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Gaudium et Spes: The Second Vatican Council’s
Pastoral Constitution
on the Church in the Modern World Preface 1. Nothing genuinely human fails to raise an echo in their hearts (Why? Salvation is for all mankind. In Christ, God became a human person, thus uniting himself to all mankind.) 2. The council focuses its attention on the world of men (not merely heaven and angels and such). - created and sustained by love - fallen; in bondage to sin - emancipated by Christ crucified and risen, who breaks the stranglehold of the Evil One, in order to renew the world 3. Though mankind is stricken with wonder at its own discoveries and its power, it often raises anxious questions about the current trend of the world, about the place and role of man in the universe, about the meaning of its individual and collective strivings, and about the ultimate destiny of reality and of humanity. - Hence the focal point of our total presentation will be man himself, whole and entire, body and soul, heart and conscience, mind and will. Introductory Statement: The Situation of Men in the Modern World 4. Hope and Anguish 5. Changed Conditions - math and natural science; impact on culture - technology 6. Changes in the Social Order 7. Psychological, Moral, and Religious Changes 8. Imbalances - cultural contradictions and imbalances - intellectual in modern matters, but which lacks a vision of the whole - concerns for practicality and efficiency, and the demands of moral conscience - conditions of collective existence, and the requisites of personal thought - pressures on the family - between the races, social orders, races, wealthy and poor, international order vs. desire to propagate one’s ideology or forces of collective greed 9. Desires of Mankind (especially those left behind by the benefits of these changes) for Dignity 10. Man’s Deeper Questioning - most basic question: What is man? Part I: The Church and Man’s Calling 11. For faith throws a new light on everything, manifests God's design for man's total vocation, and thus directs the mind to solutions which are fully human. This council, first of all, wishes to assess in this light those values which are most highly prized today and to relate them to their divine source. Insofar as they stem from endowments conferred by God on man, these values are exceedingly good. Yet they are often wrenched from their rightful function by the taint in man's heart, and hence stand in need of purification. What does the Church think of man? Chapter 1: The Dignity of the Human Person 12. Man as Made in God’s Image: - But what is man? About himself he has expressed, and continues to express, many divergent and even contradictory opinions. In these he often exalts himself as the absolute measure of all things or debases himself to the point of despair. The result is doubt and anxiety. - made in the image of God; but not solitary: fundamentally communal (contrast with Hobbes and most social contract theories) 13. Sin - Man set himself against God and sought to attain his goal apart from God. - Often refusing to acknowledge God as his beginning, man has disrupted also his proper relationship to his own ultimate goal as well as his whole relationship toward himself and others and all created things. Therefore man is split within himself. - Note that the Council has accounted for the paradoxical character of mankind: exalted and yet debased: man is split within himself. 14. The Make-Up of Man: a unity of body and soul - man is not allowed to despise his bodily life, rather he is obliged to regard his body as good and honorable since God has created it and will raise it up on the last day. Nevertheless, wounded by sin, man experiences rebellious stirrings in his body. But the very dignity of man postulates that man glorify God in his body and forbid it to serve the evil inclinations of his heart. 15. Truth and the Mind - Man judges rightly that by his intellect he surpasses the material universe, for he shares in the light of the divine mind. - The intellectual nature of the human person is perfected by wisdom and needs to be, for wisdom gently attracts the mind of man to a quest and a love for what is true and good. 16. Moral Conscience - In the depths of his conscience, man detects a law which he does not impose upon himself, but which holds him to obedience. For man has in his heart a law written by God; to obey it is the very dignity of man. 17. Liberty - Only in freedom can man direct himself toward goodness. Our contemporaries make much of this freedom and pursue it eagerly; and rightly to be sure. Often however they foster it perversely as a license for doing whatever pleases them, even if it is evil. For its part, authentic freedom is an exceptional sign of the divine image within man. 18. The Question of Death - It is in the face of death that the riddle a human existence grows most acute. Not only is man tormented by pain and by the advancing deterioration of his body, but even more so by a dread of perpetual extinction. He rebels against death because he bears in himself an eternal seed which cannot be reduced to sheer matter. All the endeavors of technology, though useful in the extreme, cannot calm his anxiety; for prolongation of biological life is unable to satisfy that desire for higher life which is inescapably lodged in his breast. 