EUROPE/SPAIN - 5th World Meeting of Families- “We are experiencing that the Church is deeply concerned for families and wishes to send all families an encouraging message": testimonial by a young French family

Valencia (Agenzia Fides) - Timothee and Virginie Berthon, a young married couple from Brittany in France and their children Jeanne aged 7 , Mathilde aged 5 and Marie aged 2 and the fourth on the way, are one of thousands of couples from various parts of the world who travelled to Valencia in Spain to take part in the World Meeting of Families in Valencia. The Berthon family belongs to the Community of the Beatitudes. Fides asked them to share their experience in Valencia.

What is your experience here in Valencia ?
We are experiencing that the Church is deeply concerned for families and wishes to send all families an encouraging message. Many of the things said we have heard before, they are not new but we are here to take part in this meeting precisely for spiritual enrichment. The Congress has been a source of spiritual formation and nourishment. We had already taken part in World Youth Day events with the Pope and we decided to come to this event as a family to give our children the experience of being close to the Successor of Peter. The fact that the site includes a recreation area for children is a concrete sign of the Church’s understanding and loving concern for the family.

As you return to France what message will you take with you for other young families ?
I would tell those whose hearts are searching for the truth that the Church is an immense treasure where they can find the answers to all the questions which we families always have: on life, education, death, work. The Church possesses a rich treasure from which we can draw in order to grow in our relation as husband and wife, as we educate of our children and in the joy of being believers.

How do you communicate this joy to your children?
Our daily experience is that the closeness of the Holy Spirit makes it easier to tackle difficulties. To make God’s love in concrete daily life visible for our children and to teach them to realise their special dignity is certainly a great challenge but it also a source of deep joy as we see them accept the Word of truth and grow in grace. (JO) (Agenzia Fides 8/7/2006)