155
Pr egledni	znans tv eni	članek/ Article	(1.02)
Bogoslovni vestnik/Theological Quarterly	83	(2023)	1,	155—170
Besedilo	pr eje t o/R eceiv ed:03/2022;	spr eje t o/ Accep t ed:03/2022
UDK/UDC:	27-13:392.3
DOI:	10.34291/B V2023/01/Buk alski
©	2023	Buk alski	e t	al.,	CC	B Y	4.0
Sławomir Bukalski and Adam Falewicz
The Conjugal Communio Amoris  
as the Path to Holiness: Perspective  
of the Exhortation “Familiaris Consortio”
Zakonska communio amoris kot pot do svetosti:  
pogled spodbude „Familiaris consortio“
Abstract : The issues of conjugal communio amoris 	 and 	 the	 implic a tions	 of	 this 	
r ela tionship	 in	 Chris tian	 marriag e,	i.e.,	 the	 pa th	 t o	 holiness,	 ar e	 the	 subject	 of	
this paper. Communio amoris	 in	 r ela tion	 t o	 marriag e	 and	f amily	 c omes	 fr om 	
the	 theologic al	 though t	 of	 John 	 P aul	 II,	 fr om	 the	 “F amiliaris	 Consortio”	 e xhor -
t a tion.	 In	 thr ee	 parts	 of	 the	 paper ,	 ther e	 ar e	 pr esen t ed	 in	 turn:	 c onjug al	 c om-
munion of love, conjugal love as the fruit of that communion, and communio 
sanctorum	 -	 ho liness	 in	 marriag e	 as	 the	 r ealiz a tion	 of	 the	 c ommunion	 of	 lo v e.
The 	 his t ory 	 of	 the 	 Chur ch	 show s	 tha t 	 the 	 holiness	 of	 spouses	 w as	 pr acticed	
“ de spit e ”	 mar r iag e , 	 “in”	 mar r iag e 	 and	 “thank s	 t o”	 mar r iag e .	 Ho w e v e r , 	 a	 spe ci-
al emphasis in this paper is placed on the third model. Communio amoris is the 
principle 	 of	 sanctific a tion	 f or 	 spouses	 en t ering	 in t o	 a	 sacr amen t al	union; 	 it	 is 	
the path to communio sanctorum.
Keywords :	 the	 c ommunion	 of	 lo v e,	 c ommunion	 of	 per sons,	 c ommunion	 of	 sain ts,	
theology	of	lo v e,	p s y chology	of	lo v e,	marit al	sanctity
Povzetek :	T ema	prispe vk a	je	vpr ašanje	 z ak onsk e	communio amoris 	(občes tv o	 lju-
be zni)	 in 	 posled ice	 t ak šneg a	 od nosa	 (t o	 je	 pot	 do	 s v e t os ti)	 v	 kr šč ansk em	 z ak o-
nu. Communio amoris	 v	 r azme rju	 do	 z ak ona	 in	 družin e	 izhaja 	 iz	 t eološk e	 misli	
Jane z a	 P a vla	 II.	 o zir oma	 iz	 spodbude 	 „F amiliaris	 c onsortio“ .	 V	 tr eh	 delih	 prispe v-
k a	 so	 pr eds t a vljeni	 z ak onsk o	 občes tv o	 ljube zni,	 z ak onsk a	 ljube z en	 k ot	 sad	 t eg a	
občes tv a	 in	communio sanctorum	 (občes tv o	 s v e tnik o v)	 –	 s v e t os t	 v	 z ak onu	 k ot	
ur esničit e v	 občes tv a	 ljube zni.	 Zg odo vina	 Cerkv e	 k až e,	 da	 je	 bila	 s v e t os t	 z ak on-
ce v	 ur esniče v ana	,kljub ‘	 z ak onu,	 ,v ‘	 z ak onu	 in	 ,po	 z aslugi‘	z ak ona. 	 Prispe v ek 	
posebej poudarja tretji model. Communio amoris	 je	 načelo	 pos v eče v anja	z a 	
z ak once,	ki	v s t opijo	v	z akr amen t alno	z v e z o	–	je	pot	do	 communio sanctorum. 
Ključne besede :	 občes tv o	 ljube zni,	 občes tv o	 oseb,	 občes tv o	 s v e tnik o v , 	 t eologija	 lju-
bezni, psihologija ljubezni, zakonska svetost

156 Bogoslovni vestnik 83 (2023) • 1
1. Introduction
Las t	 y ear	 mark ed	 the	 40th	 ann iv er sar y	 of	 the	 announcemen t	 of	 the	 apos t olic	 e x-
hort a tion	 of	 Joh n	 P aul	 II	 on	 the	 t ask s	 of	 the	 Chris tian	 f amily	 in	 the	 modern	 w orld	
of	 “F amiliaris	 Consortio” (No v ember	 22,	 1981).	 In	 this	 documen t,	 tw o 	 k e y	 phr ases 	
ar e	 used	 in	 r ela tion	 t o	 marriag e:	communio personarum and communio amoris. 
The	 fir s t	 one	 appear s	 man y	 times	 in	 the	 e xhort a tion. 	 It	 has	 been	 e xt ensiv ely	 descri-
bed	 b y	 r esear cher s	 in	 the	 pas t	 f orty	 y ear s	 and	 clearly	 functions	 in	 a w ar eness	 and	
theologic al 	 r e flection. 	 The	 sec ond 	 t erm	 seems	 t o 	 be	 f or g ott en 	 in	 lit er a tur e.	 Jus t	 as 	
man as such cannot live without love, so also the family cannot live, develop, and 
perf ect	 itself	 without	 lo v e 	 (F C	 18).	 Lo v e 	 is, 	 ther e f or e, 	 the 	 f ounda tion	 and	 s tr eng th 	
of	 the	 c onjug al 	 and	 f amily	 c ommunity	 -	 the	 “ c ommunion	 of	 per sons” 	 (John	 P aul	 II 	
1986,	 67).	 The 	 paper 	 deals	 with	 the 	 pr oblem	 of	communio amoris	 (c ommunion	 of 	
lo v e )	 in	 sacr ame n t al	 mar r iag e 	 and	 its	 r e la tionship	 with	 the 	 r e aliz a tion	 of	 holine ss	
(communio sanctorum).	 The	 hi s t or y	 of	 the	 Chur ch,	 ho w e v er ,	 sho w s	 tha t	 married	
c ouple s	 e le v a t e d	 t o	 the 	 alt ar s	 as	 sain ts	 and	 as	 ble sse d	 ar e 	 not	 nume r ous.	 F e r di-
nand 	 Holböck	 in	 his	 public a tion	 c ollect ed 	 142	 c ases	 of	 God’ s	 ser v an ts,	 blessed 	 and 	
holy spouses in the history of the Church. The author also included in this group 
the 	 marriag es	 sho wn	 in	 the 	 Holy 	 Scrip tur es	 (Holböck
 
2004).	 Zbignie w	 Noso w ski, 	 in 	
turn,	 indic a t ed	 84	 married	 c ouples	 r aised	 t o	 the	 alt ar s	 as	 bles sed	 or	 sain ts.	 Mor e	
than	half	of	them	ar e	holy	martyr s	(Noso w ski	2010).
The teaching of the Catholic Church clearly indicates the holy sacraments as a 
pa th	 of	 sanctific a tion	 of	 a	 per son, 	 as	an	 e ff ectiv e 	 w a y 	 t o	 achie v e 	 holiness.	 “ The 	
purpose	 of	 the	 sacr amen ts	 is	 t o	 sanctif y	 men,	 t o	 build	 up	 the	 Body	 of	 Chris t	 and,	
finally , 	 t o	 giv e	 w or ship	 t o	 God.	 Bec ause 	 the y 	 ar e	 signs	 the y 	 also	 ins truct. ”	(CCC 	
1 1 2 3 ; 	 SC	 5 9 )	 H o w e v e r , 	 t he 	 a r tic le 	 doe s	 not 	 a ddr e ss	 t his	 g e ne r a l	 r e la tionship, 	 t ha t	
is, 	 the 	 sacr amen t	 of	 marriag e	 and	 marit al	 holiness, 	 but	 the 	 mor e 	 specific 	 r ela tion-
ship of communio amoris and spousal holiness.
The look at communio amoris, at marital love as a signpost of striving for holi-
ness,	 is	 a	 no v elty	 in	 this	 s tudy .	 In	 the	 paper	 the	 char act eris tics	 of	 the	 in t ernal	 gift	
of the Holy Spirit, that is, the communio amoris ,	 the	 e x t ernal	 aspect	 of	 tha t	 gift,	
tha t	 is, 	 the 	 c onjug al	 lo v e 	 and	the 	 implic a tions	 of	 this	 r ela tionship	 in	 a	 Chris tian 	
marriag e,	 i.e.,	 the	 sanctity	 of	 the	 spouses’	 liv es	 ar e	 pr esen t ed. 	 The	 af or emen tioned 	
elemen ts	 of	 the	 triad	 in	 marriag e:	communio amoris, conjugal love, and commu-
nio sanctorum	 h a v e	 d i ff er en t	 d i s tin ctio n s	 th a t	 cl earl y	 d i s tin gu i sh 	 th ese	 f ormu l a-
tions.	 Thus, 	 the y 	 ar e	 diff er en t	 r ealities, 	 although	 t og e ther 	 the y 	 c ons titut e 	 a	 logic al 	
en tity .
The 	 pr oblem	 ques tion	 c oncerning 	 the 	 issues	 discussed	 c oncerns	 the 	 r ole 	 of 	
communio amoris	 and 	 marit al	 lov e	 in	 the	 r ealiz a tion	 of	 holiness. 	 The	 r esear ch 	
method of understanding the communion of love and marital love is the analysis 
of the literature on the subject.

