In Defense OF Marriage, Family and Life

Specific Objectives

At the end of the session, the participants are expected to:

1. Understand deeply the call for the MFC community to defend marriage, family, and life from the Culture of DEATH.

2. Embrace the Culture of Life and learn ways on how to build up our families to be a pro-life family.

3. Be committed to live out the call to become promoters and defenders of the Gospel of Life.

Expanded Outline

I. Introduction

Marriage, family, and life in the world today is in great crisis. The evil forces are committed in spreading and promoting the Culture of DEATH in society. They are mobilizing their legions to oppose the great plan of God for humanity. The Culture of DEATH is Satan’s tool for opposing what is of God. It is a great assault against life, marriage, and family. It seeks to destroy everything that is of God.

Indeed, this is the great fight of the third millennium. St. John Paul II said that we need to be “...fully aware that we are facing an enormous and dramatic clash between good and evil, death and life, the "culture of death" and "the culture of life." We find ourselves not only "faced with" but necessarily "in the midst of' this conflict: we are all involved, and we all share in it, with the inescapable responsibility of choosing to be unconditionally pro-life. This is our calling as a community, to defend family and life. This is God’s mission for us to bring the light of Christ to this dark world. It is now the right time to be in defense of what true, good, and beautiful.

II. A World in Crisis

Today we witness the grave acts of the enemy in redefining God’s plan and design for family and life. Many are led to believe in the lies of Satan. We need to be aware so that we know how to stand up and be convicted in being pro-life.

A. Attack on Marriage

1. Divorce

Jesus said, “Therefore what God has joined together, no human being must separate.” (Mk 10:9). It is very clear teaching of Christ, but many approves of divorce. It is a grave offense against the natural law. It claims to break the contract, to which the spouses freely consented, to live with each other till death. Divorce does injury to the covenant of salvation, of which sacramental marriage is the sign. It is immoral because it introduces disorder into the family and into society.

2. Cohabitation

It’s no secret that many couples are cohabitating, that is, living together in a sexual relationship without marriage. Sexual intercourse outside of marriage cannot express what God intended. Rather, it says something false–a total commitment that the couple does not yet have. This total commitment is possible only in marriage. It is therefore clear that cohabitation leads men and women to commit fornication. We must go back to the original intent and design of God for sex and marriage.

B. Attack on Family

1. Gender Ideology / Same-Sex Union

Homosexuality is not according to the design of God. It is clearly stated in the Sacred Scripture that God created man and woman. God destined man and woman to form a family through marriage. It is important for us to understand that the marital union of man and woman has been elevated by Christ to the dignity of a sacrament. Marriage is holy, while homosexual acts go against the natural moral law. Homosexual acts close the sexual act to the gift of life.

Our Servant General said that “there are some in our Church, including Pope Francis, who say they approve of same-sex civil unions. They distinguish between civil and ecclesiastical forms. They say it is not sacramental marriage. But that is not the point. The point is: do you approve of same-sex relationships? Same-sex relationships are totally wrong and sinful. They want to normalize homosexuality and make it acceptable. But homosexuality is intrinsically dysfunctional, and homosexual relationships are intrinsically evil and thus gravely sinful”.

This push for same-sex union is part of the gender ideology that is colonizing the traditional family. It redefines what is the true meaning of being man and woman. This ideology is diabolical because it goes against the very intent of God for our identity.

2. Redefining the Family

Many people now define family apart from the design of God. Many chose not to bear a child because for them it is a burden rather than blessing. They rather chose a pet rather than a child. We can hear stories that both men who adopted a child can become a family. This is a great distortion of the family God created. Family at the start is composed of a man and a woman, blessed by God through the Sacrament of Matrimony, and gifted with offspring to fill the earth.

3. Radical Feminism

The force of this idea extolls freedom and equality for women, but in doing so rejecting and degrading the traditional roles of women. Marriage and motherhood are looked on as enslaving women. They espouse the idea that abortion is a right of every woman. Radical feminism insists on rejecting natural law and denying the ability to bring forth life, and as such, it encourages the violence of abortion, discrimination against children, and the exploitation of the female genius.

C. Attack on Life

1. Contraception

The great good of procreation is part of God's design for marriage. Husband and wife can achieve the fullness of God’s purpose for them – to enhance their marital union and to open themselves to the opportunity of bringing forth new life. Contraception is an attack on life. Using contraception directly contradicts God's will and His plan for the gift of life. Couples in the sacrament of marriage is called to give themselves totally to their spouse for procreation and unity but contraception closes its door for God to make miracles. It is a selfish act for man to disallow God and be in control of their married life.

2. Abortion

One of the greatest sins of man today is abortion. It is the murder of the innocent life of the child in the womb. It is a direct violation of God’s commandment “Thou shall not kill”. Today in the world many espouses the idea of “My Body, my choice”. They push for their personal rights to choose to do about their body. They forgot that the baby inside their womb is not a blob of tissue but a human being. If the woman has rights, then the baby inside her womb also has rights equal to the mother. We need to safeguard the dignity of the unborn child.

