JORAS - Nigerian Journal of Religion and Society

The Second Vatican Council in its Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World states that: “The joy and hope, the grief and anguish of the men of our time, especially of those who are poor or afflicted in any way, are the joy and hope, the grief and anguish of the followers of Christ as well” (GS n. 1). This should be the right attitude and concern in a society that has individualistic tendencies. The quality of the ideal family and what it ought to be also reflects the quality of the society. -Unfortunately this fact is often forgotten by social institutions. The factors which undermine the family are many and these may include economic, social, philosophical, etc, and they often profoundly interlinked in a sense. As a result, diverse forces can attack the institution of family, sometimes causing great disruption and in some cases even its very disintegration. Undoubtedly, the family is instituted by God and shall continue to survive despite all odds because of His grace and special care for it. Hence marital harmony and family cohesion is a spiritual principle only gained from one's trust and dependence on the power and divine will of God. The Lord ordains the family to represent on the planet earth as a virgin, mother and teacher. This article discusses the empirical disposition of the family made one in the image and likeness of God through the sacramental teaching of matrimony and posits that it is only by living out its call as mother and teacher within the Christian principles that she saves human society from disintegration.

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