The mission of parents as lay believers in the service of Christian upbringing of their children

Cilj je rada osvijetliti odgojno poslanje roditelja i njihovo pastoralno djelovanje u Crkvi i društvu kroz kršćanski odgoj vlastite djece. To poslanje ima svoje duboko teološko i učiteljsko utemeljenje. Naše razmatranje započinje prikazom poslanja roditelja kao vjernika laika. Svim vjernicima laicima Crkva je uputila opći poziv za aktivno sudjelovanje u pastoralnom poslanju u Crkvi da budu sol zemlje i svjetlo svijeta te da poput radnika u vinogradu u svom svakodnevnom životu posvećuju svijet. Obitelj tu ima važnu ulogu u svijetu. Svoj identitet otkriva u Presvetom Trojstvu i temelji se na sakramentalnom braku te kao kućna Crkva živi iskustvo ljubavi i zajedništva, što prenosi svojoj djeci. Roditelji imaju neotuđivo pravo odgajati svoju djecu sukladno vlastitim moralnim i vjerskim uvjerenjima, promičući dobrobit djeteta. Cjelovit odgoj za zrelu osobu uključuje i kršćanske i općeljudske vrjednote koje se isprepliću. Važno je da Crkva svojom pastoralnom brigom pruži braku i obitelji punu podršku u njihovu poslanju kršćanskoga odgoja vlastite djece, kojim oni doprinose razvoju i stvaranju budućnosti i Crkve i svijeta.The aim of the paper is to illuminate the educational mission of parents and their pastoral activity in the Church and society through Christian upbringing of their own children. This mission has its deep theological and magisterial foundations. Our reflection starts with a depiction of the parents’ mission as lay believers. The Church has launched a general call to actively participate in the Church’s pastoral mission and to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world, and to sanctify the world in their everyday life as workers in the vineyard. Here the family plays an important role in the world. It reveals its identity in the Holy Trinity and is based on the sacramental marriage, and as a domestic Church it lives the experience of love and communion which it then relays to its children. Parents have the inalienable right to raise their children in accordance with their own moral and religious beliefs by promoting the welfare of the child. Integrated education for a mature person includes both Christian and universal human values that intertwine. It is important that the Church, through its pastoral care, offers the marriage and family a full support in their mission of Christian upbringing of their own children, thus supporting their contribution to the development and creation of the future both for the Church and the world