Some local communities in Spain realized that the Ignatian spirituality could help the family life. In Spain, the national assemblies in Barcelona 1999, Santiago 2009 and Salamanca 2014, were entrusted to promote the family mission and to develop specific tools for families, incorporating the new family realities present in our communities and society.
Since the last world assemblies (Itaici 1998, and specially, Lebanon 2012), family has been regarded as a mission field, giving rise to Projects 161 (World Day CVX 2015, dedicated to family as a mission). Then, two family mission meetings took place: Manresa 2008 and Loiola 2010. Their aim was sharing how the Ignatian method could strengthen family life, and in consequence, it would be useful to design a specific strategy for family pastoral care. These meetings were the beginning of the National Family Team, which was established in 2008 as a work team and in 2012 as an apostolic team. Nowadays, the team works coordinating the family mission in the local communities, motivating the creation of new pastoral tools and making their application even easier. The team also tries to detect new family needs and it wants to be present in mission fields where other groups cannot manage, with an especial vocation of service towards Church and society. The team keeps in contact with CLC CVX communities in different countries, encouraging the exchange of pastoral tools.
In order to scope the family mission issues, several local communities entrust a member to link the National Family Team, even also some of them have their own family team, depending on the national one.
For the families
In Spain, the main pastoral tool is “The family Clock”. It was created by CVX Spain, in answer to the willing of translating the Ignatian methods to family life, using a new language in creative way. It is experience-based, some families (the “clockers”) accompany to other families in the process of building and revitalizing their family project. They go through eight “hours” or “Clock Times”: readiness, gratitude, family project, freedom, decisions, wisdom of failure (crisis), forgiveness and rebuilding your family project. The Family clock is suitable to anyone in charge of a family (as single-parent family, family groups with children… ). You can follow the whole process in the book: (https://www.amazon.es/El-reloj-familia-pr%C3%A1ctica-proyectos/dp/8427139128). In case you need more information we also have a web: http://www.relojdelafamilia.org
Spiritual Exercises in family: in some occasions, during summer, we have organized experiences of Spiritual Exercises for adults including children. The children go along with activities that introduce them to the Ignatian spirituality. This experience provides moments to share in family.
Campaigns: during 2016 and 2017 we made the campaign “Culture of heart”, focussed on introducing Amoris Laetitia. It consisted of an itinerant meeting in different cities of Spain, other activities organised by the local communities and the participation of CVX in “Families Open [1]” in October 2016.
In local communities children take part in CVX activities like spiritual retreats, Easter celebrations, fellowship days…
Also some CVX member developed tasks of family pastoral care, as marriage courses (couples who are about to be married are accompanied by veteran couples).
- Other familiar realities
– We are working on a specific method for accompanying people who have suffered “the process of rupture” (separated and divorced). The initiative tries to give an answer to the necessary process of discernment after divorce that Pope Francis refers to us in “Amoris Laetitia”, helping to heal.
Further more than managing the aspects of “the rupture” in a comprehensive way, we cope with aspects of ecclesia and faith, personal growth issues, communication, forgiveness, and children.
The whole process considers four specific fields: spiritual and personal direction, forgiveness workshops, community integration and spiritual retreats. We are developing specific pastoral tool for the first two issues (spiritual – personal direction and forgiveness workshops). In reference to the community integration and the retreats, we consider that people who have been separated or divorced can fit in the standard ones, like anyone else without being doomed to “ghetto” communities.
– Sexual diversity pastoral care: some local communities held experiences of guiding catholic LGBT people and their relatives. We were pleased and encouraged by the demand for CVX guiding coming from some catholic LGBT. We believe that it is necessary to guide all the family through this personal process of acceptance. For example, CVX Seville has a close relationship with ICHTHYS, helping them to set up tools to accompany families.
As a team, we have held some meetings with ICHTHYS [2]and CRISMHOM. We also have begun a process of awareness in our communities about LGBT issues, employing specific material and sharing their (and our) experiences. In this moment, we do not feel the necessity of developing a national specific tool for sexual diversity pastoral care. We understand our calling as being available for the requirements of those who could feel excluded in the church. We want to build bridges to help them to find again a place again.
[1] Family Open: a family encounter held by the Jesuits to share experiences and work together in family pastoral care.
[2] Ichthys and Crismhom are catholic LGBT communities in Seville and Madrid.