On the occasion of the Council meeting of the Pontifical Institute "John Paul II" for Studies on Marriage and Family, Emanuela Bambara made an exclusive interview for the Pontifical Council for the Family with Professor Tracey Rowland, President of "John Paul II" Institute for Marriage and Family in Melbourne, Australia, and permanent member of the Institute in Political Philosophy and Continental Theology.
1) Professor, what is the situation of the family in Australia and in the prevailing culture?
The cultural context is similar to that throughout the West, with advancing secularization that leads to a pragmatic approach to relationships, to the family and to marriage. In this context, the theology of marriage as a sacrament is not understood at all; the Christian concept of the family is perceived as a conservative moralism. Although there is some confusion, the dominant view is of the family as a union between man and woman. However, it’s not considered to be a stable union for life. Since the law on divorce was enacted, in 1975, the number of separated families has constantly increased, to the point that one married couple out of three divorces. If people base their marriage and the choice of their partner exclusively on the heart, problems arise when the head and the heart separate or even enter into conflict.
2) What is the main formative role of the Institute that bears the name of John Paul II?
It plays a role in cultural formation, which is difficult in Australia, where the Catholic Church has lost the confidence of the majority of the population and many Catholics reject the teaching of the Catholic Church. There are not many priests, and they have a huge and laborious task. We try to make young people see the beauty of the mystery of the sacrament of marriage and present, in the catechism on human love in John Paul II, the family as a heritage of humanity and of the Church, a norm and a principle for understanding the meaning and profound value of sexuality and the conjugal union, of marriage and the family. We help people to understand the relationship between essential and indissoluble love and reason in the sacrament of marriage, in the family that has in Christ the perfect model of accomplished communion.
