Introduction 

(1) The so-called “de facto unions” have been taking on special importance in society during these past years.  Some initiatives insist on their institutional recognition and even their equivalence to families originating in a marriage commitment.  Before a question of such importance with so many future repercussions for the entire human community, this Pontifical Council proposes in the following reflections to call attention to the danger that such recognition and equivalence would represent for the identity of the matrimonial union, and the grave damage this would entail for the family and the common good of society.        

In this document, after considering the social aspect of de facto unions, their constitutive elements, and their existential motivations, the problem is taken up of the juridical recognition and equivalency of de facto unions, first with regard to the family based on marriage, and then with regard to the whole of society.  The document then deals with the family as a social value, the objective values to be fostered, and the duty in justice on the part of society to protect and promote the family rooted in marriage.  Afterwards, some aspects raised in relation to Christian marriage are studied in depth.  Some general criteria are also presented for pastoral discernment which are necessary to guide the Christian communities.

The considerations presented here are not only addressed to those who explicitly recognize the Catholic Church as “the church of the living God, the pillar and bulwark of truth” (1 Tm. 3:15), but also to all Christians who belong to the different Churches and Christian communities, and to all those who are sincerely committed to the precious good of the family, the fundamental cell of society.  As the Second Vatican Council teaches, “The well-being of the individual person and of human and Christian society is intimately linked with the healthy condition of that community produced by marriage and family. Hence Christians and all men who hold this community in high esteem sincerely rejoice in the various ways by which men today find help in fostering this community of love and perfecting its life, and by which parents are assisted in their lofty calling”[1][1].