19. The Forms and Roots of Atheism - The root reason for human dignity lies in man's call to communion with God. Still, many of our contemporaries have never recognized this intimate and vital link with God, or have explicitly rejected it. - The word atheism is applied to phenomena which are quite distinct from one another. For while God is expressly denied by some, others believe that man can assert absolutely nothing about Him. Still others use methods to scrutinize the question of God as to make it seem devoid of meaning. - Many, unduly transgressing the limits of the positive sciences, contend that everything can be explained by this kind of scientific reasoning alone, or by contrast, they altogether disallow that there is any absolute truth. - Again some form for themselves such a fallacious idea of God that when they repudiate this figment they are by no means rejecting the God of the Gospel. - Some never get to the point of raising questions about God, since they seem to experience no religious stirrings nor do they see why they should trouble themselves about religion. - Moreover, atheism results not rarely from a violent protest against the evil in this world, - or from the absolute character with which certain human values are unduly invested (doing rosaries? rejection of false forms of sexuality?) - Modern civilization itself often complicates the approach to God not for any essential reason but because it is so heavily engrossed in earthly affairs. - Believers themselves frequently bear some responsibility for this situation. To the extent that they neglect their own training in the faith, or teach erroneous doctrine, or are deficient in their religious, moral or social life, they must be said to conceal rather than reveal the authentic face of God and religion. 20 Systematic Atheism - Modern atheism often takes on a systematic expression which stretches the desires for human independence to such a point that it poses difficulties against any kind of dependence on God. Those who profess atheism of this sort maintain that it gives man freedom to be an end unto himself, the sole artisan and creator of his own history. They claim that this freedom cannot be reconciled with the affirmation of a Lord Who is author and purpose of all things. Favoring this doctrine can be the sense of power which modern technical progress generates in man. [cf. de Lubac, “Atheist Humanism”] - Not to be overlooked among the forms of modern atheism is that which anticipates the liberation of man especially through his economic and social emancipation. This form argues that by its nature religion thwarts this liberation by arousing man's hope for a deceptive future life, thereby diverting him from the constructing of the earthly city. Consequently when the proponents of this doctrine gain governmental power they vigorously fight against religion, and promote atheism by using, especially in the education of youth, those means of pressure which public power has at its disposal. 21. The Church’s Response to Atheism - She strives to detect in the atheistic mind the hidden causes for the denial of God; conscious of how weighty are the questions which atheism raises, and motivated by love for all men, she believes these questions ought to be examined seriously and more profoundly. - The Church holds that the recognition of God is in no way hostile to man's dignity, since this dignity is rooted and perfected in God. For man was made an intelligent and free member of society by God Who created him, but even more important, he is called as a son to commune with God and share in His happiness. [infinite goal; infinite striving] - She further teaches that a hope related to the end of time does not diminish the importance of intervening duties but rather undergirds the acquittal of them with fresh incentives. By contrast, when a divine instruction and the hope of life eternal are lacking, man's dignity is most grievously diminished. Riddles of life and death, of guilt and of grief go unsolved with the frequent result that men succumb to despair. - Meanwhile every man remains to himself an unsolved puzzle, for no one can entirely escape the kind of self-questioning mentioned earlier, especially when life's major events take place. To this questioning only God fully and most certainly provides an answer. - The remedy which must be applied to atheism, however, is to be sought in a proper presentation of the Church's teaching as well as in the integral life of the Church and her members. - This result is achieved chiefly by the witness of a living and mature faith, namely, one trained to see difficulties clearly and to master them. This faith needs to prove its fruitfulness by penetrating the believer's entire life, including its worldly dimensions, and by activating him toward justice and love, especially regarding the needy. - What does the most reveal God's presence, however, is the brotherly charity of the faithful who are united in spirit as they work together for the faith of the Gospel and who prove themselves a sign of unity. - While rejecting atheism, root and branch, the Church sincerely professes that all men, believers and unbelievers alike, ought to work for the rightful betterment of this world in which all alike live. - Such an ideal cannot be realized, however, apart from sincere and prudent dialogue. Hence the Church protests against the distinction which some state authorities make between believers and unbelievers, with prejudice to the fundamental rights of the human person. - The Church calls for the active liberty of believers to build up in this world God's temple too. She courteously invites atheists to examine the Gospel of Christ with an open mind. - Above all the Church knows that her message is in harmony with the most secret desires of the human heart when she champions the dignity of the human vocation, restoring hope to those who have already despaired of anything higher than their present lot. Far from diminishing man, her message brings to his development light, life and freedom. 