VATICAN CITY (LifeSiteNews) — The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith has released a note that “praises” monogamy as the only proper form of Christian marriage, responding to requests from various African bishops.
The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF), under Cardinal Victor Manuel Fernández, published today a document entitled Una Caro. With the subtitle “In praise of monogamy,” the dicastery described the document as a “doctrinal note on the value of marriage as an exclusive union and mutual belonging.” It was drafted in response to the appeals of several African bishops that emerged during the most recent synods, to offer doctrinal and pastoral guidance on the challenges posed by polygamy, still present in various regions of the continent.
“At the origin of this text are, on one hand, the various dialogues with the Bishops of Africa and other continents on the question of polygamy … and on the other, the observation that several public forms of non-monogamous unions – sometimes called “polyamory” – are growing in the West,” the note reads.
The intention of the note is “fundamentally propositional,” the dicastery states. Recalling that the two essential properties of Christian marriage are the unity and indissolubility of the bond, the DDF clarifies that it seeks “to enrich reflection and teaching on marriage with an aspect that has so far been little developed.” Indeed, while on one hand “there is an abundant bibliography on the indissolubility of the conjugal union in Catholic literature,” on the other hand, “on the unity of marriage … one finds, on the contrary, a less extensive development of reflection than on the theme of indissolubility both in the Magisterium and in manuals dedicated to the subject.”
Unity, presented as the “founding characteristic” of marriage, is defined as “a unique and exclusive union between one man and one woman.” Such unity implies that the union is so intimate and total that it cannot be shared with others. Therefore, although the intention of the note is propositional, it explicitly rejects non-monogamous unions as contrary to the very nature of marriage and to human dignity.
The note states that all non-monogamous loving relationships, such as “polygamy, adultery, and polyamory, are based on the illusion that the intensity of the relationship can be found in the succession of faces,” and that “multiplying faces in a supposedly total union means fragmenting the meaning of marital love.” Exclusive, face-to-face union is possible only between two.
The document provides arguments in favor of monogamy drawing from Sacred Scripture, the history of Christian thought, and even philosophy and poetry.
The text traces 2,000 years of Christian thought on marriage, highlighting the thinking of key figures such as St. John Chrysostom, St. Augustine, and Tertullian. Among modern references is also Jesuit Father Karl Rahner – a theologian considered instrumental in the development of Nouvelle théologie and its influence at the Second Vatican Council – alongside Dietrich von Hildebrand, Hans Urs von Balthasar, and contemporary Eastern authors.
The note presents the Magisterium as carving a coherent path that, from Popes Leo XIII to Pius XI, through Vatican II and the pontificates of Benedict XVI, Francis, and Leo XIV, all converge on unity and reciprocity as anthropological and spiritual pillars of marriage, where the unitive purpose of marriage is seen as primary in relation to the procreative purpose.
The dicastery finally hopes that the note becomes a practical tool for bishops, priests, theologians, marital groups, and young people. While recognizing that the message may “sound strange or countercultural,” the DDF prefect emphasizes its deeply human significance: recognizing in exclusive reciprocity the condition for a full, open, and generative life.
The note, clearly reaffirming the unity of the sacramental bond of marriage, reiterates that it does not intend to address its indissolubility or the purpose of procreation, since “both topics are abundantly treated in theology and in the Magisterium.”
In 2016, the apostolic exhortation Amoris laetitia, authored by Pope Francis, had strongly challenged the traditional view of the indissolubility of marriage, stating that “it is no longer possible to say that all those who find themselves in some so-called irregular situation live in a state of mortal sin, deprived of sanctifying grace,” and proposing the development of solutions which run contrary to Catholic teaching and the traditional understanding of marriage.
