10 Years of Amoris Laetitia: sharing the Gospel and the Beauty of the Family with Younger Generations

Photo: VATICAN MEDIA

Yesterday afternoon, Wednesday, October 7, 2026, the solemn Meeting in the Paul VI Hall, bringing together the Heads of the Eastern Churches and the Presidents of the Episcopal Conferences from around the world, started in the Vatican.

Convened by Pope Leo XIV, the Meeting—which will continue through October 14—celebrates the tenth Anniversary of the Apostolic Exhortation Amoris Laetitia, the post-synodal document on family love promulgated in 2016 by Pope Francis.

On this occasion, the pastors gathered in Rome will engage, through mutual listening, in synodal discernment regarding the steps to be taken to proclaim the Gospel to families today, in light of Amoris Laetitia and taking into account what is being accomplished in their local Churches.

Greetings from Cardinals Farrell and Grech: A Gathering of Listening and Discernment

The inaugural session opened with greetings from the cardinals responsible for presiding over and moderating the proceedings.

Cardinal Kevin Farrell, Prefect of the Dicastery for Laity, Family, and Life, took the floor to address the Holy Father, emphasizing the importance of listening to the local Churches: “Now is the time to reflect on the journey we have undertaken in our Churches, to look ahead to the challenges that await us, and to ask ourselves what might make the proclamation of the Gospel more relevant to families, so that they may rediscover and live out their Christian vocation with greater awareness.”

Addressing the participants, Farrell said: “Building strong and authentically Christian families is the prerequisite for having, in the near future, a Church that is alive and firmly rooted in the Gospel. This is the responsibility we feel entrusted to our pastoral care and which we wish to fulfill with renewed commitment.”

Finally, the Prefect of the Dicastery thanked Pope Leo for his presence and "for the attentive care you have shown to families around the world since the beginning of your pontificate. We now prepare to listen to your words, and we ask You to bless us, so that the Holy Spirit may make us ready to welcome whatever the Lord wishes to show us regarding the future of families and the entire Church.”

Immediately afterward, Cardinal Mario Grech, Secretary General of the General Secretariat of the Synod, welcomed all those present: “You have come to this meeting with the Holy Father" said Grech "not in a personal capacity, but as representatives of your respective episcopates and, through them, of the local Churches, which are the lifeblood of the universal Church. You bring with you the hopes, challenges, joys and concerns of so many families that make up Christian communities throughout the world.”

Pope Leo XIV’s Address: Accompanying People on Their Journey Toward Fulfilling Their Vocation

In his highly anticipated opening address, Pope Leo XIV urged the 187 pastors present at the meeting to reflect on the responsibility they have received as shepherds: “As Pastors, we have received the responsibility, in season and out of season, of proclaiming the beauty of God’s plan for marriage and the family and his call for love and tenderness. This challenges us to accompany people as they seek to live their vocation in the concrete circumstances of their lives.”

The Pope then posed questions to the bishops to guide their work and reflection in the coming days: “What kind of Church, then, do people encounter precisely when they are most fragile? Do our communities help them discover that they still have a place, a responsibility and gifts to offer? Can the truth we proclaim be encountered through the patience, closeness and mercy of our pastoral presence? How can we announce to them the fullness of the Gospel’s teaching about the family?”.

Leo XIV also called on those present to place themselves in a constant school of listening to the People of God and their wisdom, which enlightens families, including those facing difficult situations: “The wisdom of the People of God reaches us through our common faith, which enlightens all families, including situations marked by difficulties, loneliness and at times even apparent failure. The Lord himself patiently teaches us when we take the time to listen, and we certainly have much to learn from families.”

Sister Helen Alford’s Meditation: Young People and the Challenge of the Gospel of the Family

The first day was enriched by a meditation led by Sister Helen Alford, O.P., President of the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences. She emphasized the dual nature of the family unit as the “domestic Church” and a “vital cell for transforming the world.”
Sister Alford then invited the assembly to find innovative ways to support the younger generations in today’s context: “Let us search for ways to encourage young people to take up the great challenge of marriage and family life, embracing it in the full knowledge that they will experience great fragility as part of the process of realising its beauty, and that in that fragility, they will find new and unexpected sources of God’s grace and experience a desire for holiness that is their very own.”

As food for meditation and prayer, Halford offered participants some questions: “Where and how can we recognise God already at work in the lives of families? What can we learn from families, in their beauty and their fragility? How can we proclaim the Gospel not only to families, but also with them, encouraging them to proclaim actively the Gospel of the family?”.

The event will continue over the next few days, alternating plenary sessions with moments of discussion, testimonies, and conversation in the Spirit in small groups.

The website dedicated to the event is www.amorislaetitia.va and contains all available materials.