22. Christ as the New Man - The truth is that only in the mystery of the incarnate Word does the mystery of man take on light. - He Who is "the image of the invisible God" (Col. 1:15),(21) is Himself the perfect man. To the sons of Adam He restores the divine likeness which had been disfigured from the first sin onward. - The Son of God "loved me and gave Himself up for me" (Gal. 2:20). By suffering for us He not only provided us with an example for our imitation, He blazed a trail, and if we follow it, life and death are made holy and take on a new meaning. - The Christian man, conformed to the likeness of that Son Who is the firstborn of many brothers, received "the first-fruits of the Spirit" (Rom. 8:23) by which he becomes capable of discharging the new law of love. Through this Spirit, the whole man is renewed from within, even to the achievement of "the redemption of the body" (Rom. 8:23). - All this holds true not only for Christians, but for all men of good will in whose hearts grace works in an unseen way. For, since Christ died for all men, and since the ultimate vocation of man is in fact one, and divine, we ought to believe that the Holy Spirit in a manner known only to God offers to every man the possibility of being associated with this paschal mystery. - Concluding Flourish: Such is the mystery of man, and it is a great one, as seen by believers in the light of Christian revelation. Chapter 2: The Community of Mankind 23. One of the salient features of the modern world is the growing interdependence of men one on the other, a development promoted chiefly by modern technical advances. Nevertheless brotherly dialogue among men does not reach its perfection on the level of technical progress, but on the deeper level of interpersonal relationships. These demand a mutual respect for the full spiritual dignity of the person. 24. The Trinity Reveals the Communitarian Dimension of Man * NB: God, Who has fatherly concern for everyone, has willed that all men should constitute one family and treat one another in a spirit of brotherhood. For having been created in the image of God, Who "from one man has created the whole human race and made them live all over the face of the earth" (Acts 17:26), all men are called to one and the same goal, namely God Himself. For this reason, love for God and neighbor is the first and greatest commandment. Sacred Scripture, however, teaches us that the love of God cannot be separated from love of neighbor: "If there is any other commandment, it is summed up in this saying: Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.... Love therefore is the fulfillment of the Law" (Rom. 13:9-10; cf. 1 John 4:20). To men growing daily more dependent on one another, and to a world becoming more unified every day, this truth proves to be of paramount importance. Indeed, the Lord Jesus, when He prayed to the Father, "that all may be one. . . as we are one" (John 17:21-22) opened up vistas closed to human reason, for He implied a certain likeness between the union of the divine Persons, and the unity of God's sons in truth and charity. This likeness reveals that man, who is the only creature on earth which God willed for itself, cannot fully find himself except through a sincere gift of himself. 25. The Relationship Between Person and Society - Man's social nature makes it evident that the progress of the human person and the advance of society itself hinge on one another. The subject and the goal of all social institutions must be the human person. But also: The human person depends for his flourishing on social life. - Social life is not something added on to man [as in Hobbes]. Through his dealings with others, through reciprocal duties, and through fraternal dialogue, he develops all his gifts and is able to rise to his destiny. - Among those social ties which man needs for his development some, like the family and political community, relate with greater immediacy to his innermost nature; others originate rather from his free decision. [some are given; some are chosen] - By this social life, men are greatly aided in doing good, but also often diverted from the good. - At a deeper level, however, these impulses flow from man's pride and selfishness, which can contaminate even the social sphere. [Note the vicious or virtuous cycle: person and society.] 26. Promoting the Common Good - The common good: the sum of those conditions of social life which allow social groups and their individual members relatively thorough and ready access to their own fulfillment. - Today the “common good” also involves rights and duties with respect to the whole human race. Every social group must take account of the needs and legitimate aspirations of other groups, and even of the general welfare of the entire human family. 27. Reverence for the Human Person - This council lays stress on reverence for man; everyone must consider his every neighbor without exception as another self, taking into account first of all His life and the means necessary to living it with dignity, so as not to imitate the rich man who had no concern for the poor man Lazarus. - In our times a special obligation binds us to make ourselves the neighbor of every person without exception and of actively helping him when he comes across our path (Lazarus and the Good Samaritan: not merely those we choose!) 