The Christian family is a communion of persons, a sign and image of the communion of the Father and the Son in the Holy Spirit. [In] education of children it reflects the Father’s work of creation. It is called to partake of the prayer and sacrifice of Christ. Daily prayer and the reading of the Word of God strengthen it in charity. The Christian family has an evangelizing and missionary task.

Catechism of the Catholic Church nos. 2205

We all have different understandings of family because we all come from different backgrounds and have vastly different experiences of family life. Some of us come from homes with two parents and a lot of siblings; some of us are an “only child”; some of us live in a house with a single parent or with a relative; some of us have adoptive parents. All of these different experiences shape the way that we view family and family life. In this lesson, let’s try to look at the family from God’s perspective.

The Church’s understanding of family is rooted in the fact that the human family is an image of the Divine Family — the Holy Trinity. It may seem like a heavy task, but we are truly called to image the Trinity in our family lives.

The family is also called the domestic church because it shows forth an “ecclesial communion,” that is, the family is a community of faith, hope, and charity. The family has an evangelizing and missionary task because when family life is seen as a means for spiritual growth and an opportunity for holiness, that mission spreads. We not only share the love of Christ with other family members, but we begin to share it with the rest of the world.

The family is the “original cell” of society because it is where we learn moral values, begin to honor God, and make good moral decisions. It is the first step, an initiation, into society. Think of the rules that your parents taught you from a very young age. Perhaps you heard, “Don’t take his toys. They aren’t yours!” Or “You cannot knock over your little sister...or wrap her in pillows and use her for target practice with your Nerf guns!” When these rules were followed, you learned lessons that were pivotal to your inclusion in society. Hopefully now you know that it is not right to steal or hurt or manipulate others for your own gain. Through having parents or guardians who take care of us and set boundaries, we learn the important lessons of authority and obedience. We learn that when we cross the line, there are consequences.