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Keywords: family; community of faith; evangelization; conversion; secularization; threats
In his teaching Pope Francis often emphasizes that the most important duty of the Church is preaching the Gospel. Its proclamation is a sign of maturity of the Church community. However in many situations it should have missionary character. Francis reports that in a secularized world all baptized people are called to give the testimony of faith. He believes that people learn the Gospel within families first and then they would proclaim it to the world. Pope Francis perceives the family as an environment of faith and evangelization. He indicates that raising awareness of Church in this aspect is confronted – especially in the western cultural and social context – with attacks against families which can fulfill their duties facing difficulties. This aspect is raised in the first part of the article. In the second part, on the social and cultural background teaching of Pope Francis about the role of family as a community of faith and evangelization is presented.
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Keywords: matrimony; sacrament of matrimony; home Church
Matrimony participates in the existence and mission of the Church. It actualizes itself as a Church and on that basis it is entitled to the title „home Church”. Christian spouses implanted in Christ through the power of baptism and included as „unity of the two” in betrothed bond of Christ with the Church through the power of the sacrament of matrimony – are gifted and obliged to perform functions specific for the whole Church. Thanks to their specific qualities they fulfill, in a unique way, prophetic, priestly and royal function of Christ. Among these qualities one can distinguish: the ability to adopt, listen and announce of the word of God, sanctifiction oneself through the sacrament of matrimony, sacrament of the Eucharist and the Penance and prayer, as well as through coming with the mutual help in the attitude of service. It allows us to perceive essential and fundamental subject of priestly activities in the matriomony.
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Keywords: marriage; family; love; threats; values
Love is a complex and multidimensional phenomenon. It constitutes the basic need of the human heart, therefore every human wants to love and be loved. Marriagesatisfies the need for unity which is rooted deeply in every human. The family which is built on the foundation of marriage, a deep and complementary relationship of a man and woman, is the basic unit of the social life.In the modern society, the family has undergone fundamental transformation. The change in the hierarchy of values as well as even greater focus on self-realisationof an individual and fulfilling individual needs has occurred. Many families become introverted thinking only about the improvement of living conditions and concentration of efforts on exlusive possession of goods.However, the family as a basic and irreplaceable educational community constitutes the environment which creates the best conditions for conveying sustainable values which help people shape their identities. The family built on love brings with itself the future of the society.
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Keywords: the Ministry of Families; family; marriage; family counseling
The observation of present human lives shows clearly that the family crises becomes more and more serious. The number of so called partnerships is rising andthe popularity of marriage is decreasing very fast. We may notice a large number of marriage breakdowns. Every family which is lost as a result of the modern changes, exposed to the intrusive behavior of the laic and liberal media, needs strong support from the Church, especially from the Ministry of Families. Finding the appropriate forms of marriage and family care, which are adjusted to the needs of marriage and family, poses a major challenge for the Church. Therefore the Church finds the service for the family as one of the most essential tasks, as the first and, for many reasons, the most important mission and service. The tasks of the Ministry of Families along with the description of taken initiatives in the Diocese of Legnica become the content of this article. There was also taken an attempt to show the function of the Ministry of Families as a response for the marriage and family crises.
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Keywords: family; the word of God; communion; marriage; building relationships
Marriage and the family are today the subject of many studies in the area of humanities, to mention the social anthropology, pedagogy, psychology, sociology, including the sciences of theology. On the one hand studies draw attention to the significant changes that have taken place in the space of the functions of these institutions, on the other hand to the secularization of marriage and family and the ensuing crisis, the most glaring example of which is the growing number of divorces. At the same time longing for a successful marriage and family relationships as the source of a happy life seems to be un undeniable fact.The author of the article in the article, in the submitted analyses, seeks to show that true community can exist only on the foundation of the word of God. At the same time he shows the practical dimension of life with the word of God in the family. He draws attention to reading and meditating on the word of God and the role of the word in building relationships, resolving of family crises and upbringing children.
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Keywords: formation; Christian formation; a disabled person; the disabled; a family; a Christian family; formation in the family
Christian formation aims at the formation of the man in God’s image. It is implemented in many places, among which the family is of particular importance. The community of the family is the first and basic place as well as the subject of religious formation. The Christian family, based on the sacramental marriage, is the place where the offspring is born and educated in a versatile way. All the family members, especially the children, and the disabled children, are the objects of the Christian formation in the family. All the disabled children, regardless of the kind and extent of disability, should undergo such a formation. Christian formation consists of: the human, intellectual, spiritual and apostolic formation. The limitations which result from disability influence the extent and methods of the Christian formation in the family.