28. Reverence and Love for Enemies - Respect and love ought to be extended also to those who think or act differently than we do in social, political and even religious matters. - But it is necessary to distinguish between error, which always merits repudiation, and the person in error, who never loses the dignity of being a person even when he is flawed by false or inadequate religious notions. God alone is the judge and searcher of hearts, for that reason He forbids us to make judgments about the internal guilt of anyone. (And yet, acts may still be wrong, and in need of regulation.) 29. The Essential Equality (Same-ness Before God) of All Men: (Solidarity as a Foundation for) Social Justice - Since all men possess a rational soul and are created in God's likeness, since they have the same nature and origin, have been redeemed by Christ and enjoy the same divine calling and destiny, the basic equality of all must be acknowledged. - Although rightful differences exist between men, the equal dignity of persons demands that a more humane and just condition of life be brought about for all. Indeed, human institutions, both private and public, must serve (the dignity and purpose of) the human person. (Are men for institutions? Or institutions for men? Including economic and social institutions!) 30. And Yet: The Problems of Radical Individualism (A Related Problem, Oddly Enough) - No one should content himself with a merely individualistic morality. - The obligations of justice and love are fulfilled only if each person, contributing to the common good, according to his own abilities and the needs of others, also promotes and assists the public and private institutions dedicated to bettering the conditions of human life. - Yet there are those who, while possessing grand and rather noble sentiments, nevertheless in reality live always as if they cared nothing for the needs of society. - Many in various places even make light of social laws and precepts, and do not hesitate to resort to various frauds and deceptions in avoiding just taxes or other debts due to society. - Others think little of certain norms of social life, for example those designed for the protection of health, or laws establishing speed limits; they do not even avert to the fact that by such indifference they imperil their own life and that of others. - Let everyone consider it his sacred obligation to esteem and observe social necessities as belonging to the primary duties of modern man. (A sacred obligation to follow the law?) 31. Responsibility and Participation - Importance of education (for wise participation) - The will to play one's role in common endeavors should be everywhere encouraged. - Goal: to allow the largest possible number of citizens to participate in public affairs with genuine freedom. [Note the “education” proviso above. What is “responsible participation”?] 32. Human Solidarity in Salvation History - God did not create man for life in isolation, but for the formation of social unity [Adam and Eve] - so also "it has pleased God to make men holy and save them not merely as individuals, but by making them into His “people.” So from the beginning of salvation history He has chosen men not just as individuals but also as members of a certain community, calling them “His people.” (Ex. 3:7-12), and even made a covenant with them on Sinai. - This communitarian character is developed and consummated in the work of Jesus Christ. Chapter 3: Man’s Activity Throughout the World 33. Man’s Activity: Mastery and Questioning (Review); Church’s Response: Principles, Not Concrete Solutions - Through his labors and his native endowments man has ceaselessly striven to better his life. - Today, however, especially with the help of science and technology, he has extended his mastery over nearly the whole of nature and continues to do so. - In the face of these immense efforts, men agitate numerous questions among themselves. What is the meaning and value of this feverish activity? How should all these things be used? To the achievement of what goal are the strivings of individuals and societies heading? - The Church guards the heritage of God's word and draws from it moral and religious principles without always having at hand the solution to particular problems. 34. The Value of Human Activity - Throughout the course of the centuries, men have labored to better the circumstances of their lives through a monumental amount of individual and collective effort. Considered in itself, this human activity accords with God's will. By their labor they are unfolding the Creator's work - Thus, far from thinking that works produced by man's own talent and energy are in opposition to God's power, and that the rational creature exists as a kind of rival to the Creator, Christians are convinced that the triumphs of the human race are a sign of God's grace and the flowering of His own mysterious design. - BUT the greater man's power becomes, the farther his individual and community responsibility extends. [With great power comes great responsibility!] 