157 Sławomir Bukalski et al. - The Conjugal Communio Amoris ...
2.  Communio Amoris in the “Familiaris Consortio” 
Exhortation
1
John	 P aul	 II	 in	 the 	 “F amiliaris	Consortio”	 e xhort a tion	 uses	 the 	 t erms	communio 
amoris or amoris communitas	 (Ple zia	 1998,	 612;	 614)	 se v er al	 times	 in	 r ela tion	 t o	
marriage and family. Although both expressions have the same meaning and do 
not	 sho w	 an y	 fundamen t al 	 seman tic	 di ff er ences,	 the y	 ar e	 used	 in	 di ff er en t	 c on-
texts. Communio amoris, however, cannot be separated and understood without 
r e f er en ce	 t o 	 th e	 v er y	 d e fi n i tio n 	 o f	communio and communio personarum. Karol 
W ojtyła, 	 in	 his 	 analy sis	 of	 the 	 c oncep ts	 of	 “ c ommunion”	 and	 “ c ommunity , ”	 indic a-
t es	 tha t	 e v erything	 tha t	 is	 behind	 the	 fir s t	 c oncept	 c an	 only	 be	 r ealiz ed	 by	 a	 per son 	
endo w ed	 with	 r eason	 and	fr ee	 will, 	 endo w ed	 with	 an	 ability	 t o	 cr ea t e	 r ela tion-
ships. 	 Ther e	 is	 an	 unequiv oc al 	 indic a tion 	 of 	 the	 lik eness	 of 	 the	 human 	 being	 t o 	 God 	
(W ojtyła	 1974,	 350).	 “ Ther e 	 is	a	 diff er ence 	 be tw een	 the 	 s t a t emen t	tha t	 a	 man, 	
while	 being	 a	 per son,	is	also	 social 	 in	 na tur e,	 and 	 the	 s t a t emen t	tha t	 a ttribut es 	
t o 	 a	 man-per son 	 a	 gift edness	 f or	 c ommunity	 under s t ood 	 as	communio. This does 
not mean that the two concepts are opposed to each other. On the contrary, it 
can even be argued that they contain one another, that they, in a way, arise from 
each	 other	 […].	Communio indicates the much more personal and interpersonal 
dimension 	 of	 all	 social 	 s y s t ems. ” 	 (W ojtyła	 1974,	 351–352)	 The	 c ommunion 	 of	 per-
sons, 	 ther e f or e, 	 means	 de finit ely 	 mor e 	 than	 jus t 	 a	 human	 bond, 	 much	 mor e 	 than 	
an y	human	c ommunity .	In	further	deliber a tions,	W ojtyła	s t a t es	tha t	
“the	 e xpr ession 	 ‘ c ommunity , ’	 which 	 is	 used,	 f or	 e x ample,	 in	 c onciliar	 docu-
men ts	 f or 	 the 	 purpose 	 of	 La tin	 meaning	 of	communio, does not mean exac-
tly	 the	 same. 	 The	 e xpr ession 	 ‘ c ommunity ’	 has	 the	 same	meaning	 as	the 	
adje ctiv e 	communis. However, in the concept of communio it is not only 
about	 a ffirming	 the 	 c ommon, 	 about	 emphasizing	 the 	 c ommunity	 as	 a	 cer-
t ain	 e ff ect	or	 e v en	 an	 e xpr ession 	 of 	 the	 being	 and 	 action 	 of 	 per sons	 -	 it	 is 	
about	 the	 v er y	 w a y	 of	 being	 and 	 actions	 of	 these	 people. 	 Namely ,	 it	 is	a 	
way 	 (modus)	 tha t	 b y	 being	 and	acting	 in	 r ela tion	 t o	 each	 other	 (and	thus 	
not	 only	 by	 being	 and 	 acting	 ‘t og e ther ’),	 thr ough 	 this	 activity	 and 	 e xis t ence 	
of	each	other	as	per sons	the y	c on firm	and	a ffirm. ”	(W ojtyła	1974, 	353) 	
In	 such	 the	 c on t e x t,	 it	 c an	 be	 said	 tha t	 in	 ma trimonial	 r ela tion s	 the	 c oncep t	 of	
“ c ommunity ”	is 	the	s t arting	 po in t,	 while	“ c ommunion”	 is	the	end	poin t	(T yk ar ski	
2015,	 27).	 With	 r eg ar d	 t o	 marr iag e,	 the	 c oncep t	 of	communio means not only a 
w a y 	 of	 being ,	 but	 also	 a	 w a y 	 of	 acting 	 as	an	 e x clusiv e 	 char act eris tic 	 of	 per sons, 	
the	essence	is	the	gift	of	self	(W ojtyła	1974,	347–361;	John	P aul	II	1986,	38–39).
The	 t erm	 “ c ommunion 	 of	 lo v e, ” 	 men tioned 	 f or	 the	 fir s t	 time	 in	 “F amiliaris	 Con-
sortio , ” 	 r e f er s	t o	 the	 cr ea tion	 and	v oc a tion	 of	 a	 man,	 and	l o v e	 i s	the	 f ounda tion 	
of	 both	 of	 these	 r ealities.	 “ God 	 cr ea t ed	 a	 man	 in	 his	 o wn	 imag e	 and	 lik eness;	 b y	
c alling	 him	 in t o	 e xis t ence	 out	 of	 lov e, 	 he	 also	 c alled	 him	 t o	 lov e. ”	 (F C	 11;	 CCC	 1604) 
1 
F or	mor e	on	communio amoris 	see	B uk alski	and	F ale wicz	2022.

158 Bogoslovni vestnik 83 (2023) • 1
In	 the 	 ne x t	 sen t ence, 	 the 	 f ormula tion	 analy z ed	 is	 quot ed	 in	 the 	 descrip tion	 of	 the 	
r ela tionship	 be tw een	 the	 P er sons	 of	 God	 and	 the	 T rinit arian	 r ela tionship s.	 “ God	
is	 lo v e 	 and	 in	 himself	 he 	 liv es	 the 	 m y s t er y 	 of	 a	 per sonal	 c ommunion	 of	 lo v e 	 (amo-
ris communio). ”	 (F C	 11)	 La t er	 in	 the 	 e xhort a tion, 	 John	 P aul	 II	 clarifies	 the 	 meaning 	
of love in marital and family life. It appears unequivocally as a calling and a task. 
“B y	 cr ea ting	 a	 man	 in	 his	 imag e	 and	 c ons t an tly	 k eeping	 him	 in	 e xis t ence,	 God	 in-
scribes	 in t o	 the	 humanity	 of	 a	 man	 and	a	 w oman	 a	 v oc a tion, 	 tha t	 is, 	 the	 ability 	
and	 r esponsibility	 f or	 lo v e 	 and	 c ommunity	 (officium amoris atque communionis) .” 	
(F C	 11)	 This	 fr agmen t	 of	 the 	 e xhort a tion	 is	c omplemen t ed	b y	 a	 s t a t emen t	tha t 	
“Lo v e	 is,	 ther e f or e,	 the	 fundamen t al	 and	 inna t e	 v oc a tion	 of	 e v er y	 human	 being ”	
(F C	 11).	 Since	 lo v e	 is	 the	 “basic	 and	 inna t e	 v oc a tion, ”	 it	 is	 legitima t e	 t o	 sa y	 tha t	 it	
is	this	c all	tha t	leads	spouses	t o	holiness	(Buk alski	in	F ale wicz	2022,	163).
In	 the	f ollo wing	 sen t ences	of	 the	 e xhort a tion,	 John	 P aul	 II	 ind ic a t es	the	 sacr a-
ment of marriage and the role of the Holy Spirit towards spouses who vow to love 
each	 other .	 “ The	 Holy	 Spirit,	 c ommunic a t ed	 during	 the	 sacr amen t al	 celebr a tion,	
gr an ts	 Chris tian	 spouses	 the	 gift	 of	 a	 ne w	 c ommunion,	 a	 c ommunion	 of	 lov e	 (nova 
communio amoris),	 which	 is	a	 living	 and	r eal	 imag e	 of	 tha t 	 mos t 	 special	 unity 	
which	 mak es	 the	 Chur ch	 the	 undivided	 My s tic al	 Body	 of	 Chris t	 the	 Lor d. ”	 (F C	 19)	
P oin ting	 t o	 the	 Holy	 Spirit	 is	 cr ucial	 her e.	 Lo v e	 in	 God	 ar e	 not 	 emotions,	 f eelings,	
c ompassion,	 under s t anding ,	 c ooper a tion,	 and 	 e v en	 the	 mos t	 w onderful 	 deeds, 	
but	 it	 is	 one	 of	 the	 P er sons	 of	 God,	 i.e.,	 the	 Holy	 Spirit.	 “ Ther e f or e,	 the	 lo v e	 tha t	
is from God and is God, strictly speaking, is the Holy Spirit. Through him the love 
of God is poured into our hearts, through which the whole Holy Trinity is given to 
us. ” 	 (Augus tine	 1996,	 502)	 F ollo wing	 Augus tine,	 it	 should	 be	 r ec ogniz ed	 tha t	 since 	
the	 thir d	 P er son 	 of	 the	 Holy	 T rinity	 is	 the	 Lo v e	 of	 the	 fir s t	 tw o	 P er sons,	 this	 is	 the	
source of the communio amoris	 tha t	 Chris tian	 spouses	 ar e	 endo w ed	 in	 their	 sac-
r amen t al	 v o w s	 (Buk alski,	 F ale wicz	 2022,	 164).	 “ The	 lo v e	 tha t	 is	 the	 Holy	 Spirit	 is	
the Love that is God, comes from God and expresses the mutual communion of 
the	 F a ther	 and	the	 Son	 /…/.	 The	 Holy	 Spirit	 is	some	 ine ff able	 c ommunity	 (com-
munio )	of	the	F a ther	and	the	Son. ”	(Jaśkie wicz	2018,	39;	41)
Once	 ag ain	 using	 the	 phr ase	 “ c ommunion 	 of	 lo v e, ” 	 John 	 P aul 	 II	 applies	 it	 t o 	 the 	
f amily	 and	 indic a t es	 the	 social 	 na tur e	 of	 this	 r ela tionship.	 “ The	 f amily	 is	 the	 fir s t	
and	 fun damen t al	 school	 of	 socializ a tion:	 in	 it,	 as	 in	 a	 c ommunity	 of	 lo v e	 (amoris 
communitas),	 making	 a	 gift	 of	 oneself	 is	 a	 la w	 tha t	 giv es	 dir ec tion	 and	 c onditions	
f or	 gr o w th.	 The	 gift	 of	 sel f ,	 which	 ani ma t es	 the	 mutual 	 l o v e	 of	 the	 spouses,	 bec o-
mes	 the	 model 	 and	 principle	 of	 self -giving. ” 	 (F C	 37)	 The	 “ c ommunity	 of	 lov e”	 r e f er s 	
t o	 the	 spouses’	 e x t ernal	 activity .	 Their	 c ommunion	 of	 lo v e	 cr ea t es	 pr oper	 f amily	
r ela tionship s. 	Christians who are sacramentally married constitute a community 
of faith based on a lasting and strong foundation (T urnšek	 2008,	 345).	 Indeed,	 the	
f amily	 “per ceiv e s	 the	 dignity	 of	 God’ s	 per son	 and	 child	 /…/.	 This	 should	 be	 done	
primarily inside and for the good of marriage and the family, through the daily 
e ff ort	 of	 cr ea ting	 an	 authen tic	 c ommunity	 of	 people	 (personarum communitas),	
which	 is 	 based	 and	 nourished	 b y	 an	 in t ernal	 c ommunion	 of	 lo v e	 (interna amoris 
communio). ”	 (F C	 64)	 This	 is	a	 special 	 s t a t emen t	bec ause	of	 the	 use	of	 the	 t erm 	