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Keywords: physical activity; free time; a Christian family; sports games; mentioned sports; ministry; pedagogic; education
The changes, taking place in the life of the Christian family today, include a variety of areas. These include free time. At this time, the Christian family can make different kinds of activities. Among them physical activity is noteworthy. It can be walking, morning gymnastics, playing together and team games perfomed outdoor as well as in sports and recreation facilities. Besides, summer sports are worth mentioning (eg. cycling, playing football, sailing, swimming, participation in canoeing) and also winter ones (eg. skiing, sledding, ice skating). The selection of a particular form of activity depends on personal tastes and interests of family members, available financial resources, organizational capacity, the fashion for a healthy lifestyle. Each of these forms is conducive to family integration, prevents diseases of civilization, gives pleasure, shapes the character and helps in acquiring virtues. Direct contact with nature can help discover Beauty, Wisdom and Love of the Creator. Therefore, physical activity in a Christian family, as shown in the article complies with educational and religious functions, but may not lead to the disappearance of religious practice.In conclusions, the Catholic Church must take pedagogical and pastoral initiatives in this area. One can mention here, for example, sports, games and activities for families organized in the parishes and retreat centers. Also, family rallies, bicycle pilgrimages, kayaking and sports festivals addressed to the families of the parish and the diocese are worth considering.
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Keywords: adult children of dysfunctional families; University of Economics in Katowice; supporting students of dysfunctional families
The results of the study show that over 40% of the University of Economics in Katowice (UEKat) students grew up in dysfunctional families, mainly burdened with alcoholism. This leads to personality problems during high school education. To challenge this issue the University offered several supportive actions, e.g.: adaptation day lecture “Efficient studying and dysfunctional family”; sharing a guidance book “Spread your wings”; mandatory classes in addiction prevention “Correction” and daily duty hours of psychologist. Activities of the academic chaplaincy “Zawodzie” complement these actions. The chaplaincy organizes a year-long therapy for students of dysfunctional families and offers them pastoral care. The preventive and supportive solutions dedicated to the students of UEKat seem to be a model scheme for other academic communities.
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Keywords: spirituality; sacraments; prayer; St. Mary; suffering; confession; Eucharist
Franciszek Grudniok’s writings show several aspects of Christian life. Saying prayers and conducting religious practices, which lead to holiness in everyday life, are the major ones. A prayer is described as the foundation of Christian life. Listening to the Word of God and obeying it in everyday life is a special kind of prayer. The author presents a great value of the Word of God in the course of Christian development. An important aspect in Christian life is proper experience of Eucharist and confession as the basic sacraments. These two factors let people develop spiritual life. Next, the paper presents Grudniok’s view on human suffering. It is shown as a kind of mystery which is difficult to describe. The topic was familiar to Franciszek Grudniok. He wanted to present suffering as a treasure of spiritual life. Finally, several forms of spiritual life suggested by Franciszek Grudniok to lay persons are presented. Spirituality of St. Mary, Eucharistic spirituality as well as the spirituality of various Saints are shown in the paper.
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Keywords: Eucharist; non-violence attitude; Eucharistic rule of conduct
This article aims at presentation of an outline of a particular issue of the contemporary sacramental theology – Eucharist as the sacrament of non-violence attitude. The paper focuses on three major themes. Firstly I offer a short description of a Passover feast of Jesus with the Apostles in the Cenacle in the synoptic Gospels in order to show the New Testament context and Christ-oriented character of the analysed issue. The second part offers an analysis of a traditional notion of “the Sacrifice of the Holy Mass” understood as participation of believers in the sacrifice of thanksgiving offered by Christ to His Father in order to re-establish a new and everlasting Covenant between God and people. Celebration of Eucharist takes place in the attitude of rejection of all forms of violence and in the spirit of service, as it has been shown by the Lord. This is why in the last part of the paper I underline the existential-and-spiritual dimension, which for a believer is the foundation of non-violence attitude.Celebration of Eucharist in its very essence is a real entrance of a Christian into life of Christ. This means that a Christian is always the same person – be it during Eucharist, in every day life situations, during liturgy and situations of a testimony. Entire life of a Christian is gradually turned into Eucharist, from which non-violence rule springs out. The sacrament of Eucharist describes not only the rule of faith, but also the rule of conduct.
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Keywords: liturgy; the Eucharistic devotion; the cult of the Eucharist
St John Paul II wrote in his last encyclical Ecclesia de Eucharistia, that the “Eucharist is a priceless treasure: by not only celebrating it but also by praying before it outside of Mass we are enabled to make contact with the very wellspring of grace” (EE 25). Therefore, the Church not only places a special emphasis on the Holy Communion but it also proposes that the faithful develop the Eucharistic devotion in themselves, by a deepened participation in the Holy Mass. Why should it be the Eucharistic devotion? It is because every Mass teaches us how to establish mature relations with God and other people. Thanks to Mass we mature to perfect love, which we learn by the contemplation of the mystery of Christ. The real Eucharistic devotion should be theophanic, christocentric and pneumocentric, meaning that it should be focused on the Holy Trinity and have both a personalistic character – oriented towards the personal God, and an ecclesial one – which teaches the openness to the Church. The Eucharistic devotion demands not only the participation in the Mass but the cult of the Eucharist outside of Mass as well. Hence, the Church has developed three forms of such cult: exposition and adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, Eucharistic procession and Eucharistic congresses. Exposition and adoration express the recognition of the miraculous nature of Christ and encourage to unify with Him. The Eucharistic processions indicate the nature of the Church, which is a community on a pilgrimage to heaven. Eucharistic congresses, in turn, whether organized locally or at a more extended level, always express a living Eucharistic devotion and countering religious indifference.
