Husband and wife's commitment called cornerstone of family life

Published: 2005-10-03

CHICAGO (CNS) -- When about 350 Catholic family life ministers gathered in Chicago Sept. 21-24, they stood at a crossroads. When the National Association of Family Life Ministers was formed 25 years ago, family ministries was a relatively new field, said Andrew Lyke, coordinator of marriage ministry for the Archdiocese of Chicago. Even the term "domestic church," which came out of the Second Vatican Council, was "still a little foreign," said Lyke, who offered the opening keynote Sept. 21. "Now it's mainstream, or to some people, a little passe." But as family life ministers -- who today are more often lay than clerical and more often female than male -- discussed how to remain effective with the novelty worn off, one thing clearly had not changed: the emphasis on marriage. "I see it as the cornerstone of family life," said Lyke, who was instrumental in developing the Archdiocese of Chicago's new marriage ministry guidelines, released earlier this year. "It's that committed relationship between a man and a woman, a mother and a father that created the best situation for families and for raising children. It's not the only good situation, but it's still the best."

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