159 Sławomir Bukalski et al. - The Conjugal Communio Amoris ...
“ c ommunion	 of	 lo v e”	 as	 a	 r eality	 separ a t e	 fr om	 the	 “ c ommunity	 of	 per sons”	 and	
the 	 de finition	 of	 the 	 r ela tionship	 of	 these 	 c oncep ts.	 The 	 P ope’ s	 t eaching	 is	 unequi-
v oc al. 	 The	 possibility	 of	 per ceiving	 the	 imag e	 of	 God 	 in	 each 	 per son 	 is	 mos t	 e ff ec-
tiv e	 among	 spouses	 and	 among	 the 	 Chris tian	 f amily	 who	 pr actice 	 mutual	 lo v e 	 and 	
cr ea t e	in t ernal	r ela tionship s	of	lo v e.
In theology, the idea of communio amoris	 in v olv es	 fir s t	 and 	 f or emos t	 a	 r e f e-
r ence	 t o	 T rinit arian	 r ela tions.	 The	 sour ce	 of	 this	 lo v e,	 ho w e v e r ,	 should	 be	 seen	 in	
the One God in the Holy Trinity. The term communio amoris can only be under-
s t ood	 in	 the 	 pe r sonalis tic	 vision	 of	 the 	 r e la tionship	 be tw e e n	 a	 man	 and	 a	 w oman	
as	 a	 de ep, 	 in t e rnal,	 frie ndly , 	 in tima t e 	 c ommunity 	 of	 c onjug al	 lif e	 and	 lo v e 	 (com-
munitas vitae et amoris coniugalis)	 (GS	 48).	 The 	 phr ase	 “ c ommunion	 of	 lov e” 	
c on t ained	 in	 the	 “F amiliaris	 Co nsortio”	 r equir es	 the	 r e f er ence 	 t o	 another ,	 funda-
men t al	 t erm	 r ela ting 	 t o	 the 	 marit al	 c ov enan t, 	 namely	communio personarum 
( Bu k al s ki ,	 F al e wi cz	 2022,	 165) . 	 It	 o ri gi n al l y	 r e f err ed 	 t o 	 th e	 d escri p ti o n 	 o f	 th e	 r el a-
tionship 	 be tw een 	 the	 per sons	 of	 God. 	 In	 “F amiliaris	 Consortio” 	 the	 P ope	 r e f er s	 t o 	
a	 unique	 union	 in	 which	 the 	 spouse s	 g iv e 	 the mse lv e s	 in	 an	 unse lfish	 g ift 	 of	 the m-
se lv e s: 	 the y 	 off e r 	 and	 r e ce iv e 	 e ach	 othe r .	 In	 this	 spe cific 	 g ift 	 of	 se lf , 	 the 	 spouse s 	
a t	 the	 same	 time	 sho w	 the	 richness	 of	 their	 humanity	 as	 man	 and	 w oman.	 In	 the	
liv es	 of	 Chris tian	 spouses,	 the	 c ommunion	 of	 lo v e	 poin ts	 abo v e	 all	 t o	 an	 in t erior	
r ela tionship	with	one’ s	spouse.
Gisbert	Gr eshak e,	 in	 his 	 c onception,	 poin ts 	 t o 	Communio as a paradigm for 
under s t anding	 the	 T rinit arian	 God	 (Gr eshak e	 1997).	 Cz esła w	 Bartnik,	 c ommen ting 	
on	 this	 c oncep t,	 s t a t es	 tha t	 Gr eshaki ’ s	 trinit ology	 is	 “the 	 ne w es t, 	 original, 	 and	 v er y 	
cr ea tiv e	 T rinit arian	 theology	 /… /.	 Ho w e v er ,	 it	 has	 -	 in	 m y	 opinion	 -	 some	 ambigu-
ities.	 Fir s t, 	Communio amoris does not seem to be an ontological unity, but rather 
a	 p s y cho logic al	 one.	 Lo v e	 as	 such	 is	 not	 a	 being	 in	 itself ,	 but	 is	 an	 amalg ama tion	
of	 v arious	 beings,	 per sons. ”	 (Bartnik	 2011,	 9–10)	 It	 seems	 tha t	 in	 this	 under s t an-
ding	 of	 the	 r ela tionship	 of	 P er sons	 in	 the	 Holy	 T rinity ,	 it	 is	 jus tified	 t o	 the	 use	 the	
phrase communio amoris	 also	 t o	 describe	 marit al	 r ela tions.	 “ The	 Divine	Commu-
nio, who is the supreme form of Communio,	 and	 a t	 the 	 same 	 time 	 is	the 	 model 	
for human communio . ”	 (W ojtkie wicz	 2004,	 284–285)	 Communion	 of	 lo v e	 -	com-
munio amoris	 r ealiz ed	on	 the 	 basis	 of	 marit al	 lov e 	 leads	 t o	 the 	 f orma tion	 of	 a 	
per sonal	c ommunity 	 and	per sonal	c ommunion.	 But	 a t	 the 	 same 	 time, 	 in	 such 	
per sonal	 c ommunion,	 human	 per sons	 -	 Chris tian	 spouses	 -	 ar e	 able	 t o	 fully	 r eali-
ze conjugal love.
The conjugal communion of love appears as a certain analogy, a model, as a 
r e flection	 of	 the	 ar che type	 of	 the	 c ommunion	 of	 lo v e	 within	 the	 T rinity .	 Wha t	 is	
the 	 essen tial	 a ttribut e 	 of	 God	 -	 tha t 	 is	lo v e 	 -	 is	r ealiz ed	in	 marriag e	 as	a	 specific 	
r e flection 	 of	 God’ s	 lo v e. 	 John 	 P aul	 II,	 t eaching	 about	 marriag e	 and 	 the	 f amily ,	 and 	
especially the Trinitarian approach to the reality of marriage, clearly indicates that 
the	 model 	 of	 this	 c ommunity	 should	 be	 sough t	 in	 God	 himself .	 “In	 the	 ligh t	 of	 the 	
New Testament, it is clear that the reference for this community, its prototype, 
should be sought in God Himself. It is contained in the Trinitarian mystery of his 
Lif e.	 The 	 divine 	 ‘ W e’	 is	 the 	 e t ernal	 model	 f or 	 the 	 human	 ‘w e’ 	 -	 tha t 	 abo v e 	 all,	 who 	

160 Bogoslovni vestnik 83 (2023) • 1
ar e	 t o 	 be	 man	 and 	 w oman,	 cr ea t ed 	 in	 the	 imag e	 and 	 lik eness	 of 	 God 	 Himself . ” 	
(G r s	 6 ; 	 K r ólik o w s k i	 2 0 2 0 , 	 3 5 – 4 8 )	 The 	 spousa l	 c ha r a c t e r 	 of	 m a r r ia g e 	 is	 c ons tit ut e d	
b y	 the 	 gift	 only 	 be tw een	 a	 man	 and	a	 w oman.	 The 	 “hermeneutic	 of	 the 	 gift ”	 of 	
se lf	 in	 marr iag e 	 is	 an	 e sse n tial	 e le me n t	 of	 c onjug al	 lo v e 	 (John	 P aul	 II	 1986, 	 61).	 In	
this	 r ela tionship ,	 mutual	 self -giving	 t ak es	 place	 -	 also	 in	 the	 dimension	 of	 se x ua-
lity .	 “ Th e	 se x uality	 b y	 which	 a	 man	 and	 a	 w oman	 indulg e	 in	 each	 other	 in	 pr oper	
and exclusive marital acts is by no means a purely biological phenomenon but 
c oncerns	 the	 v er y	 inner	 essence	 of	 the	 human	 per son	 as	 such. ”	 (F C	 11;	 CCC	 2360) 	
In	 a	 marriag e	 c o v enan t,	 mutual 	 giving	 is	 per sonal 	 and 	 c ommunal. 	 The	 mutual 	 gift 	
of self between husband and wife is a sign of the communion of persons. The re-
l a tio n sh i p 	 o f 	 l o v e	 i n d i c a t es	 a	 n e w	 q u al i ty	 o f 	 marri ag e,	 a	 sp eci fi c	 “ en n o b l emen t ”	
of	marit al	r ela tions.
