The Theology and Ministry Program of the School of Humanities invites you to the online oral defense of the M.A. Thesis entitled “THE EUCHARIST AND THE VIA CARITATIS IN POPE FRANCIS’ AMORIS LAETITIA: Forming a Spirituality for the Contemporary Filipino Family” by FRANCIS A. LAJOLA, I.H.F. on 16 May 2023, Tuesday, 10:00 a.m. The Board of Examiners is composed of Fr. Teodulo Gonzales, S.J., Ph.D. (Second Reader/Principal Examiner), Fr. Arnel Aquino, S.J. S.T.D., and Ms. Antonia Siy, Ph.D. The M.A. Thesis Adviser is Fr. Oliver Dy, S.J., S.T.D., Ph.D. The defense is being held in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master of Arts in Theological Studies with field of specialization in Systematic Theology. It is open to the public.
Abstract: Going beyond the controversy that the Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation, Amoris Laetitia, of the Holy Father, Francis on love in the family, this humble opus explores its core message: the Joy of Love in Marriage and Family. It argues that more than the canonical issues, the Holy Father, through this exhortation, longs to bring marriage and family back to their primordial dignity as an image of the communion of love of the Holy Trinity, inherent in the Order of Creation, Order of Redemption, and the Order of Sanctification. Nevertheless, marked by the structure of sin that causes alienation, marriage and family face the dangers of individualistic culture and culture of ephemeral. These cultures hinder them from living on the sublime dignity of being an Icon of the Trinity and pose a challenge to contemporary Filipino families. As a response, this study explores and integrates the wisdom of Pope Francis on the Eucharist and the Via Caritatis to form a spirituality for contemporary Filipino families. To do this, it rediscovers the core values of the Filipinos as family-oriented, meal-oriented, kundiman-oriented, bayani-oriented, and spirit-oriented then apply with it the correlation of the Eucharist and Via Caritatis, as a spirituality for marriage and family to live their dignity as an image of the communion of love of Holy Trinity. This study is essential as the Holy Father addressed the Filipino people: “God calls upon us to recognize the dangers threatening our own families and to protect them from harm.”