35. The Right Ordering of Human Activity - Human activity, to be sure, takes its significance from its relationship to man. - For when a man works he not only alters things and society, he develops himself as well. (Cf. Laborem Exercens) - A man is more precious for what he is than for what he has. (Cf. Cent. Ann.) - Hence, the norm of human activity is this: that in accord with the divine plan and will, it harmonize with the genuine good of the human race, and that it allow men as individuals and as members of society to pursue their total vocation and fulfill it. [True Humanism; Integral Humanism] 36. The Proper Autonomy of Earthly Affairs (vs. Improper) - “A Tragic Misunderstanding”: Now many of our contemporaries seem to fear that a closer bond between human activity and religion will work against the independence of men, of societies, or of the sciences. - If by the autonomy of earthly affairs we mean that created things and societies themselves enjoy their own laws and values which must be gradually deciphered, put to use, and regulated by men, then it is entirely right to demand that autonomy. Such is not merely required by modern man, but harmonizes also with the will of the Creator. For by the very circumstance of their having been created, all things are endowed with their own stability, truth, goodness, proper laws and order. Man must respect these .... (Theologians should not proclaim on science in this sense. The Pope has no authority in quantum physics.) - But if the expression, the independence of temporal affairs, is taken to mean that created things do not depend on God, and that man can use them without any reference to their Creator [and the moral law], then this would be a false notion of autonomy. (Theologians — and indeed all human persons — are encouraged to judge prudently and proclaim on science in this sense. All human persons, especially those who enjoy the special charism of the Holy Spirit, can and should exercise authority over the use of nuclear weapons, or genetic engineering, or scientific experimentation, or industrial processes: to decide whether or not they are in accord with the dignity of the human person.) - [And, of course, just as theologians qua theologians shouldn’t try to proclaim authoritatively on matters within the proper autonomy of the natural sciences, so too natural scientists qua natural scientists shouldn’t try to proclaim authoritatively on matters outside the proper boundaries of their own discipline. They should be careful not to verge into the territory of theology or philosophy.] 37. The Paradox of Human Progress Infected by Sin - Sacred Scripture teaches what the experience of the ages confirms: that while human progress is a great advantage to man, it brings with it a strong temptation. - Often, individuals and groups pay heed solely to their own interests, and not to those of others. [Instead of “love of God and neighbor,” we use our abilities to attempt to “become God.” Not love of the world, but power and control over the world.] - That is why Christ's Church, trusting in the design of the Creator, acknowledges that, while human progress can serve man's true happiness, yet warns: "Be not conformed to this world" (Rom. 12:2). Here by the world is meant that spirit of vanity and malice which transforms into an instrument of sin those human energies intended for the service of God and man. - Thus all human activity, because it is constantly imperiled by man's pride and deranged self-love, must be purified and perfected by the power of Christ's cross and resurrection. - [Question: What about a man who works endlessly to “win a Nobel Prize” on something that is, in fact, beneficial to humanity? Is he righteous? What about a scientist who works his lab techs cruelly in order to “benefit humanity”? Is he righteous? What about a scientist who is so engrossed in his work that he forgets his obligations to his wife and children?] 38. Christ: The Perfect Man - For God's Word, through Whom all things were made, was Himself made flesh and dwelt on the earth of men. Thus He entered the world's history as a perfect man, taking that history up into Himself and summarizing it. - He Himself revealed to us that "God is love" (1 John 4:8) and at the same time taught us that the new command of love was the basic law of human perfection and hence of the worlds transformation. - Charity is not something to be reserved for important matters, but must be pursued chiefly in the ordinary circumstances of life. [Note the work of the Spirit, who “spreads charity abroad in our hearts,” thus making possible the full flowering of the work of the Law.] - We too must shoulder that cross. The gifts of the Spirit are diverse: (a) He calls some to give clear witness to the desire for a heavenly home and to keep that desire green among the human family, (b) He summons others to dedicate themselves to the earthly service of men. Yet He frees all of them [from their self-will] so that by putting aside love of self and bringing all earthly resources into the service of human life, they can devote themselves to the future [communion with God and neighbor]. 39. A New Heaven and New Earth - We do not know the time for the consummation of the earth and of humanity, nor do we know how all things will be transformed. - But we are taught that God is preparing a new dwelling place and a new earth where justice will abide, and whose blessedness will answer and surpass all the longings for peace which spring up in the human heart. - Therefore, while we are warned that it profits a man nothing if he gain the whole world and lose himself, the expectation of a new earth must not weaken but rather stimulate our concern for cultivating this one. - Hence, while earthly progress must be carefully distinguished from the growth of Christ's kingdom, yet to the extent that earthly progress can contribute to the better ordering of human society, it is of vital concern to the Kingdom of God. [What happened on the cross on Calvary was not directly related to political liberation from Roman tyranny. But the evils associated with Roman tyranny are not meant to be untouched by what happened on the cross — both now (as far as is possible) and (more definitively) in the future.] Chapter 4: The Role of the Church in the Modern World 40. Everything we have said about the dignity of the human person, and about the human community and the profound meaning of human activity, lays the foundation for the relationship between the Church and the world, and provides the basis for dialogue between them. 41. The Church and the Individual - Modern man is on the road to a more thorough development of his own personality, and to a growing discovery and vindication of his own rights. Since it has been entrusted to the Church to reveal the mystery of God, Who is the ultimate goal of man, she opens up to man at the same time the meaning of his own existence, that is, the innermost truth about himself. 