The Apostolic Exhortation Amoris Laetitia has given rise to different interpretations. Any in-depth study of its theological conclusions will undoubtedly require time and patience. What cannot wait, however, is attending to the practical questions it has raised. After all, no one can abstain from acting: priests hearing confessions, bishops who need to give guidelines on pastoral activity to their priests, and families working in the field of pastoral care. Accompanying, Discerning, Integrating: A Handbook for the Pastoral Care of the Family According to Amoris Laetitia is intended to offer sure practical guidelines on this important matter of the Church's pastoral activity.

Amoris Laetitia, Pope Francis' post-synodal exhortation on love in the family, turned out to be one of the most controversial documents of the Magisterium of the Catholic Church in recent decades. It was published in April 2016 following the two "Synods of Bishops on the Family" held in 2014 and 2015. The document brought division amongst the Catholic hierarchy, theologians and pastors and nearly two years after its publication the exact meaning of the document and its implications for the Church are still a matter of dispute. A number of prelates present at the Synods indicated that these gatherings were animated by "the spirit of Vatican II." This work links the notion of "the spirit of Vatican II" with Amoris Laetitia and it argues that a hermeneutics of interpretation of the Second Vatican Council which focuses on following "the spirit of the Council" is the hermeneutics which can be, and in the future most likely will be, the predominant way of interpreting and implementing Amoris Laetitia. This book aims to provide a contribution to this hotly debated topic in the field of Catholic theology.

Given the Catholic Church’s complex history concerning divorce and remarriage, it’s not surprising that the promulgation of Amoris Laetitia in 2016 caused such a stir among the laity, the press, some theologians, and even some bishops. This book endeavors to introduce concepts and contexts that will help all these groups understand the document in a new light, explaining what the rule of law actually means, and hopefully open a door to further discussion among theologians and clergy whose critical comments have so often missed the point of Francis’s apostolic exhortation.

Human life. We marvel at its complexity, we wonder at its fragility, and as Catholics we embrace its dignity. But as far back as 1880, the Church has faced the reality that our culture often stands in opposition to God’s loving design for life, love, marriage, and family. In Life and Love: Opening Your Heart to God’s Design, Terry Polakovic takes us on a fascinating tour of eight Church documents, spanning nearly 140 years, that pertain to human life and love: Arcanum Divinae (On Christian Marriage), by Pope Leo XIII, 1880 Casti Connubii (Of Chaste Wedlock), by Pope Pius XI, 1930 Humanae Vitae (Of Human Life), by Pope Paul VI, 1968 Familiaris Consortio (On the Role of the Christian Family in the Modern World), by Pope John Paul II, 1981 Mulieris Dignitatem (On the Dignity and Vocation of Women), by John Paul II, 1988 Evangelium Vitae (The Gospel of Life), by John Paul II, 1995 Deus Caritas Est (God Is Love), by Pope Benedict XVI, 2005 Amoris Laetitia (The Joy of Love), by Pope Francis, 2016 Whether you’ve read these documents before or are discovering them for the first time, Life and Love will help you understand how the Church consistently and fearlessly offers the only true response to the battles of our time. Click here to register for the related webcast

Amoris laetitia calls on the Church to minister in a different way to families. In this document, Pope Francis offers a new vision of pastoral care that insists that the Church has a mission to accompany, discern, and integrate families into the Body of Christ, no matter the challenges in their lives. In A New Vision of Family Life: A Reflection on Amoris laetitia, Fr. Louis J. Cameli helps pastoral staff understand how they can support families as they accompany them through difficulties, aid them in discerning their conscience, and integrate them into the parish community. The author shows that such support is vital if the Church is to form families as disciples. Fr. Cameli shows pastoral staff that they can help families see how God works in their lives, understand their experience in light of the Gospel, hear how God is calling them to conversion, and carry their conversion to a world in need. The book situates marriage and family life as a central focus for transformation in the Christian life. Questions at the end of each chapter help the reader reflect on how parishes can implement the vision in Amoris laetitia.

This well-researched book explains why the Catholic Church continues to teach marital indissolubility and addresses the numerous contemporary challenges to that teaching. It surveys the patristic witness to marital indissolubility, along with Orthodox and Protestant views, as well as historical-critical biblical exegesis on the contested biblical passages. It also surveys the Catholic tradition from the Trent through Benedict XVI, and it examines a Catholic argument that the Catholic Church's teaching can and should change. Then it explores Amoris Laetitia, the papal exhortation from Pope Francis on marriage, and the various major responses to it, with the issue of marital indissolubility at the forefront. Finally, it retrieves Aquinas's theology of marital indissolubility as a contribution to deepening current theological discussions. The author argues that Amoris Laetitia upholds the traditional Catholic teaching that a valid and consummated Christian marriage is absolutely indissoluble, in accord with the teachings of Jesus and the Apostle Paul, as solemnly and authoritatively taught by the Council of Trent and affirmed by later popes and the Second Vatican Council. He says that Amoris Laetitia should be interpreted and implemented in light of the doctrine of marital indissolubility: implementations that undermine this doctrine should be avoided. Levering says that numerous contemporary Catholic theologians and biblical scholars are mistakenly turning the indissolubility of marriage into contingent dissolubility based upon whether the spouses continue to act in loving ways toward each other. The sacrament's gift of objective indissolubility is thereby undermined. Fortunately, the main interpreters of Amoris Laetitia, whose views have been approved by Pope Francis, insist that the Apostolic Exhortation does not change the doctrine of marital indissolubility in any way.