The HOME is the DOMESTIC CHURCH, a safe haven where love conquers sin and mistakes are forgiven. The domestic church is the primary place of spiritual, emotional and physical formation. It is the place where the unconditional love of God is first experienced.

Children make parents, and bring about the necessity for self-reflection and assessment. The responsibility of raising children causes reflection on one’s own childhood. It is an opportunity for growth in love; it is an opportunity for healing from lack of love. With humility, one can appreciate the weight of responsibility borne by one’s own parents, and discern how well, or not so well, this responsibility was fulfilled. In the process of becoming a responsible parent, there is an opportunity to ask forgiveness for one’s lack of appreciation for one’s own parents, while also offering forgiveness to parents for their failures and weaknesses. The need for God’s grace becomes evident.

Cooperation in the grace of the sacrament of marriage enables God’s love to overcome the failures of husband and wife to love each other and heals the family. It transforms the spouses, conforming them more and more to God’s will. There is a necessity to maintain an active spiritual life, both as individuals, as a couple, and as a family. Sunday worship, regular confession, and daily prayer must be nurtured in the culture of the home. The Church supports family life by providing opportunities for worship, catechesis and fellowship.