Today’s Families Awareness of the need to develop interfamily relationships for the sharing of spiritual and material assistance Rediscovery of the family’s important place in the Church as a responsible agent for the building of a more just society.

Quick Check What is meant by intentional living?

Quick Check What is meant by intentional living? Intentional living is paying attention to what is happening around us, and making informed moral decisions based on our past experiences, previous situations of other people, and following Jesus ’ example and Church teaching.

Quick Check What is the Church teaching on artificial birth control and artificial means of conception?

Quick Check What is the Church teaching on artificial birth control and artificial means of conception? The Church ’ s teaching is that artificial birth control and artificial means of conception are morally unacceptable because every human being from conception to birth has dignity, and is created in the image and likeness of God. Married couples can participate in God ’ s creative act but cannot control it.

Quick Check What are some ways parents can practice intentional parenting?

Quick Check What are some ways parents can practice intentional parenting? Parents can practice intentional parenting through addressing the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of their children. Parents can spend time with their children, give them discipline and guidance, shower them with affection, and teach their children how to pray and grow in faith.

Quick Check What are some positive influences on family life today?

Quick Check What are some positive influences on family life today? Some positive influences on family life include a more lively awareness of personal freedom, greater attention to the quality of interpersonal relationships in marriage, to the dignity of women, and to responsible procreation, more concern about the religious education of children, awareness of the need to develop interfamily relationships for the sharing of spiritual and material assistance, and rediscovery of the family ’ s important place in the Church as a responsible agent for the building of a more just society.