Communio amoris	 is	 a	 gift	 fr om	 God	 thr ough	 whi ch	 the	 spous es	 “bec ome	 one	
flesh. ”	 This	 is	done 	 thr ough	 a	 fr ee	 and	r a tional	 choice.	 John	 P aul	 t eaches	 tha t 	
marit al	 union 	 “ c annot	 be	 fully	 under s t ood 	 and 	 e xplained 	 e x cept	 in	 t erms	of	 ‘ a 	
per son’	 and	 ‘ a	 gift. ’ 	 E v e r y	 man	 and	w oman	 is	not	 fully	 r e aliz e d	 e x ce p t	 thr ough	 a	
disin t er es t ed	 gift	 of	 self . ”	 (Gr s	 12)	 Marriag e	 -	 the	 whole	 lif e	 c o v enan t	 the y	 cr ea t e	
is directed to the good of the spouses and to the birth and upbringing of children. 
Thr ough	 Chris t	 it	 w as	 r aised	 t o	 the	 dignity	 of	 a	 sacr amen t	 (CC L	 1055;	 CCC	 1617).	
L o v e	 as	 “ fu n d amen t al 	 an d 	 i n n a t e	 v o c a tio n ” 	 r eq u i r es	 fr o m	 th e	 sp o u ses	 an 	 an s w er 	
giv en	 in	 e v ery da y 	 lif e.	 The 	 own	 activity 	 of	 the 	 spouses	 in	 the 	 r ealiz a tion	 of	 the 	
v oc a tion	 is	 r a ther	 an	 imper a tiv e	 t o	 gr o w	 in	 holiness,	 and	 not 	 de t erminism	 in	 the	
p s y chologic al 	 under s t anding	 of 	 this	 t erm	 as	 a	 c ause	 and 	 an	 e ff ect	 (D ’Souz a,	 Gurin 	
2016, 	 210–214 ; 	 K an t e r	 2014)
2
. Communio amoris	 is	 mos t	 e ff e ctiv e ly 	 r e v e ale d	 in	
the lives of spouses through conjugal love.
Summing up, it should be unequivocally stated that the marital communio amo-
ris	 has	 its	 sour c e 	 in	 the 	 r e la tionship	 of	 the 	 P e r sons	 of	 G od, 	 i.e ., 	 in	 the 	 T r init ar ian 	
r ela tionship s.	 Her e	 is	 the 	 model	 of	 c onjug al	 lo v e.	 A	 special	 r ole 	 should	 be	 seen	 in 	
the person of the Holy Spirit who is Love. It should also be borne in mind that the 
models of communal life in God related to conjugal communion can only be con-
sider ed 	 as	a	 cert ain	 analogy . 	 Str eng thened 	 b y	 the	 gift	 of	 the	 c ommunion 	 of	 lo v e, 	
spouses	 r ealiz e	 the 	 c ommunion	 of	 per sons	 in	 marriag e	 and	 in	 the 	 f amily .	 The	 gift 	
of self is what animates conjugal love. Mutual self-giving is a sign of the commu-
nion of persons. And only this reality allows the family to be transformed into a 
community of love and a community of persons. That is the external reality of mar-
riag e,	 and	 the 	 f amily	 f ollo w s	 fr om	 the 	 in t ernal	 principle 	 of	 functioning	 (communio 
amoris)	 of	 sacr amen t al	marriag e.	 Some times	communio amoris	 (c ommunion	 of 	
lov e)	 is	 used	 in t er chang eably 	 as	 c onjug al	 lov e, 	 although	 ther e 	 ar e	 clear	 dis tinctions 	
be tw een	 both	 e xpr essions	 (Buk alski	 and	 F alewicz	 2022,	 160–165).	 The 	 c ommunion 	
of love is the exclusive property of the persons - in this case, the spouses. As a sin-
2 
The understanding of marital love as a principle of striving for holiness is not in line with contemporary 
p s y chologic al	 c oncep ts	 of	 lo v e.	 Humanis tic	 p s y chology	 under s t ands	 lo v e	 as	 a	 r ela tion	 in	 a	 r ela tionship,	
as	 a	 decision	 r esulting	 fr om	 a	 p yr amid	 of	 needs	 aimed	 a t	 sa tis f ying	 them	 and	 achie ving	 g oals.	 The	 be-
ha vioris t	appr oach,	on	the	other	hand,	r educes	the	lo v e	sensa tions	t o	the	c a t eg or y	of	r ein f or cemen t.	

161 Sławomir Bukalski et al. - The Conjugal Communio Amoris ...
cer e	 gift 	 of	 self , 	 it	 is	 the 	 principle 	 of	 the 	 c ommunion	 of	 per sons.	 It	 is	 e v en	 inscribed 	
in	 the 	 humanity	 of	 the 	 spouses	 and	 is	 “the	 basic	 and	 inna t e	 v oc a tion. ”	 This	 v oc a-
tion	 is	 not, 	 of	 c our se, 	 c onjug al	 lo v e 	 in	 itself , 	 but	 b y	 r ealizing	 marit al	 lo v e, 	 spouses 	
s triv e 	 f or 	 holiness	 and	 ha v e 	 r eal	 opportunities	 t o	 achie v e 	 it.	 Conjug al	 lo v e 	 is	 a	 spe-
cial and most important place for realizing the communion of love.
3. Conjugal Love in Theological Terms
The teaching of the Church on marriage and conjugal love has changed over the 
cen turies.	 Since	 the	 Sec ond	 V a tic an	 Council	 (1962–1965),	 c on jug al	 lo v e	 has	 been	
s t r ong ly 	 e m pha siz e d	 as 	 t he 	 f ounda tion	 of	 t he 	 c om m union	 of	 pe r sons	 and	 a 	 f ac-
t or	 in	 the 	 r ealiz a tion	 of	 marit al	 and	f amily	 happiness.	 The 	 Chur ch’ s	 c onciliar 	 t e-
aching	 emphasiz es	the 	 clearly	 per sonalis tic	 aspect	 of	 marriag e	 wher e 	 c onjug al 	
love appears as an aid in achieving the marriage goals. This understanding of the 
sacr amen t	 of	 marriag e,	 how ev er ,	 r equir es	 the	 r ealiz a tion 	 of	 lov e	 betw een 	 spouses. 	
The	 Chur ch’ s	 t eaching	 on 	 c onjug al 	 lov e	 r esona t es	 unequiv oc ally	 in	 the	 c ons titution 	
“ Gaudium	 e t	 spes, ”	 the 	 ency clic al	 “Humanae	 vit ae” and	 the 	 apos t olic	 e xhort a tion 	
“F amiliaris	c onsortio”	and	“ Amoris	lae titia. ”
The	 “Ca t echism	 of	 the	 Ca tholic 	 Chur ch”	 r eads	 c onjug al	 lo v e	 in 	 the	 ligh t	 of	 uni-
v er sal	 lo v e.	 “ God,	 who	 cr ea t ed	 a	 man	 out	 of	 lo v e,	 also	 c alled 	 him	 t o	 lo v e,	 which	
is	 the 	 fundamen t al	 and	 inna t e	 v oc a tion	 of	 e v er y	 human	 being	 /…/.	 Since	 God	 cr e-
ated a man and a woman, their mutual love becomes an image of the absolute 
and	inde s tructible	lo v e	 with	which	 God	lo v es	 man. ”	(CCC	1604)	 The	marit al	r ela-
tionship	is	built	on	lo v e,	which	
“ embr aces	the	 whole,	 which 	 includes	 all	 the	 elemen ts	of	 a	 per son 	 -	 the 	
impulses	 of	 the 	 body 	 and	 ins tinct, 	 the 	 s tr eng th	 of	 f eelings	 and	 a tt achmen t, 	
the pursuit of spirit and will. Love tends towards a deeply personal unity 
/…/.	 It	 r equir es	 indissolubility	 and	 fidelity	 in	 mutual	 gifting	 and	 opens	 up	
t o	 f ertility .	 In	 a	 w or d, 	 it	 is	 about	 the 	 normal	 char act eris tics	 of	 e v er y	 na tur al 	
c onjug al 	 lo v e,	 but	 in 	 a	 ne w	 sense	 bec ause	 the	 sacr amen t	 not	 only	 purifies 	
and strengthens them, but elevates them so that they become an expres-
sion	of	truly	Chris tian	v alues. ”	(CCC	1643)
The	 se x uality	 of	 the	 spouses	 is	 an	 in t egr al	 elemen t	 of	 c onjug al 	 lo v e. 	 “In	 marit al 	
r ela tions,	 se x uality	rises	 t o	 such	 a	 high	 r ank	 tha t	 it	 is	cus t omar y	 t o	 t alk	 about	 it 	
that it becomes an area of expressing love, or even a language of love. The sexu-
al	 act,	 not	 alw a y s	 equa t ed	 with 	 pr ocr ea tion,	 is	 a	 special	 manif es t a tion	 of	 lo v e	 in	
married	lif e. ”	 (Bohdano wicz	 2010,	 16)	 T o	 de t ach	 this	 spher e 	 fr om	 c onjug al	 lo v e 	
w ould	 mean	 a	 r e v er sal	 of	 the	 meaning	 giv en	 t o	 it	 b y	 God.	 “C onjug al	 lo v e,	 which	
God	 blesses,	 is	 in t ended	 t o	 be	 fruitful	 and	 t o	 be	 fulfilled	 in	 the	 c ommon	 w ork	 of	
pr eser ving	 cr ea tion:	 ‘ God 	 blessed 	 them,	 sa ying	 t o 	 them:	 Be	 fruitful 	 and 	 pr ocr ea t e, 	
so	 tha t 	 y ou	 ma y	 popula t e 	 the 	 earth	 and	 mak e	 it	 subjection	 t o	 y our selv es. ’ 	 (Gen 	
1:28)”	 (CCC	 160 4)	 Se x uality	 in	 marit al	 r ela tionship s	 is	 sho wn	 as	 a	 r ela tionship	 of	

