A study day at the Vatican on marriage, faith and the munus docendi

By Deborah Castellano Lubov

The Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life will host a study day on “The Sacrament of Marriage, Faith and the Munus Docendi."

According to a press release from the Dicastery, the event will take place on Tuesday 28 April 2026, in the Vatican's Casina Pio IV.

Approximately 75 representatives will be in attendance by invitation, arriving from various Dicasteries of the Roman Curia, and from seminaries and formation programmes, including rectors, lecturers, and those who share the responsibility of forming future pastors and supporting the Church in its educational mission.

This initiative, the Dicastery explains, "stems from the realisation that the relationship between marriage, faith and the Church’s mission is now a pastoral and educational issue of particular importance."

Study Day programme

The encounter, the Dicastery programme reflects, begins with an introduction of Cardinal Kevin Farrell, Prefect of the Dicastery at 8:30 a.m.

Immediately afterward, there will be presentations by Rector of the Pontifical Salesian University, Fr. Andrea Bozzolo, and biblical scholar and professor of Homiletics and Pastoral Theology at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross, Fr Fabio Rosini.

The proceedings will conclude at 1:30 p.m. and will be followed by a period of dialogue and discussion. 

In the announcement, the Dicastery notes that "in a time marked by profound cultural changes, the event aims to provide an opportunity to reflect on how to accompany young people, engaged couples, and married couples," and, at the same time, reflect "on how to train ministers and pastoral workers capable of supporting this journey with greater awareness and competence."

Formation of priests

The seminar, it notes, focuses particularly on the formation of priests.

"The theme of Christian marriage, in fact, does not concern family ministry in the strict sense alone, but raises questions about how future priests are prepared to understand, proclaim, and accompany the vocation of marriage in its human, spiritual, and pastoral dimensions. In many church contexts, there is a perceived need for formation that is less abstract and better able to engage with the everyday lives of families, the questions raised by young people, and the changing landscape of emotional culture."

This day also forms part of the celebrations marking the tenth anniversary of Pope Francis' 2016 Apostolic Exhortation on the family Amoris laetitia.

Pope Leo XIV, in his 19 March 2026 message, for the tenth anniversary of the exhortation, recalled that, through the sacrament of marriage, spouses form a ‘domestic Church’ and that their role is essential for the education and transmission of the faith. Moreover, he renewed his call to intensify the Church’s commitment in this area, so that those called to marriage may live out their marital love in Christ, and young people may rediscover the depth of this vocation.

Against this backdrop, the Dicastery notes, the seminar aims to highlight a conviction that is increasingly shared within the life of the Church, namely that "the vocation to marriage cannot be regarded as a secondary issue in the formation of future pastors."

"The effectiveness of evangelisation, the maturing of faith and the Christian community’s ability to support the younger generations depend, to a large extent, on the quality of emotional and family life."