Within the family is where our children should first learn about the love of Jesus Christ. It is where we come to know Jesus, love Jesus, serve Jesus, and witness Jesus to one another. Parents have a primary responsibility to share their faith in God and the love of Jesus Christ with their children.  The New Evangelization calls all families to live the Great Commission of Jesus; thus part of the focus of our families should be becoming disciples and making disciples; this includes hearing the exhortation to baptize all nations, teaching all that Jesus has commanded, and witnessing Jesus who is with us until the end of time. It also includes proclaiming as a family the kerygma – the life, Passion, death, Resurrection, and Ascension of Jesus Christ. Our parishes and schools will be forming partnerships with our families to help parents and our children in growing in discipleship and Faith Formation.

It is in the Second Vatican Council Constitution, Lumen Gentium, that the family is referred to as the “Domestic Church” or “Ecclesia domestica.” Through the virtue of the sacrament of Matrimony, spouses help each other attain holiness in their married life and in the raising of children.

In [the family] parents should, by their word and example, be the first preachers of the faith to their children; they should encourage them in the vocation which is proper to each of them, fostering with special care vocation to a sacred state. (LG 11)

In the USCCB document, Disciples Called to Witness: The New Evangelization, families are described as the first place where one experiences and is formed in the faith. Through the example of parents, grandparents, siblings and extended family members we witness how to live as Christians.

It is vital that multiple generations, including grandparents, are engaged with the faith formation of younger family members. It is through the family that one journeying back to the faith can be awakened to, affirmed in, and encouraged by the love and mercy of Christ (DCW 13).

It is within the security of the family that “one learns endurance and the joy of work, fraternal love, generous - even repeated - forgiveness, and above all divine worship in prayer and the offering of one's life” (CCC 1657).

1. Why do we refer to the family as domestic church?
2. Who is primarily responsible for the Faith Formation of children?
3. How can our family live the Great Commission of Jesus?
4. How can we live the teachings of Jesus so that we grow as disciples and help our children become disciples?
5. How can we live as a domestic church in our homes?
6. What are some ways to participate in family prayer?
7. What are some ways to talk to very young children about God?
8. How can our parishes, schools, and ministries, help families become disciples and enable our children to grow as disciples?
9. What are some ways to help children connect to Mass?

To Continue the Discussion:  
Family Life as Evangelization