162 Bogoslovni vestnik 83 (2023) • 1
mutual	 gifting ,	 self -enrichmen t,	 and	 unific a tion.	 “ The	 acts	 b y	 which	 the	 spouses	
ar e	 deeply	 and 	 pur ely	 unit ed 	 with 	 each 	 other	 ar e	 noble	 and 	 dignified,	 and 	 per-
formed in a human way, signify and support mutual bestowal by which they enrich 
each	other	with	a	spirit	of	jo y	and	gr a titude. ”	(GS	49)
In	 a	 theologic al	 sense,	 c onjug al	 lo v e	 is	 included	 in	 God’ s	 lo v e, 	 is	 a	 r e flection	 of	
Chris t ’ s	 lo v e	 f or	 the	 Chur ch.	 It	 is	 the	 lo v e	 tha t	 e xis ts	 be tw een	 per sons:	 a	 man	 and	
a	 w oman, 	 c omple t ely	 diff er en t	 and	se x ually 	 c omplemen t ar y	 per sons.	 Chris tian 	
spouses,	 in	 Chris t ’ s	 lo v e	 f or	 the	 Chur ch,	 should	 alw a y s	 find	 the	 model	 and	 norm	
of	 their 	 o wn	 r ela tionship s.	 Although	 marit al	 lo v e 	 c o v er s	 the 	 whole 	 per son	 -	 the 	
spher e 	 of	 the 	 body 	 and	 spirit, 	 it	 mus t 	 be	 clearly	 dis tinguished	 fr om 	 passion, 	 which, 	
unlike conjugal love, does not require the good of the other person or becoming 
“ one	 flesh”	 (Gen	 2:24).	 Theologic al	 r e flection	 poin ts	 t o	 a	 r e f er ence	 t o	 God	 as	 the	
sour ce	 of	 all	 lov e,	 the	 r ela tionship	 of	 the	 spouses	 t o	 themselv es	 and	the	 bond 	
be tw een	 the	 spouses	 (HV	 8).	 An	 essen tial	 part	 of	 the	 c a t echism’ s	 t eaching	 is	 the	
indic a tion	 tha t	 it	 embr aces	 the 	 whole 	 of	 the 	 human	 per son: 	 “marit al	 lo v e 	 c on t ains 	
a wholeness in which all elements of the person enter - the pulses of the body 
and	 ins tinct,	 the	 s tr eng th	 of	 f eelings	 and	 a tt achmen t,	 the	 pur suit	 of	 the	 spirit	 and 	
will. ”	(CCC	1643;	F C	13)
An	 unequiv oc al 	 c oncep t	 of 	 c onjug al 	 lo v e	 w as	 pr esen t ed 	 b y	 P aul	 VI	 in	 the	 en-
cy clic al	 “Humanae	 vit ae. ”	 The 	 P ope 	 sees	 the 	 model	 and	 sour ce 	 of	 c onjug al	 lo v e 	
in	 God	 who	 is	Lo v e .	 “Conjug al	 lo v e 	 be s t	 r e v e als	its	 tr ue	 na tur e 	 and	 dig nity 	 t o	 us 	
only when we consider that it draws its beginning - as if from the highest source 
-	 fr om	 God	 who	 is	Lov e	 and	F a ther . ” 	 (HV	 8;	 K r ólik ow ski 	 2020,	 93–96)	 T eaching 	
about love in the context of marriage, the Pope clearly indicates the characteris-
tic	 f ea tur es	 of	 this	 lo v e.	 It	 is,	 ther e f or e,	 a	 thor oughly	 human	 lo v e,	 and	 ther e f or e	
a t	 the	 same	 time	 sensual	 and	 spiritual;	 full;	 f aith ful	 and	 e x clu siv e	 un til	 the	 end	 of	
lif e;	 and	 f ertile 	 (HV	 9).	 The 	 same 	 a ttribut es	 of	 c onjug al	 lo v e 	 ar e	 indic a t ed	 in	 the 	
“F amiliaris	 Consortio”	 e xhort a tion.	 The 	 dis tinguished	 f our 	 essen tial	 char act eris tics 	
of love reveal the fully personal character of conjugal love. The lack of any of these 
f ea tur es	 neg a t es	 its	 per sonalis tic	 char act er	 (W ojtyła	 1986;	 K r ólik o w ski	 2020,	 49–
64).	 The	 fir s t	 thr ee	 qualities	 of	 c onjug al	 lo v e	 (human,	 full,	 f aith ful,	 and	 e x clusiv e)	
c ons titut e 	 a	 f ounda tion	 f or	 the 	 cr ea tion	 of	 a	communio personarum and the re-
aliz a tion	 of	 the 	 f ourth	 quality ,	 tha t	is, 	 fruitful	 lov e 	 (GS	 50).	 Conjug al	 dev otion 	
should	 r emain	 open	 “t o	 the	 tr ansmission	 of	 human	 lif e”	 (HV	 11).	 The	 char act er-
is tics	 of	 c onjug al 	 lo v e	 dis tinguished 	 b y	 P aul	 VI	 c orr espond 	 v er y	 closely	 with 	 the 	
psychological aspect of love between spouses. This reality was pointed out di-
r ectly	 in	 the 	 P ope’ s	addr ess	 t o	 the 	 audit or s	 of	 the 	 R oman	 R ot a	 on	 F ebruary	 9, 	
1976:	 “Conjug al	 lo v e, 	 although	 not	 t ak en	 in t o	 acc oun t	 in	 the 	 spher e 	 of	 la w , 	 has 	
an extremely important and indispensable task regardless of this munus in mar-
riage. It is some force of the psychological order that God has provided for the 
v ery	 purposes	 of	 marriag e. ”	 (P aul	 VI	 1976,	 205)	 The	 P ope,	 noticing	 the	 pur ely 	
psychological and therefore natural order of conjugal love, thus opens the pos-
sibility or even the necessity of an inter-disciplinary understanding of love. Only 
such	 an	 appr oach	 mak es	it	 possible 	 t o	 de fine 	 the 	 ma tur e	 s tructur e 	 of	 lo v e.	 The 	

163 Sławomir Bukalski et al. - The Conjugal Communio Amoris ...
classic	 and	 s till	 e xplor ed	 theor y	 of	 R obert	 St ernber g	 seems	 t o	 be	 help ful.	 The	 au-
th o r	 n o t es	 th a t	 i n	 th e	 l o v e	 o f	 tw o 	 p eop l e	 th r ee	 d i men si o n s	 ar e	 i mp o rt an t	 -	 i n ti-
macy	 (as	 p s y cho logic al	 closeness	 -	 sharing	 lif e,	 a	 sense	 of	 bon d);	 passion	(under-
s t ood	 in	 t erms	of	 s triving 	 f or 	 ph y sic al	 closeness)	 and	decision/ c ommitmen t	 (in-
cluding	 the	 will 	 t o	 r ec ogniz e	 and	 main t ain	 a	 lo ving	 r ela tionship	 with	 another	 per-
son).	 The 	 types	 of	 lo v e 	 tha t	 people 	 c an	 ha v e 	 c an	 be	 described	 b y	 the 	 pr esence 	
and 	 pr oportion 	 of	 these	 thr ee	 aspects. 	 Ho w e v er ,	 only	 the	 pr esence	 of	 all	 these 	
elemen ts	 allo w s	 f or 	 the 	 r ec ognition	 of	 a	 giv en	 r ela tionship	 as	 full	 and	 ma tur e	 lo v e 	
(consummate love ) 	 (St ernber g	 and	St ernber g	 2019).	 In	 the 	 speech	 men tioned 	
abo v e,	 P aul	 VI	 indic a t ed	 tha t	 c onjug al	 lo v e	 w as	 v er y	 desir able	 and	 help ful	 in	 ful-
filling 	 marriag e	 t ask s	 and	w as	 a	 guar an t ee	 of	 achieving 	 the 	 g oals	 of	 marriag e. 	
“ Thus,	 bec ause	 fr om	 y our	 v arious	 arr ang emen ts	 ther e	 emer g e	 f a v or able	 c onclu-
sions that have been adopted in the legal, biological and social disciplines - thanks 
t o	 which 	 marriag e	 has	 been	 be tt er	 under s t ood	 and	 r ec ogniz e d	 in	 its	 true	 na tur e	
as	a	c ommunity	of	lo v e	(communitas amoris ). ”	(P aul	VI	1976,	207)
John Paul II taught that conjugal love was the principle and power of conjugal 
c ommunion. 	 “ The	 lo v e	 be tw een 	 a	 man	 and 	 a	 w oman 	 in	 marriag e	 /…/	 is	 anima t ed 	
and sustained by an internal, ceaseless dynamism that leads the family to an ever 
deeper	 and	s tr ong er	 c ommunion,	 which	 is	the	 f ounda tion	 and	principle	 of	 the 	
c onjug al	 and	 f amily	 c ommunity . ”	 (F C	 18)	 “F amiliaris	 Consortio ” recognizes conju-
gal love as a communion of persons between spouses. It has the character of in-
divisible	 unity	 and	 indissolubili ty	 (F C	 19;	 20),	 it	 is	 the	 f ounda tion	 and	 principle	 of	
the 	 functioning	 and	de v elopmen t	of	 the 	 f amily	 under s t ood	 as	a	 c ommunion	 of 	
per sons.	 Lo v e	 shapes	 and	 s tr eng thens	 this	 c ommunion,	 “jus t	 as	 without	 lo v e	 the	
family is not a community of persons, just as without love it cannot live, grow and 
perf ect	itself	as	a	c ommunity	of	per sons”	(F C	18;	21).
P ope	 Benedict	 XVI,	 while	 c on tinuing	 the	 t eaching	 of	 John	 P aul	 II	 on	 the	 issue 	 of 	
marit al	 lov e, 	 indic a t es	 tha t	 it	 pla y s	 a	 superior	and	cen tr al	 r ole 	 in	 the 	 Chris tian	 lif e. 	