42. The Church and Society - The union of the human family is greatly fortified and fulfilled by the unity, founded on Christ, of the family of God's sons. 43. Christians Have Earthly Duties In Accord with Their Secular Vocations - This council exhorts Christians, as citizens of two cities, to strive to discharge their earthly duties conscientiously and in response to the Gospel spirit. They are mistaken who, knowing that we have here no abiding city but seek one which is to come, think that they may therefore shirk their earthly responsibilities. For they are forgetting that by the faith itself they are more obliged than ever to measure up to these duties, each according to his proper vocation. - Nor, on the contrary, are they any less wide of the mark who think that religion consists in acts of worship alone and in the discharge of certain moral obligations, and who imagine they can plunge themselves into earthly affairs in such a way as to imply that these are altogether divorced from the religious life. - This split between the faith which many profess and their daily lives deserves to be counted among the more serious errors of our age. 44. The Church Has Benefitted From the World - Just as it is in the world's interest to acknowledge the Church as an historical reality, and to recognize her good influence, so the Church herself knows how richly she has profited by the history and development of humanity. - The experience of past ages, the progress of the sciences, and the treasures hidden in the various forms of human culture, by all of which the nature of man himself is more clearly revealed and new roads to truth are opened, these profit the Church, too. - For, from the beginning of her history she has learned to express the message of Christ with the help of the ideas and terminology of various philosophers, and and has tried to clarify it with their wisdom, too. - [New questions force us to forge new concepts and better, more refined or more fitting categories. By entering into this dialogue (always looking to the guidance of the Holy Spirit) the Church can grow in Her understanding of the one deposit of faith. There is no entirely new revelation. But there can be a more developed understanding of the revelation already given. E.g.: that the Son is “one in Being with the Father,” or that Jesus is one Person in two Natures: truly God and truly man.” Or that the institution of slavery is simply not in accord with the demands of the Gospel.] 45. Christ, the Alpha and the Omega: (The Church as the Body of Christ in history) - The Church has a single intention: that God's kingdom may come - Every benefit which the People of God during its earthly pilgrimage can offer to the human family stems from the fact that the Church is "the universal sacrament of salvation," simultaneously manifesting and exercising the mystery of God's love. [The Church is “sacramental”: an effective sign of God’s love.] - For God's Word, by whom all things were made, was Himself made flesh so that as perfect man He might save all men and sum up all things in Himself. The Lord is the goal of human history, the focal point of the longings of history and of civilization, the center of the human race, the joy of every heart and the answer to all its yearnings. [Where is “the Body of Christ” now? In me. In us. In the Church. In heaven.] Part II: Some Problems of Special Urgency Preface 46. Of the many subjects arousing universal concern today, it may be helpful to concentrate on these: - marriage and the family (ch. 1) - human progress (ch. 2) - life in its economic, social (ch. 3) - and political dimensions, (ch. 4) - the bonds between the family of nations, and peace. (ch. 5) On each of these may there shine the radiant ideals proclaimed by Christ. Chapter 1: Fostering the Nobility of Marriage and the Family 47. Marriage and Family in the Modern World - The well-being of the individual person and of human and Christian society is intimately linked with the healthy condition of that community produced by marriage and family. - polygamy, the plague of divorce, so-called free love and other disfigurements have an obscuring effect. In addition, married love is too often profaned by excessive self-love, the worship of pleasure and illicit practices against human generation. Moreover, serious disturbances are caused in families by modern economic conditions, by influences at once social and psychological, and by the demands of civil society. Finally, in certain parts of the world problems resulting from population growth are generating concern. - All these situations have produced anxiety of consciences. 