Familiaris consortio

Familiaris consortio (Latin roughly translated as "of family partnership", but titled in English On the role of the Christian Family in the Modern World) is a postsynodal apostolic exhortation written by Pope John Paul II and promulgated on November 22, 1981.

It describes the position of the Roman Catholic Church concerning the meaning and role of marriage and the family, and outlines challenges towards realizing that ideal. It defines marriage "as a personal union in which the spouses reciprocally give and receive."

Among other observations, the document restates the opposition to artificial birth control stated earlier in Humanae Vitae, and (briefly) mentions opposition to abortion. It also discusses the responsibility and expectations of the family regarding the education of children. It continues with a description of the expectations of the family regarding the larger society, including service to the poor.

The final (and longest) portion of the document describes expectations of the family which more directly involve religion in daily life, relating it to several of the Catholic sacraments, particularly marriage, and strongly urging family prayer. In particular, this section of the document restates the expectation of a permanent Catholic union for all members of the church seeking marriage. It rejects the acceptability of alternative arrangements, including "trial marriages", exclusively civil marriages, and unions with no publicly recognized bond.