The 	 P ope	 r ec alls	 the	 w or ds	 of	 St.	 John: 	 “ God	 is	 lov e: 	 whoe v er	 abides	 in	 lov e	 abides 	
in	 God,	 and	 God	 abides	 in	 him”	 (1	 Jn	 4:16),	 and	 indic a t es	 tha t	 these	 w or ds	 “ e xpr ess 	
with	 particular 	 clarity	 the 	 essence 	 of	 the 	 Chris tian	 f aith; 	 the 	 Chris tian	 imag e	 of	 God 	
and	the	 r esulting	imag e	 of	 man	 and	his	 pa th”	 (DCE	 1).	 Benedict	XVI	 mak es	it	 v er y 	
clear	 tha t	 the 	 union	 of	 a	 man	 and	 a	 w oman	 based	 on	 “ e x clusiv e 	 and	 de finitiv e 	 lov e” 	
sanctioned	 in	 the 	 sacr amen t	 of	 marriag e	 is	 “ an	 imag e	 of	 God’ s	 r ela tionship	 with	 his 	
people, 	 and	 vice	 v er sa: 	 the 	 w a y 	 in	 which	 God	 lov es	 bec omes	 the 	 measur e 	 of	 human 	
lov e”	 (DCE	 11).	 Spouses,	 desiring	 each	 other	 and	 each	 other ’ s	 w ell-being , 	 giv e	 lov e 	
t o 	 each 	 other . 	 “B y	 mutual	 c ommitmen t	 t o 	 lov e	 fr ee	 fr om	 selfishness,	 the	 spouses 	
do	 not	 guar an t ee	 themselv es	 an ything	 -	 the y 	 guar an t ee	 themselv es	 t o	 each	 other . ” 	
(K r ólik ow ski	 2020,	 95)	 Benedict	 XVI’ s	 t eaching	 on	 c onjug al	 lov e	 alw a y s	 link s	 this	 r e-
ality with God’s love for his people. Through love, spouses abide in Christ, just as 
Chris t	 abides	 in	 the	 F a ther	 thr ough 	 lov e. 	 In	 this	 cont e xt,	 conjug al 	 holiness	 r epr esents 	
a	 special	 lik eness	 t o	 Chris t.	 This	 lik eness	 is	 r ealiz ed	 thr ough	 lov e	 (T yk ar ski 	 2020,	 70).
Marit al	 lov e	 is	pr esen t ed 	 in	 the	 t eaching	 of	 P ope	 Fr ancis	in	 the	 e xhort a tion 	
“ Amoris	 Lae titia. ”	 This	 fundamen t al	 marit al	 r ela tionship	 is	 pr esen t ed	 in	 the	 c on-

164 Bogoslovni vestnik 83 (2023) • 1
t e x t	 of	 St.	 P aul’ s	 h ymn	 t o	 lo v e.	 The	 v arious	 char act eris tics	 of	 lo v e	 indic a t ed	 in	 the	
h ymn,	 Fr anci s	 r el a t es	 t o	 the	 marit al 	 r el a tionshi p	 sho wing	 thei r	 v ali di ty	 and	 r el e-
vance. Love given to man by the Holy Spirit, who is Love, becomes an important 
t ask 	 and	a t	 the 	 same 	 time 	 is	inscribed	 in	 the 	 per sonal	r ela tionship	 of	 man	 and 	
w oman.	 The	 Exhort a tion	 is	one	 of	 the	 documen ts	 of	 the	 r egular	 t eaching	 of	 the	
Church and means a new look at marriage and family. It is about looking at each 
per son	 “with	 the 	 e y es	 of	 God	 and	 r ec ognizing	 Chris t	 in	 them”	 (Sla tinek	 2017,	 142).
The Pope also makes a very strong reference to the psychological aspects of 
marit al	 lo v e.	 He	 poin ts	out	 tha t	 “ desir es,	 f eelings,	emotions,	 wha t	 the	 ancien ts 	
c alle d	 ‘ the 	 passions, ’ 	 all	 ha v e 	 an	 im por t an t	 plac e 	 in	 m ar r ie d	 lif e 	 /…/.	 The y 	 g r ound	
the	 mos t	 eleme n t ar y	 p s y cholo gic al	 activity .	 Human	 beings	 liv e	 on	 this	 earth,	 and	
all	 tha t	 the y	 do 	 and 	 seek	 is	 fr augh t	 with 	 passion. ” 	 (AL	 143)	 It	 should 	 also 	 be	 not ed 	
tha t	 in	 r e flecting 	 on	 the 	 emotional	 and	a ff ectiv e 	 lif e	 of	 c onjug al	 lo v e, 	 the 	 P ope 	
v er y	 e xplicitly	 r e f err ed	 t o	 the	 authority	 of	 St.	 Thomas	 Aquinas.	 In	 Fr ancis’	 t each-
ing ,	 ther e	 is	a	 particularly	 s tr ong	 emphasis	on 	 the	 c ommunal 	 and 	 c ommunity -
building	 aspect	 of	 lo v e.	 The	 spouses,	 thr ough	 the	 sacr amen t, 	 e xperience	 the	 gift	
of realizing marital love not only through Christ and with Christ, but above all in 
Christ.  The teaching on the presence of the whole Trinity in marital love is con-
sis t en t	 with	 the	 t eaching	 of	 P ope	 Fr ancis’	 pr edecessor s:	 “the	 T rinity	 is	 pr esen t	 in	
the	 t em ple	 of	 marit al	 c ommun ion	 /…/,	 so	 he	 dw ells	 deep	 within	 the	 marit al	 lo v e	
tha t	 giv es	 him	 glor y . ”	 (AL	 314)	 This	 essen tial	 s t a t emen t	 poin ts	 t o	 both	 the	 sour ce	
o f	 mari t al 	 c o mmu n i o n 	 an d 	 th e	 so u r ce	 o f	 l o v e. 	 T h e	 gi ft	 o f 	 mu tu al 	 l o v e	 i n 	 marri ag e 	
and	 in	 the 	 f amily	 should	 be	 mode lle d	 on	 T rinit arian	 r ela tionship s.	 In	 addition	 t o 	
this	 superna tur al	 aspect	 of	 marit al	 lo v e,	 the	 e xhort a tion	 s tr ongly	 emphasiz es	 its	
typic ally	 human 	 char act er .	 It	 is	 pr esen t ed	 in	 a	 p s y chologic al	 c on t e x t.	 “Lo ving	 our-
selves is only important as a psychological prerequisite for being able to love oth-
er s. ”	(AL	101)
Both the conciliar vision of conjugal love and the post-conciliar papal teaching 
show	 the	 uniquely	 per sonal 	 char act er	 of	 this	 r ela tionship 	 be tw een 	 man	 and 	 w om-
an.	It	is	an	essen tial	elemen t	in	the	in t egr a tion	of	the	lif e	of	the	spouses.
4. Marital Holiness
The phrase communio sanctorum was known in theological thought already in 
an tiquity .	 It	 w as	 used	 b y	 the	 F a ther s	 of	 the	 Chur ch.	 Although 	 it	 does	 not	 appear	
dir ectly	 in	 “F amiliaris	 Consortio , ”	 the	 c all	 t o	 holiness	 of	 spouses	 is	 clearly	 indic a t ed 	
in	 the	 e xhort a tion.	 “In	 God’ s	 plan,	 all	 husbands	 and	 wiv es	 ar e	 c alled	 in	 marriag e	
t o 	 holiness,	 and 	 this	 lofty	 v oc a tion 	 is	fulfilled 	 t o 	 the	 e x t en t	 tha t	 the	 human 	 per-
son	 is	 able	 t o	 r espond	 t o	 God’ s	 c ommand	 with	 ser ene	 c on fidence	 in	 God’ s	 gr ace	
and	in	 his	 or	 her	 own	 will. ”	 (F C	 34)	Communio sanctorum is understood in two 
ways. It can refer to the community of saints, that is, those who have faith in God, 
“ c ommunion	 among	 holy	 per sons”	 (sancti ),	 or	 it	 c an	 r e f er	 t o	 the	 c ommunity	 tha t	
posse sse s	 holy 	 t hing s	 a nd	 g a t he r s	 f or 	 t hose 	 t hing s	 a s	 w e ll	 (sancta).	 The se 	 a r e 	 t he	

165 Sławomir Bukalski et al. - The Conjugal Communio Amoris ...
sacraments, faith, works of charity, the communion of love, and above all God 
himself (CCC	 948).	 Both	 under s t andings	 c an	 be	 applie d	 t o	 Chris tian	 spouses.	 This	
position 	 of	 the	 Chur ch 	 is	c on firmed 	 by	 the	 t eaching	 in	 the	 Ca t echism:	 “Sancta 
sanctis !	 –	 ‘ Wha t	 is	 holy	 t o	 thos e	 who	 ar e	 holy ’	 is	 the	 acclama tion	 pr onounced	 b y	
the	 celebr an t	 in	 mos t	 E as t ern	 litur gies	 during	 the	 ele v a tion	 of	 the	 Holy	 Gifts	 be-
f or e 	 Communion	 is	 giv en.	 The 	 f aith ful	 (sancti)	 ar e	 f ed	 with	 the 	 Body 	 and	 Blood	 of 	
Chr is t 	 (sancta). ”	 (CCC	 9 4 8 )	 I n	 t e ac hing 	 about 	 holine ss, 	 t he 	 Exhor t a tion	 poin t s	 t o 	
the	 univ er sal	 na tur e	 of	 this	 v oc a tion.	 It	 should	 be	 link ed	 t o	 the	 imag e	 of	 man	 as	
a	 pe r son,	 t o	 hu man	 dignity	 and	 t o	 participa tion	 in	 the	 lo v e	 and	 holiness	 of	 God.	