48. The Sanctity of Marriage and the Family - The intimate partnership of married life and love has been established by the Creator and qualified by His laws, and is rooted in the conjugal covenant of irrevocable personal consent. Hence by that human act whereby spouses mutually bestow and accept each other a relationship arises which by divine will and in the eyes of society too is a lasting one. For the good of the spouses and their off-springs as well as of society, the existence of the sacred bond no longer depends on human decisions alone. For, God Himself is the author of matrimony, endowed as it is with various benefits and purposes. - By their very nature, the institution of matrimony itself and conjugal love are ordained for the procreation and education of children, and find in them their ultimate crown. Thus a man and a woman, who by their compact of conjugal love "are no longer two, but one flesh" (Matt. 19:ff), render mutual help and service to each other through an intimate union of their persons and of their actions. Through this union they experience the meaning of their oneness and attain to it with growing perfection day by day. As a mutual gift of two persons, this intimate union and the good of the children impose total fidelity on the spouses and argue for an unbreakable oneness between them. - Christ the Lord abundantly blessed this many-faceted love, welling up as it does from the fountain of divine love and structured as it is on the model of His union with His Church. For as God of old made Himself present(3) to His people through a covenant of love and fidelity, so now the Savior of men and the Spouse(4) of the Church comes into the lives of married Christians through the sacrament of matrimony. He abides with them thereafter so that just as He loved the Church and handed Himself over on her behalf,(6) the spouses may love each other with perpetual fidelity through mutual self-bestowal. - Thus the Christian family, which springs from marriage as a reflection of the loving covenant uniting Christ with the Church,(9) and as a participation in that covenant, will manifest to all men Christ's living presence in the world, and the genuine nature of the Church. This the family will do by the mutual love of the spouses, by their generous fruitfulness, their solidarity and faithfulness, and by the loving way in which all members of the family assist one another. 49. Conjugal Love - The biblical Word of God several times urges the betrothed and the married to nourish and develop their wedlock by pure conjugal love and undivided affection. - This love God has judged worthy of special gifts, healing, perfecting and exalting gifts of grace and of charity. Such love, merging the human with the divine, leads the spouses to a free and mutual gift of themselves, a gift providing itself by gentle affection and by deed, such love pervades the whole of their lives:(11) indeed by its busy generosity it grows better and grows greater. Therefore it far excels mere erotic inclination, which, selfishly pursued, soon enough fades wretchedly away. - This love is uniquely expressed and perfected through the appropriate enterprise of matrimony. The actions within marriage by which the couple are united intimately and chastely are noble and worthy ones. Expressed in a manner which is truly human, these actions promote that mutual self-giving by which spouses enrich each other with a joyful and a ready will. Sealed by mutual faithfulness and hallowed above all by Christ's sacrament, this love remains steadfastly true in body and in mind, in bright days or dark. It will never be profaned by adultery or divorce. Firmly established by the Lord, the unity of marriage will radiate from the equal personal dignity of wife and husband, a dignity acknowledged by mutual and total love. The constant fulfillment of the duties of this Christian vocation demands notable virtue. For this reason, strengthened by grace for holiness of life, the couple will painstakingly cultivate and pray for steadiness of love, large heartedness and the spirit of sacrifice. - Especially in the heart of their own families, young people should be aptly and seasonably instructed in the dignity, duty and work of married love. Trained thus in the cultivation of chastity, they will be able at a suitable age to enter a marriage of their own after an honorable courtship. 50. The Fruitfulness of Marriage - Marriage and conjugal love are by their nature ordained toward the begetting and educating of children. Children are really the supreme gift of marriage and contribute very substantially to the welfare of their parents. - Hence, while not making the other purposes of matrimony of less account, the true practice of conjugal love, and the whole meaning of the family life which results from it, have this aim: that the couple be ready with stout hearts to cooperate with the love of the Creator and the Savior. Who through them will enlarge and enrich His own family day by day. - Parents should regard as their proper mission the task of transmitting human life and educating those to whom it has been transmitted. They should realize that they are thereby cooperators with the love of God the Creator, and are, so to speak, the interpreters of that love. - Thus they will fulfil their task with human and Christian responsibility, and, with docile reverence toward God, will make decisions by common counsel and effort. Let them thoughtfully take into account both their own welfare and that of their children, those already born and those which the future may bring. For this accounting they need to reckon with both the material and the spiritual conditions of the times as well as of their state in life. - Finally, they should consult the interests of the family group, of temporal society, and of the Church herself. The parents themselves and no one else should ultimately make this judgment in the sight