23. In the Letter to Families Gratissimam Sane, John Paul II mentions two fundamental truths in the task of education: "first, that man is called to live in truth and love; and second, that everyone finds fulfillment through the sincere gift of self" (n. 16). Children's education thus begins before birth in the atmosphere in which the new life is awaited and welcomed, especially through the mother's loving dialogue with her child (cf. Ibid., 16). This continues in childhood since education is "before all else a reciprocal offering' on the part of both parents: together they communicate their own mature humanity to the newborn child" (Ibid.). "In giving origin to a new life, parents recognize that the child, as the fruit of their mutual gift of love, is, in turn, a gift for both of them, a gift which flows from them'" (EV 92).

In its integral sense, which implies the transmission and basic growth of human and Christian values, Christian education ≈ as the Second Vatican Council affirms ≈ "not only develops the maturity of the human person ..., but is especially directed towards ensuring that those who have been baptized, as they are gradually introduced to a knowledge of the mystery of salvation, become daily more appreciative of the gift of faith which they have received...They should be trained to live their own lives in the new self, justified and sanctified through the truth" (Gravissimum Educationis, 2).