A LAY INITIATIVE FORMED TO DEFEND

CATHOLIC TEACHING ON THE FAMILY

ANALYSIS OF THE INSTRUMENTUM LABORIS OF THE ORDINARY SYNOD ON THE FAMILY

Our analysis argues that the Instrumentum Laboris, which will form the basis for discussions at the Ordinary Synod in October 2015, threatens the entire structure of Catholic teaching on marriage, the family and human sexuality.

It does this by:

– undermining the doctrine of Humanae Vitae by proposing a false understanding of the relationship between conscience and the moral law (paragraph 137)

– discussing artificial methods of reproduction without giving any judgement on the morality of such methods or making any reference to previous Catholic teaching, or to the enormous loss of human life that results from their use (paragraph 34)

– proposing the admission of the “divorced and remarried” to Holy Communion without amendment of life (paragraphs 120-125)

– reducing the indissolubility of marriage to the level of an “ideal” (paragraph 42)

– suggesting that cohabitation and “living together” have “positive aspects” and can, to some extent, be considered legitimate forms of union (paragraphs 57, 61, 63, 99, 102)

– preparing the ground for the acceptance of same-sex unions by acknowledging the need to define “the specific character of such unions in society” (paragraph 8)

– denying the full rights of parents regarding the provision of sex education to their children (paragraph 86)

In these and other ways, the document poses a very real danger to the family, especially its most vulnerable members, and to the integrity of Catholic doctrine.

The full analysis is now available in:

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