of God. - But in their manner of acting, spouses should be aware that they cannot proceed arbitrarily, but must always be governed according to a conscience dutifully conformed to the divine law itself, and should be submissive toward the Church's teaching office, which authentically interprets that law in the light of the Gospel. That divine law reveals and protects the integral meaning of conjugal love, and impels it toward a truly human fulfillment. - Thus, trusting in divine Providence and refining the spirit of sacrifice, married Christians glorify the Creator and strive toward fulfillment in Christ when with a generous human and Christian sense of responsibility they acquit themselves of the duty to procreate. - Marriage to be sure is not instituted solely for procreation; rather, its very nature as an unbreakable compact between persons, and the welfare of the children, both demand that the mutual love of the spouses be embodied in a rightly ordered manner, that it grow and ripen. Therefore, marriage persists as a whole manner and communion of life, and maintains its value and indissolubility, even when despite the often intense desire of the couple, offspring are lacking. 51. Harmonizing Conjugal Love with the Responsible Transmission of Life - This council realizes that certain modern conditions often keep couples from arranging their married lives harmoniously, and that they find themselves in circumstances where at least temporarily the size of their families should not be increased. - To these problems there are those who presume to offer dishonorable solutions indeed; they do not recoil even from the taking of life. But the Church issues the reminder that a true contradiction cannot exist between the divine laws pertaining to the transmission of life and those pertaining to authentic conjugal love. - For God, the Lord of life, has conferred on men the surpassing ministry of safeguarding life in a manner which is worthy of man. Therefore from the moment of its conception life must be guarded with the greatest care while abortion and infanticide are unspeakable crimes. The sexual characteristics of man and the human faculty of reproduction wonderfully exceed the dispositions of lower forms of life. Hence the acts themselves which are proper to conjugal love and which are exercised in accord with genuine human dignity must be honored with great reverence. Hence when there is question of harmonizing conjugal love with the responsible transmission of life, the moral aspects of any procedure does not depend solely on sincere intentions or on an evaluation of motives, but must be determined by objective standards. These, based on the nature of the human person and his acts, preserve the full sense of mutual self-giving and human procreation in the context of true love. Such a goal cannot be achieved unless the virtue of conjugal chastity is sincerely practiced. Relying on these principles, sons of the Church may not undertake methods of birth control which are found blameworthy by the teaching authority of the Church in its unfolding of the divine law. - All should be persuaded that human life and the task of transmitting it are not realities bound up with this world alone. Hence they cannot be measured or perceived only in terms of it, but always have a bearing on the eternal destiny of men. 52. Family as School of Humanity - The family is a kind of school of deeper humanity. - Thus the family, in which the various generations come together and help one another grow wiser and harmonize personal rights with the other requirements of social life, is the foundation of society. - All those, therefore, who exercise influence over communities and social groups should work efficiently for the welfare of marriage and the family. Public authority should regard it as a sacred duty to recognize, protect and promote their authentic nature, to shield public morality and to favor the prosperity of home life. - The right of parents to beget and educate their children in the bosom of the family must be safeguarded. - Children too who unhappily lack the blessing of a family should be protected by prudent legislation and various undertakings and assisted by the help they need. - Christians should actively promote the values of marriage and the family, both by the examples of their own lives and by cooperation with other men of good will. - Those too who are skilled in other sciences, notably the medical, biological, social and psychological, can considerably advance the welfare of marriage and the family along with peace of conscience if by pooling their efforts they labor to explain more thoroughly the various conditions favoring a proper regulation of births. - It devolves on priests duly trained about family matters to nurture the vocation of spouses by a variety of pastoral means. - Various organizations, especially family associations, should try by their programs of instruction and action to strengthen young people and spouses themselves, particularly those recently wed, and to train them for family, social and apostolic life. - Finally, let the spouses themselves, made to the image of the living God and enjoying the authentic dignity of persons, be joined to one another in equal affection, harmony of mind and the work of mutual sanctification. Thus, following Christ who is the principle of life, by the sacrifices and joys of their vocation and through their faithful love, married people can become witnesses of the mystery of love which the Lord revealed to the world by His dying and His rising up to life again. Chapter 2: The Proper Development of Culture |