Teaching future priests to “lead from darkness to light, from the biological to the heavenly, from the world to God” on the theme of marriage

Context 

A seminar held at the Vatican on April 28, 2026, focused on the relationship between the Sacrament of marriage, faith, and the Church’s teaching mission (munus docendi), aiming to improve how future priests are formed to accompany families in a changing cultural landscape.  

Organised by the Dicastery for Laity, Family, and Life, led by Cardinal Prefect Kevin Farrell it precedes a major bishops’ meeting in Rome in October 2026 on Amoris Laetitia. 

Noting a 31.1% drop in infant baptisms and a 48% decline in Catholic marriages globally between 1991 and 2021, the speakers called for a review of the way clergy are formed for marriage ministry.  

“The seminar aims to highlight a conviction that is increasingly shared within the life of the Church: the vocation to marriage cannot be regarded as a secondary issue in the formation of future pastors. 

The effectiveness of evangelisation, the maturing of faith and the Christian community’s ability to support the younger generations depend, to a large extent, on the quality of emotional and family life”. – Dicastery LFL  

Key Speakers included Cardinal Kevin Farrell (Dicastery of LFL), Don Andrea Bozzolo (Salesian University), Don Fabio Rosini (Pontifical University of the Holy Cross). 

Read a commentary by Cardinal Farrell (Italian) at Osservatore Romano  

Significant Quotes 

  1. Don Andrea Bozzolo emphasized the need for pastoral accompaniment that integrates “biblical wisdom, theological intelligence, understanding of current cultural phenomena, and listening to concrete family experiences,” with special attention to “affective and sexual education for adolescents and young people.” 
  2. Don Fabio Rosini warned that forming priests merely as “producers of a penultimate life” will fail to engage sacramentally married couples, stating, “We run the risk of continuing to sell the world to the world.” He argued for a return to a “didactic-instructional language” to guide people toward baptism. 
  3. Cardinal Kevin Farrell, quoting Pope Francis noted that while “faith is transmitted together with life in the family, from generation to generation,” families often struggle with this task, so the Church must “accompany them without replacing them.” 

The seminar highlighted the need for an urgent shift in Church strategy: moving from theoretical doctrine to practical, experiential formation for priests to better address the reality of secularized families, fragile relationships, and young people who often request marriage without full faith, aiming to revitalize the transmission of faith in the modern world. 

Didactic-instructional Language … what’s that? 

The call for a return to ”didactic-instructional language” refers to a specific pedagogical approach advocated by biblical scholar Don Fabio Rosini. It advocates a shift in how the Church communicates with and forms couples and future priests regarding marriage and faith. 

  • A Shift from Warning to Instruction: Rosini contrasts this with previous eras of ‘parenetic language’ (which focuses on warnings, exhortations, and moral admonitions) and the recent ‘kerygmatic language’ which focuses on the initial proclamation of the Gospel message. 
  • Practical Formation: It implies a return to a method that actively teaches and trains individuals. Instead of just warning people about sin or simply announcing the good news, the Church must provide concrete, step-by-step instruction on how to live the Christian life and understand the sacraments. 
  • Preparation for Baptism and Marriage: It suggests that many couples today lack a foundational understanding of the faith. Therefore, priests need to be trained to provide a structured, educational formation that guides couples from a state of ignorance or cultural habit toward a mature, conscious faith before they receive the sacrament. 
  • Active Discipleship: It moves away from treating marriage as a cultural ‘product’ or a simple ceremony. Instead, it treats it as a vocation that requires training, discipline, and learning to be lived out successfully as a Christian family. 

Apprenticeship to Marriage 

A recurring theme is the call for the Church to stop just ‘preaching at’ people and instead systematically teach them the skills, doctrines, and spiritual practices necessary to live a sacramental marriage, ensuring they are spiritually prepared rather than just culturally present.  

This focus is consistent with the Dicastery’s emphasis on accompaniment and mentoring over years, as opposed to ‘short-term’ courses during the engagement period. It’s akin to an apprenticeship model, with catechesis and couple-to-couple mentoring that supports the integration of spiritual and marital disciplines into daily life. 

Authored by Francine Pirola with the assistance of Google translate and Leo AI. 😊