English
EspañolThe family is not a walled castle. People locked up tightly and with a hostile look towards everything outside. On the contrary, the family is the primary source of life and love. Open doors and windows, hospitable. It radiates life and love to its environment and the whole society.
Text
“Families should not see themselves as a refuge from society, but instead go forth from their homes in a spirit of solidarity with others. In this way, they become a hub for integrating persons into society and a point of contact between the public and private spheres.” (The Joy of Love, n.181)
Commentary
Esther works at Cecilia and Alfredo Rodriguez’s house. Everyone loves her very much. She is about to go on vacation and will take the opportunity to visit her family, who live in a town in the mountains. On Monday morning, Esther returns to her employers´ house with toys and clothes she has bought to take to her family and other families in town. Cecilia comments with Alfredo about what Esther has brought, and the two agree to go with their three children on the trip.
Alfredo says, “Our children’s world is not just their house, their cousins’ and grandparents’ houses. The world is much bigger, and it is good for them to get to know it, to learn to love those who are not part of their family, just as they love Esther. Once there, the three boys help distribute clothes, food, and medicine and participate in the games and songs they have rehearsed for the community
Despite the family being intimate, it is not called to care only for its members. The family carries within itself the dynamism of openness to others, to those who are not part of that particular family but are part of the “human family” to which we all belong. For this reason, the family is a school of sociability; it teaches us to live in society, to love the other members of the human family, beginning with those who are closest to us.
If possible, experience volunteering with your children as a family project in solidarity with those in need who surround you. If you do so with artistry and wisdom, you will see how it unites you in a significant way. In addition, you teach your children to discover their parents, and you learn to know them better and relate to them more intimately.
