Catholic Church in Spain expresses concern about vocations to marriage

The president of the Spanish Episcopal Conference (CEE), Mons. Luis Argüello, has expressed special concern about the crisis of vocations to marriage because it is “where anthropology comes into play”, an essential issue in today’s society.

“The vocation to marriage is what brings anthropology into play, with force. We are people, male and female. The question of anthropology and the meaning of sexual difference is an issue of the first magnitude in today’s societies,” argued the Archbishop of Valladolid.

This concern is reflected in the prominence given to marriage in the advertising video of the vocational pastoral congress. Who am I for? Mission Call Assemblywhich the EEC is preparing for next February and of which the general outlines have been presented today at an information meeting.

Inspired by a thought from Pope Francis

Bishop Argüello has highlighted the fact that in the spot“the strong image of a congress on vocations is not a priest,” but a marriage, a creative decision that has its origins in a comment by Pope Francis, when the idea of ​​the vocational congress was presented to him.

As detailed by the prelate, before they gave him the document with details of the project, Pope Francis said: “Take care of the vocation to marriage. “What caught my attention the most when I came from Argentina to Europe is the European situation of not having children.”

However, the congress proposal goes further and addresses “everything that the common good means as a duty”, which contrasts with the principle of the “right to have rights” and “unlinked freedom” of democratic societies. current.

Thus, Congress encourages not only the protection of human rights, but also the defense of “human duties.”

From the pastoral care of options to the pastoral care of obedience

It is expected that one of the fruits of the congress will be the implementation of diocesan vocational pastoral services, with a broad view, beyond what concerns seminaries or religious orders, as promoted through the Vocational Pastoral Service created in 2022 in the EEC and directed by Mons. Argüello.

The prelate explained that, although the Catholic Church in Spain enjoys a “good health of volunteers” (catechists, Cáritas, bride and groom trainers, sacristans, etc.), what is sought is to make a leap “from volunteering to lifelong commitment.” “, from “giving away a few hours of my life to giving away my entire life. That’s where the challenge is.”

In the opinion of Bishop Argüello, there is a difficulty in achieving this transition because “the importance of the subject, conscience and freedom as individuals has been emphasized so much, that the whole question of relationality and responsibility has been weakened, which causes discomfort. ”.

Thus, the prelate has recognized that the Church has acted for a time “from the pastoral care of options”, in which the individual chooses from his freedom, and also from a “pastoral care of values”, in a historical and social context. in which they reflected the minimum common agreement on the good.

Today, both ways of approaching vocational ministry are “clearly insufficient because from one’s own choice one marks territories and it is difficult to enter the path of the offering of life.”

For this reason, the Catholic Church now affirms something “that is a bit countercultural,” in the opinion of the prelate: “We want to propose a pastoral of obedience to the Word, which is listening to the cry of those around us, and to which “You can only respond if you are free.”

The approach of the vocational congress, added Mons. Argüello, “goes beyond the intramural ecclesial life itself. We are not considering improving our Human Resources office, but rather what meaning does the proposal of the Gospel have today in post-enlightened societies, which are already post-secular.”

“Our pastoral has wanted to dialogue with a secularized world in the 60s, 70s, 80s (of the 20th century). Today societies are post-secular that is why other beliefs have emerged. Because secularization does not work,” he added.

For this reason, the Catholic Church must find its way of being in this era, “which is not that of the Old Regime, nor that of secularization, but it is another, which we do not know. We are rehearsing by groping and clapping,” he concluded.