Vatican II Marriage and Family (Catholic Religion) Essay

Vatican II Marriage and Family (Catholic Religion) - Essay Example The second reason was the mutual help both partners could give each other in the relationship. The third reason was that it provided legal cover for the couple to indulge in sex and release their carnal cravings. The husband was considered the head of the family, while the wife was looked upon as the nucleus, or heart of the family (Hill et al.). Pope Pius XI instigated a more personalized approach to marriage by the Church when in 1930 he wrote that the love shared between a husband and wife should occupy the greatest position in a marriage. Some European theologians added weight to the subject by proposing a more individualistic approach to marriage that stressed on human worthiness and the crucial importance of love in it. These developments laid the groundwork for the Second Vatican Council’s historical announcement (Hill et al.). The opening statement of the Second Vatican Council’s decree, â€Å"the joys and hopes, the grief and anguish of the people of our time, especially of those who are poor or afflicted, are the joys and hopes, the grief and anguish of the followers of Christ as well,† confirms the Church’s dedication to the people of the world and its determination to serve their needs. This statement is followed by a reference to the family, noting that nurturing healthy marriages and families is crucial to achieving personal and social well being (Hill et al.). The Second Vatican Council’s most dramatic proclamation was the Church as the â€Å"People of God.† Given the fact that the Church was earlier not identified with the laity but associated solely with the clergy and men and women religious, the proclamation departed from the traditional practice of viewing marriage as being a state of life for those who did not have vocations, admitting instead that married life was a genuine vocation in its own right. Vatican II added emphasis on the worthiness and respect of marriage by