“Chris tian	 spouses	 and	 par en ts	 ar e	 included	 in	 the 	 univ er sal	 c all	 t o	 sanctity .	 F or 	
the m, 	 this	 c all	 is	spe cifie d	 b y	 the 	 sacr ame n t	 the y 	 ha v e 	 ce le br a t e d	 and	 is	c ar rie d 	
out	 c oncr e t ely	 in	 the	 r ealities	 pr oper	 t o	 their	 c onjug al	 and	 f amily	 lif e. ”	 (F C	 56;	 CCC 	
2013;	 L G	 40)	 The 	 v oc a tion	 of	 spouses	 t o	 holiness	 is	a	 v oc a tion	 t o	 cr ea t e	 a	com-
munio sanctorum.	 This	 is	done 	 thr ough	 “the 	 c oncr e t e 	 languag e	 of	 the 	 r eality	 of 	
married 	 and 	 f amily	 lif e. ”	 Chris tian 	 spouses	 ar e	 also 	 c alled 	 t o 	 giv e	 witness	 t o 	 a	 holy 	
lif e	 (F C	 66).	 The	 spouses,	 thr ou gh	 the	 sacr amen t,	 e xperience	 the	 gift	 of	 r ealizing	
conjugal love not only through Christ and with Christ, but above all in Christ. This 
is the way to the holiness of married life to communio sanctorum. Dietrich von 
Hildebr and,	 r e f erring	 t o	 St.	 Augus tine,	 s t a t es	 tha t	 “holy	 lo v e	 in	 Chris t	 in	 a	 cert ain	
w a y 	 an ticipa t es	 our	 lif e	 in	 e t ernity ,	 and	thus	 the 	 lo v e 	 with	 which	 the 	communio 
sanctorum	 is	 filled”	 (Hildebr and	 2021,	 463;	 Augus tine	 1977,	 653).	 One	 c ould	 sa y	
that this one sentence shows the order from communio amoris to communio 
sanctorum and this communion in eternity.
Marital holiness has its obvious source in God Himself, who is Holy. The Bible 
r epea t edly	 in v ok es	 the 	 holiness	 of	 God	 who	 sanctifies	 His	cr ea tion.	 “Since	 I	 am 	
the 	 Lor d	 y our	 God, 	 sanctify	 y our selv es!	 Be	 holy 	 bec ause	I	 am	 holy!”	 (Leviticus 	
11:44)	 P e t er	 the 	 Apos tle 	 r e f er s	t o	 this	 in v oc a tion: 	 “In	 all	 y our 	 c onduct, 	 y ou	 also 	
bec ome	 sain ts,	 lik e	 the	 Holy	 One	 who	 c alled	 y ou,	 bec ause	 it	 is	 writt en:	 ‘Be	 holy ,	
f or 	 I	 am	 holy . ’”	 (1	 P e t	 1:15-16)	 The 	 sanctity 	 and	 dignity 	 of	 the 	 m y s t er y 	 of	 marriag e 	
finds	 its	jus tific a tion	 in	 biblic al	 doctrine, 	 in	 the 	 specific	 w or ds	 of	 Chris t	 and	the 	
Apostles.
The	 sanctity	 of	 marriag e	 s y s t ema tic ally	 appear s	 in	 the	 t eaching	 of	 the	 Chur ch.	
In	turn,	 the	 Sec ond	 V a tic an	Council	 t eaches:	 “ spouses	ar e	 gift ed	 b y	 gr ace	 t o	lead	
a	 holy 	 lif e. ”	 (GS	 49;	 CCC	 1617)	 The 	 doctrine 	 of	 the 	 Council, 	 in v oking	 biblic al	 t each-
ing, shows marriage as a union of a man and a woman with the hallmark of holi-
ness. 	 This	 mark	 r esults	 fr om	 the	 inclusion 	 of	 marriag e	 in	 the	 or der	 of	 cr ea tion 	 and 	
salv a tion. 	 This	 c onciliar	 aspect	 of 	 marriag e	 w as	 also 	 v er y	 clearly	 indic a t ed 	 b y	 John 	
P aul	 II	 in 	 “F amiliaris	 Consortio. ”	 “ The	 pr oper	 sour ce	 and	 primar y	 means	 of	 sanc-
tif ying	 marriag e	 and	 the	 f amily	 is	 the	 sacr amen t	 of	 ma trimon y	 /…/.	 P ene tr a t ed	 b y 	
the spirit of Christ, who imbues their whole lives with faith, hope and love, the 
spouses	 c ome	 closer	 and 	 closer	 t o 	 achieving	 their	 own 	 perf ection 	 and 	 mutual 	
sanctific a tion. ”	 (F C	 56)	 In	 the 	 t e aching	 of	 John	 P aul	 II, 	 mar r iag e 	 is	 pr e se n t e d	 fr om	
a	 per sonalis tic	 per spectiv e,	 and	 this	 appr oach	is	 closely	 r ela t ed	 t o	 lo v e.	 When	 lo v e 	
is realized in the sacrament of marriage, it can be regarded as an exemplary way 

166 Bogoslovni vestnik 83 (2023) • 1
of striving for holiness. The essence of marital holiness is most clearly revealed in 
off ering	 oneself 	 t o	 one’ s	 spouse,	 c aring	 f or	 his	 or	 her	 w elf ar e	 and	 the	 w elf ar e	 of	
other	 f amily	 me mber s	 (T yk ar ski	 2020,	 71).	 This	 is	 also	 the	 o v ert one	 of	 “F amiliaris	
Consortio. ”
P ope 	 Fr ancis, 	 lik e wise, 	 r ec alls	 the 	 Chur ch’ s	 t eaching 	 on	 the 	 univ er sal	 c all	 t o	 ho-
liness.	 He	 also	 addr esses	 the 	 spouses	 in	 a	 unique	 w a y: 	 “w e 	 ar e	 all	 c alled	t o	 be 	
sain ts,	 living	 with 	 lo v e,	 and 	 bearing	 witness	 in	 our	 daily	 activities,	 wher e	 e v er y one 	
is	 /…/.	 Ar e	 y ou	 married?	 Be	 holy	 b y	 lo ving	 and	 c aring	 f or	 y our	 husband	 or	 wif e	 as	
C h ri s t	 d i d 	 f o r	 th e	 C h u r ch . ” 	 ( F r an ci s	 2018,	 14) 	 D esi ri n g	 h o l i n es s,	 maki n g	 i t	 th e	 g o al 	
of	 one’ s	 lif e,	 and	 making	 e ff orts	 t o	 pur sue	 holiness	 do	 not	 elimina t e	 the	 f act	 tha t	
“holiness	 is	 fir s t 	 and	 f or emos t	 a	 gift 	 fr om 	 God.	 It	 is	 God	 who	 sanctifies	 his	 cr ea tion, 	
and	 it	 on ly	 r esponds	 t o	 this	 gift. ”	 (Na wr ac ała	 2019,	 101)	 Chris tian	 marriag e	 is	 not	
only	 a	 r e la tionship	 be tw een	 husband	 and	 wif e,	 but	 it	 is	 abo v e	 all	 a	 m y s t er y	 r ela-
tionship	 be tw een	 people 	 and	God.	 In	 his	 r e flection, 	 Adam 	 Skr eczk o	 poin ts	t o	 a 	
thr ee f old	 w a y	 of	 under s t anding	 and	 e xplaining	 the	 sanctity	 of	 sacr amen t al	 mar-
riag e.	 Fir s t, 	 holiness	 is	 seen	 fr om	 the 	 per spectiv e 	 of	 f aith.	 Marriag e	 is	 “ a	 pr of ound 	
c ommunity	 of	 c onjug al	 lif e	 and	 lo v e 	 es t ablished	 b y	 God	 and	 r egula t ed	 b y	 His	 la w s” 	
(CCC	 1603).	 The	 sec ond	 sour ce	 of	 the	 sanctity	 of	 marriag e	 is	 participa tion	 in	 the	
a f or emen tioned 	 la w s 	 of 	 God. 	 The	 belonging	 of 	 per sons 	 t o 	 each 	 other	 in 	 marriag e 	
is	 an	 imag e	 of	 the	 mutual	 belonging	 of	 God	 and	 a	 man.	 The	 sanctity	 of	 marriag e	
is	r ela t ed	t o	 the	 sanctity	 of	 the	 per son.	This	 or der	 show s	 tha t	 when	 ins tituting 	
marriage, God allows spouses to share in his sovereignty over them. And thirdly, 
the	 sanctity	 of	 marriag e	 r esults 	 fr om	 the	 t ask s	 undert ak en	 b y	 the	 spouses:	 cr ea t-
ing	 a	 c ommunity	 of	 lif e	 and	 lo v e;	 the	 tr ansmission	 of	 lif e;	 educ a ting	 a	 child	 about	
f aith	and	e t ernal	lif e	(Skr eczk o	2016,	196–198;	GS	48).
In the history of the Church, marital holiness was seen as a kind of escape from 
everyday life. This model assumed that despite everyday life - inherently bad and 
sin ful	 -	 the 	 spouses	 c ould	 achie v e	 sanctity	 when	 the y	 e v en	 r an	 a w a y	 fr om	 this	 e v-
er y da y	 r eality .	 The	 sec ond	 appr oach	 e v en	 tried	 t o	 sanctif y	 e v er y da y	 lif e.	 The	 tr an-
sition	 fr om	profanum to sacrum	 w as	 a	 c ondition	 f or	 a	 chang e.	 In	 this	 per spectiv e, 	
daily	lif e	 does	 not	 ha v e	 t o	 be	 bad,	but	 it	 does	 not	 guar an t ee	 sanctity . 	 Holiness 	
w ould, 	 ther e f or e, 	 be	 possible 	 in	 e v er y da y	 lif e.	 Finally ,	 the 	 thir d	 appr oach	 poin t ed 	
t o	 the	 full	 accept ance	 of	 the	 e v er y da y	 lif e	 of	 married	 lif e	 as	 a	 c ondition 	 f or	 gr owing 	
in	 holiness.	 The	 sanctific a tion	 of	 the 	 spouses	 is	 thus	 c arried	 out	 thr ough	 e v er y da y 	
lif e.	 The	 emphasis	 is	 placed	 on	 the 	 actions	 of	 the 	 belie v er	 who	 w as	 c alled	 b y	 God 	
himself	 t o	 holiness	 (Skr eczk o	 2016,	 198–199).	 An	 e x ample	 of	 such	 holiness	 is, 	 f or 	
e x ample, 	tw o	married	c ouples	who	fully	r ealiz ed	the	gift	of	communio amoris.