This is the reality of the world regarding Marriage, Family and Life. Many people have lost sight of the beautiful reality that the family is a creation of God. Many couples are blinded by their selfish desires. Many are led to believe in lies about their real identity. Many people turned away from God’s truth and live their lives apart from Him. As MFC member we need to radically heed the call of God for us to be unconditionally pro-life, eager to proclaim the Gospel of Life.

III. God’s Truth

As we respond to God’s call to advocate the Pro-Life mission, we need to bring with us God’s truth about the following:

Marriage – A stable marriage, with Christ at the center, is the foundation for a stable family. At the core of the family is a man and a woman brough together in love, united in Holy Matrimony, who then establish their family and home.

Family – It is the sanctuary of life. The family is called to be an image of love and self-sacrifice. Authentic love fuels that family to withstand the evil forces eager to destroy it. “Without love the family is not a community of persons and, in the same way, without love the family cannot live, grow and perfect itself as a community of persons”.

Life – It is the first great gift we have received from God. Human life is willed by God; it is imprinted with God's image. The dignity of man does not come from the work they do, but from the persons they are. This is the reason why we need to value life. We have worth simply because we are all loved by God.

IV. Our Pro-Life Commitment

Our community is a pro-God, pro-family, and pro-life community. We our blessed to be guided in this way towards fulfilling our purpose to be holy. Therefore, we need to respond by becoming an advocate of the Gospel of Life. Our commitment is not a one-time deal but a constant pledge in building up our families in Christ.

A. Strengthen our commitment in marriage

As couples we are called to daily renew our marriage vows. In all trials and difficulties that we will face as a couple let us entrust everything to God. Our community can help us renew and strengthen our relationship. Let us be active in community so that we can learn ways on how to deepen our commitment to one another.

It is also our pledge to share Christ to couples that we know so that they too can experience a life in Christ. Let us invite our friends, family and relatives to a CLS/LCS and let us journey with them to discover God’s promises on their marital relationships. Let us intensify more our evangelization and go on mission to the ends of the earth.

B. Renew family through love

As MFC members we need to be faithful to our covenant in building our families in Christ. Let us first foster kindness, generosity, and love inside the family. In difficult situations in the family always ask help from the Holy Family. Joseph, Mary, and Jesus will be our inspiration and guide in dealing with different difficulties of life. We continue to entrust our families unto their care.

As MFC members we are also called to proclaim to the whole world that the family is the future of humanity. Let us allow our children to be formed in the ways of God by giving them opportunity to be active in the community through their respective MFC Sections. Let’s create family activities that can help strengthen our relationships. We can have LBS as a family so that the Word of God is at the center of our lives.

C. Defend life from conception to its natural death

Defense of life brings us to active work in the pro-life advocacy. We must first be knowledgeable with all the issues and arguments. The liberal media already skewed the narrative towards the Culture of death, and we need to be keen and watchful to know the lies of the enemy. Attend pro-life activities conducted by the Live Life Pillar (Webinar Series, Pro-Life Missionary Training, NFP Porsuelo Training, Defend Life Series) and be proactive in bringing the cause of the Gospel of Life (Live Life Forum) to your chapters, parishes, and publics. Listen attentively to all the podcast and webinars of our Servant General. He always informs and inspire us to be Holy Warriors. Let us take on our armors as we fight this Culture of DEATH by living, defending, and always proclaiming the Culture of Life.

Be bold in speaking out the evils of the Culture of DEATH. Be a modern-day prophet and be steadfast in promoting and defending the Culture of Life. Learn to respect the dignity of man, protect the right of every person, and evangelize by sharing Christ.

We live in a world in crisis. There are many confusing voices and ideas that can lead us to wrong notion about marriage, family, and life. In the midst of this crisis our Servant General proposes to us to discern on what is true, good and beautiful. How? By considering the lens of Faith, Family and Life. “If a person, position, proposal, program, teaching, directive, opinion, or whatever else, is pro-God, pro-family and/or pro-life, give that your preferential option. If, however it is anti-God, anti-family and/or anti-life, be very wary. Ultimately, Jesus is the Truth. But many who speak in Jesus’ name still get things wrong. So let Jesus point you to the lens of faith, family and life”.

V. Conclusion

Our call as MFC is to defend marriage, family, and life. It is in crisis where God’s light will shine the brightest by our proactive zeal to proclaim the Gospel of Life. Let us be reminded that bringing people back to Christ is the most fundamental work in promoting life, for life is in Christ and nowhere else. Let us continue to know life and always choose life. Knowing life is knowing Christ. Let us deepen our relationship with Him every day. Choosing life is opting for the fullness of life that God has given us. It is choosing Christ daily. A commitment fueled by God’s grace and love.

Discussion Questions

For discussion, answer the following questions:

1. How can I live out my pro-life commitment in my marriage, family and community life this year?