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Interpreting
the Moral Law
4. This kind of question
requires from the teaching authority of the Church a new and deeper reflection
on the principles of the moral teaching on marriage—a teaching which is based
on the natural law as illuminated and enriched by divine Revelation.
No member of the faithful could possibly
deny that the Church is competent in her magisterium to interpret the natural
moral law. It is in fact indisputable, as Our predecessors have many times
declared, 1 that Jesus Christ, when He communicated His divine power to
Peter and the other Apostles and sent them to teach all nations His
commandments, 2 constituted them as the authentic guardians and
interpreters of the whole moral law, not only, that is, of the law of the
Gospel but also of the natural law. For the natural law, too, declares the will
of God, and its faithful observance is necessary for men's eternal salvation.
3
In carrying out this mandate, the Church has
always issued appropriate documents on the nature of marriage, the correct use
of conjugal rights, and the duties of spouses. These documents have been more
copious in recent times. 4
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