Luigi	 and	 Maria	 Beltr ame	Qua ttr occhi	 ar e	 the	 fir s t	 bea tified	 married	 c ouple	 in	
the history of the Church, whose holiness was not based on heroic deeds, but on 
the	 dep th	 of	 living	 out	 their	 daily	 duties.	 Luigi	 and	 Maria	 “w er e	 r aised	 t o	 the	 glo-
ry of the altars because of the shining example of their conjugal love, for their 
mutual	 gift	 in	 the	 marriag e	 c o v enan t,	 f or	 their	 amazing	 ability	 t o	 lo v e	 each	 other	
and	 r aise 	 childr en.	 These 	 virtues	ar e	 so	 beautiful	 in	 the 	 e y es	of	 the 	 Chur ch	 tha t 	
the y	 ha v e	 been	 sho wn	 as	 e x amples	 of	 Chris tian	 perf ection. ”	 (Moia	 2002,	 67)	 The	

167 Sławomir Bukalski et al. - The Conjugal Communio Amoris ...
sanctity	 of	 the	 married	lif e	 of	 Luigi	 and	Maria	 is	a	 c onsequence	 of	 deliber a t ely 	
s triving	 f or	 such 	 a	 s t a t e.	 Conjug al	 lo v e	 w as	 ob vious	 and	 na tur al.	 Such	 a	 r ela tion-
ship	 w as	 easily	per ceiv ed 	 b y	 the	 childr en. 	 Enriche tt a’ s	 daugh t er	 t es tifies	 t o 	 her 	
par en ts’ 	 lo v e: 	 “Daddy ’ s	 lo v e 	 f or 	 our 	 mother 	 w as	 so	 deep	 tha t	 it	 surpassed	 the 	 dif-
f er en t	 men t ality	 or	 t emper ame n t	 of	 her	 par en ts. ”	 (Moia	 2002,	 79)	 The	 son	 of	 Lu-
igi	 and	 Maria,	 Fr	 P aolino ,	 r ec all ing	 the	 full	 of	 lo v e	 marit al	 r ela tions	 of	 his	 par en ts,	
a t	 the 	 same 	 time 	 poin ts	 t o	 the 	 sour ce 	 of	 their 	 par en ts’ 	 marit al	 lo v e: 	 “the 	 Chris tian 	
virtues which they fully achieved were rooted in the supernatural nature of the 
marriage community, in the sacramental charism that they lived as husband and 
a	wif e	in	a	s ymbiosis	of	gr ace. ”	(144)
The	 sec ond 	 c ouple	 is	Louis	 and 	 Z elie	 Martin 	 -	 the	 fir s t	 c anoniz ed 	 marriag e	 in 	
chur ch	 his t or y .	 Fulfilling	 their	 c all	 t o	 holiness	 in	 marriag e	 mean t	 f or	 them	 t ot al 	
submission	 t o	 God’ s	 will	 and	 the	 r ealiz a tion	 of	 lo v e.	 Louis	 and 	 Z elie’ s	 r eligious	 lif e	
w as	 among	 the	 highes t	 in	 the	 hier ar ch y	 of 	 v alues. 	 “ The	 sanctity	 of 	 the	 Martin	 s t a t e 	
in	 their	 a ttitude	 t o w ar ds	 the	 Eucharis t	 w as	 manif es t ed 	 not	 in	 the	 appar en t	 z eal 	
but in the fact that they were able to recognize the important role of this sacra-
men t. ”	 (Mongin	 2009,	 52)	 The	 Martins	 “ c on tinued	 t o	 thank	 God	 f or	 the	 lo v e	 tha t	
united them, for the strong faith that guided them, for the children he entrusted 
to them, for the work they had and which allowed them to think without anxiety 
about	the	futur e	of	their	daugh t er s”	(Clapier	2020,	13).
Wha t 	 closely 	 c onnect ed	 both	 married	 c ouples	 with	 Jesus	 Chris t 	 in	 e v er y da y 	 lif e 	
was mutual love. Everyday life, also in the dimension of corporeality, was almost 
full of holiness. The spouses were also fully aware that this way of life led them, 
and the children given to them to holiness. Living by God’s grace on a daily basis, 
the	 gift	 of	 self	 w as	 also	 a	 sign	 of	 holy	 c onjug al	 lo v e.	 The 	 sanctity	 of	 marriag e	 t ask s, 	
the	 r ealiz a tion 	 of	 c onjug al 	 lo v e	 (communio amoris),	 w as	 clearly	 r e v ealed 	 in	 the 	
lives of people elevated to the altars. Conscious striving for holiness was realized 
from the beginning of the marriage vow. They both understood perfectly well that 
holiness	 c onsis t ed	 in	 c arr ying	 out	 our 	 daily 	 duties	 with	 in t egrity .	 The 	 sanctity 	 of 	
lif e	bec ame	a	clear	g oal	of	lif e	and	w as	associa t ed	with	the	r ealiz a tion	of	lo v e.
5. Conclusions
The universal call to holiness is connected with the fact of belonging to the Church, 
which	 is 	 holy .	 Fr om	 on t ologic al	 holiness	 pert aining	 t o	 God	 and	 His	 Chur ch	 arises	
the	 v oc a tion	 of	 sacr amen t al	 spouses	 t o	 mor al	 holiness.	 “E v er y one	 in	 the	 Chur ch,	
precisely because they are members, receive and thereby share in the common 
v oc a tion	 t o	 holiness.	 In	 the 	 fullness	 of	 this	 title 	 and	on	 equal	 par 	 with	 all	 other 	
member s	 of	 the	 Chur ch,	 the	 la y	 f aith ful	 ar e	 c alled	 t o	 holiness . ”	 (ChL	 16)	 The	 per-
spectiv e	 of	 the	 univ er sal 	 c all 	 t o 	 holiness	 r equir es	asking	the	 ques tion 	 about	 the 	
place	 of	 lo v e	 be tw een	 spouses 	 in	 this	 v oc a tion.	 The	 sacr amen t al	 marriag e	 union	
is a unique community of a man and a woman - communio personarum.	 F or 	 such 	
communion to exist, the love of husband and wife is necessary, i.e., the principle 

168 Bogoslovni vestnik 83 (2023) • 1
of this communion. On the other hand, only people - in this case husband and 
wife - have the ability to create a community of people in marriage and in the fa-
mily. Communio amoris 	 as	 a	 gift	 tha t	 spouses	 r eceiv e	 and	 as	 an	 in t erior	 principle	
of	 married	 lif e	 enables	 them	 t o	 gr o w	 in	 holiness.	It	 is	 the	 f ou nda tion	 of	 Chris tian	
marriage. The conscious path from communio amoris and in communio perso-
narum is the path to communio sanctorum, that is, to the communion of saints 
thr ough	 daily 	 married	 lif e	 filled	 with	 the 	 r ealiz a tion	 of	 lo v e 	 be tw een	 husband	 and 	
wif e. 	 John	 P aul	 II	 pr esen ts	 this	 c on t e x t	 in	 “F amiliaris	 Consortio. ” 	 Ex amples	 of	 such 	
a	 pa th	 ar e	 f ound	 in	 the	 liv es	 of	 the	 fir s t	 spouses	 who	 w er e	 r aised	 t o	 the	 alt ar s	 as	
blessed 	 and 	 sain ts. 	 Their	 bea tific a tions	 and 	 c anoniz a tions	 w er e	 r ela t ed 	 only	 t o 	 the 	
normal, 	 e v er y da y 	 fulfilmen t	 of	 the 	 sacr amen t al	 marriag e	 v o w .	 Leading 	 spouses	 t o 	
sanctity	 in	 lif e	 is 	 one	 of	 the	 mos t	 import an t	 t ask s	 of	 the	 pas t or al	 c ar e	 of	 f amilies.	
Ho w e v er ,	 in	 or der	 t o	 c arr y	 out	 this	 t ask	 e ff ectiv ely ,	 it	 is	 necessar y	 t o	 sho w	 the	 su-
perna tur al	 char act er	 of	 marriag e.	 “ The	 v alue	 of	 marriag e,	 thi s	 indissoluble	 union	
of	 lo v e 	 be tw een	 tw o	 people, 	 c annot	 be	 c alled	 in t o	 ques tion.	 Wha t e v er 	 difficulties 	
may arise, we must not give up defending that original love which united two pe-
ople	 and	 which	 God	 c on tinues	 t o	 bless.	 Marriag e	 is	 a	 w a y	 of	 holiness,	 e v en	 when	
it	bec omes	a	w a y	of	the	cr oss. ”	(John	P aul	II	1999,	5)
Abbreviations
 AL	–	 Fr ancis	2016	[Amoris	lae titia].
 CCC 	–	 Ca t echism	of	the	Ca tholic	Chur ch	1995.
 CCL	–	 Code	of	Canon	La w	1983.
 CHL	–	 John	P aul	II	1988	[Chris tifideles	laici].
 DCE	–	 Benedict	XVI	2005	[Deus	c arit as	es t].
 FC 	–	 John	P aul	II	1981	[F amiliaris	c onsortio].
 GE	–	 Fr ancis	2018	[Gaude t e	e t	e x sult a t e].
 Grs 	–	 John	P aul	II	1994	[Gr a tissimam	sane].
 GS	–	 Sec ond	V a tic an	Council	1965	[Gaudium	e t	spes].
 HV –	 P aul	VI	1968	[Humanae	vit ae].
 LG –	 Sec ond	V a tic an	Council	1964	[Lumen	g en tium].
 SC –	 Sec ond	V a tic an	Council	1963	[Sacr osanctum	c oncilium].
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