The Role and Place of the Priest in the Pastoral of Marriage and the Family

Koliko danas možemo govoriti o ulozi svećenika u pastoralu obitelji? Nisu li o tome pozvaniji govoriti oni koji žive obiteljskim životom, dakle laici, čije se mjesto i uloga u crkvenom životu puno više vrednuje nakon Drugoga vatikanskog sabora? Ipak, crkveni dokumenti naglašavaju posebnu ulogu svećenika u ovom apostolatu. On će, kao prvo, djelovati zajedno s laicima u tečajevima priprave na brak, u savjetovalištima i u različitim susretima i seminarima za obitelj. Prioritetni će zadatak svakako biti formacija djelatnika laika u obiteljskom pastoralu. U ovom članku naglašavamo također specifičnu ulogu svećenika u pastoralu braka i obitelji, a to je: duhovno vodstvo, ispovjednička služba kao i podrška i pomoć onima koji su u posebnim prilikama. U tome smislu valja stvarati strukture u obiteljskom apostolatu, o čemu bi određenije smjernice trebao dati Obiteljski direktorij kojeg bi trebala izdati naša Biskupska konferencija.What is the role of the priest in the pastoral of marriage and the family? If the priest was in general practically the only pastoral worker until recently in Church history, and also in the family pastoral, could we say that today the priest should yield all authority in the family pastoral to the layman who lives in a family? The documents of the Church teaching body, however, talk about the special role of the priest in this domain. Indeed, FC 73 says, the duty of the shepherd in this domain constitutes the »essential part of the Church service regarding marriage and the family«. Priests will certainly work together with laymen in marriage preparation courses, but in the marriage and family pastoral they will have their special place in guidance centres, seminars and meetings. His presence in family circles within the parish community will also be significant. A very important task of the Church in the contemporary world, is the formation of workers in a family pastoral, and in this firm support given by the bishop and priests is essential. This concerns the formation of family counsellors, extended education of doctors, pedagogues, and psychologists, and also the theological formation of workers in family pastoral. But there are some domains where the priest is irreplaceable, where he has to rediscover the delicate domain of spiritual leadership, which is the sensitive area of the confessional service. However, a combination of these services will manifest itself in the support and assistance of the people who are in special circumstances (e.g. civil divorce, and civil remarriage). The pastoral of marriage and the family (and the role of priests in this) in our Church urgently requires a Family Directorate. For this reason, at the end of our exposition, as a model we have suggested possible structures in family pastoral as it is presented in the Family directorate of the Italian bishops\u27 conference