A Catechism for Family Life. Insights from Catholic Teaching on Love, Marriage, Sex and Parenting offers precisely what the title suggests: a summary of Church teaching on marriage, sexuality and family life, using the format of question and answer. However, as the title also indicates, this teaching comprises of rich insights that go beyond simple summary. Thus the answers take the form of excerpts from relevant church documents, primarily from the past one hundred years, including scripture, papal audiences, encyclicals, exhortations and homilies, targeted to specific questions. As the editors explain, the documents speak for themselves either by presenting explicit responses or by offering principles for ongoing discernment. On a few occasions the editors have provided comments for clarification. The editors are suitably qualified for this task. Sarah Bartel is a consultant for marriage and family life for the Archdiocese of Seattle; John Grabowski is a lecturer in moral theology and ethics, and Pope Francis invited him to the 2015 synod on the family as an expert.
Although the questions range from the practical, such as ‘should I go to my child's wedding if both parties are Catholic but they are not marrying in church?’ to the more abstract ‘how is our family a domestic church?’, and to the more theoretical such as gender ideology, the excerpts from church teaching always offer theological reflection that allows the reader to take away more than a ready answer. In this way both the complexity of seemingly simple questions and the wisdom of the church become more apparent. Indeed the excerpts invite a response of prayerful discernment. The editors point out that questions on marriage and family life are often difficult and complex and they recommend that their book is used as part of a process of moral discernment founded on prayer.
The book is clear, well-organised, user-friendly, and offers further resources. Bringing together church teaching in an accessible and ordered way, the book is a valuable contribution for anyone who is looking for a deeper understanding of church teaching on marriage and family life.
