“At this time of the new evangelization, the need to form disciples and witnesses to Christ in the heart of the family is more urgent than ever,” says COLF in a 12-page booklet titled, “Families, Christ calls us to sow joy and hope!”
The booklet lays out how children develop within the privacy and intimacy of the family and parents, aided by the grace pouring in through the sacrament of marriage, can “try to bring each child to love, serve, welcome, respect and promote life, from the moment of conception to natural death.”
COLF encourages families to pray for each other. It also stresses the importance of developing good habits of thankfulness, and of forgiveness, through simple words such as “thank you,” and “sorry.”
The booklet, which can be downloaded at colf.ca, explains how the sacraments of the Eucharist and Reconciliation are meant to infuse our day to day lives.
COLF offers concrete suggestions on how families can teach their children to “give freely, to be compassionate and generous,” by giving examples of families that may be struggling with poverty, elderly people with loneliness, or people experiencing tragic losses.
“An attentive heart is all we need to develop the capacity to identify the vulnerable, the sad, the hopeless; so many people are afraid, so many thirst for love, for compassion, solidarity and tenderness — they thirst for a presence at their side,” COLF says.
It describes three types of poverty: material, moral and spiritual and the importance of addressing all of them.
A section of the booklet focuses on human dignity and the challenges faced by the elderly, the sick and the disabled by efforts to bring in euthanasia and assisted suicide.
“Having been brought up in a family, we know that we are relational beings; that we are capable of loving and caring for others,” COLF says. “The respect we show to the sick or disabled person will greatly influence the way they see themselves!”
It urges families to play a role in fighting the fears people have of becoming a burden when they are frail and dependent.
“We all have the power to respond to the illness of others in friendship, love and solidarity; we can support and protect their ‘right to life; until the time of natural death.”
COLF urges families to reject what Pope Francis described as a “throwaway culture.”
“Loyalty, patience, openness to life, and respect for the elderly — these are all characteristics which make the Christian family ‘good news’ for our society,” COLF says.
COLF is co-sponsored by the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops and the Supreme Council of the Knights of Columbus.