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Keywords: Book of Tobit; a foreign land; family; Law; burial
The author of the Book of Tobit, which should be taken as a model, wants to protect the values and wealth of Jewish families. In the Book we encounter God’s intervention in the life of Tobit, Tobias and Sarah living in a foreign land emphasised by the motive of burial, by the motive of the deprivation of the property, by the motive of blidness, by the motive of childlessness and abandonment and modelled on Genesis. Their religion is based on fidelity to Law, prayers and practising pious and good deeds. Such a religion does not exclude suffering, including the suffering of the righteous.
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Keywords: Poles; historiography study; memoirs; displaced people; Soviet Union; religious life
The historiography study is an attempt to present an actual state of memoirs, elaborations, dictionaries and periodicals connected with religious life of Poles displaced to the Soviet Union between 1939 and 1945.During the Second World War many Polish clericals and laics were displaced to the Soviet Union mostly because of deportation. Their faith and belief, directly determining the way of their lives as displaced people, became phenomena in the whole history of the Catholic Church.
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Keywords: organization; organization and management sciences; Roma; Bulgaria; Romania; Elena Marushiakova; Vesselin Popov
Over the past two decades the Roma issue has become one of the most current topics in European public space and also became especially relevant within academia. Despite of this there are still under-researched topics, such as history of the emer gence and development of Roma emancipatory movement on the eve of modern times. On base of archival research the article presents the first certainly documented testimony of Roma aspiration towards civil emancipation in “A letter to the editor” published in 1868; first attempt for self-organization of Roma from Bulgarian town of Vidin from 1910, the creation and activities of the first organizations in city of Sofia from 1919 and others. The article revails previously unknown facts about the history of Roma movement, reflecting the first of all attempts for empowerment of the Roma communities in the pre-industrial period and their struggle for equality in Eastern Europe. At the end in the article is proposed an explanation about the reasons for the rapid development of Roma movement especially in Southeastern Europe in context of their societal position.
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Keywords: Roma; government policy; Czech Republic
Belonging to non-military security sectors cultural security is analyzed in this article in relation to national and ethnic minorities. The focus is the Roma minority, for which – due to the cultural specificity - the preservation of cultural security is a challenge. The main aim of this article is to present these aspects of Czech policy towards the Roma minority, which affect the ability to preserve its cultural security. In particular, discussed were issues related to the consolidation or even building a national identity of Roma, Roma education, protection of their culture and the correlation between social exclusion and cultural security of the Roma minority in the Czech Republic.
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Keywords: Roma and Sinti; Germany; law; society
The author presents legal and social conditions of the Sinti and Roma in the last and present century. He focuses especially on the last decades of the 20th century and contemporary years. He explains intricacies of attainment of national minority status in Germany, shows how is the process of social integration, with social problems for years have to struggle, especially in what way are they perceive among the German society and what is the attitude the Germans towards the Sinti and Roma.
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Keywords: Roma and Sinti; Germany; genocide; self-organization
The article presents the genealogy of the process of self-organization of German Sinti in the context of the aftermath of the Nazi persecution of this group. The author points out the ambivalent construction of Sinti identity that has been developed in the course of the fight for compensation. It consists of the conviction of having been an integral part of the German society as well as the feeling of having been excluded from this society. This ambiguity is interpreted in terms of an anthropological model of double coding, in which identity is understood as a dynamic process of building the relations between the external and internal boundaries of the group. This model has been subsequently used in the description of the relations between Sinti and Roma.
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Keywords: Roma; leadership; Poland
The article outlines different types of leadership and representation in the communities of Polish Roma from the perspective of political sciences and historiography. The main bulk of the argument deals with the period of the last twenty-five years. The author claims this period to be crucial in the process of forming the modern leadership among the Roma and shaping Roma public life. The article presents the pivotal events, occurrences, and activities of particular persons that contributed to the contemporary shape of the public life of the Polish Roma. It is argued that the most important in this respect were the processes of building Roma NGOs and their subsequent development, influenced, among other factors, by different standpoints of Roma leaders regarding the goals of these organizations and the methods they employed. The author claims that these differences have been most vividly revealed as a result of paying out compensation for the Roma victims of the Third Reich. The divisions that came out at that time have also been followed by differences in the evaluation and the quality of the engagement of the Roma organizations and their leaders in the implementation of the governmental integration programs carried out in 2001–2013. Eventually, the author points out significant deficiencies in the existing studies of the last twenty-five years of the Roma public life in Poland and recommends an in-depth research on the issues raised in this article.
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Keywords: Roma; youth; dilemmas; identity
In this text I want to raise issues, which are rarely discussed in the Roma minority discourse, namely, what dilemmas the current Roma youth elite is facing when they declare a desire to play a significant role both in defining the objectives of state policies towards the Roma, as well as in the implementation of actions for the integration of the Roma community. These dilemmas can be traced with regards to aid projects, scientific research and, which is clearly visible, with implementation of cultural projects. Furthermore, I want to point out the importance of using the potential of young Roma for Roma community as well as for the rest of society.
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