By Fr. OKHUELEIGBE OSEMHANTIE ÃMOS

In what is shaping to be one of the most consequential doctrinal clarifications of the decade, the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) has announced that it will publish, at the end of November 2025, a major doctrinal note titled “We Two: In Praise of Monogamy. Doctrinal Note on the Value of Marriage, Exclusive Communion, and Mutual Belonging.” The document seeks to reaffirm the Catholic Church’s solid commitment to the monogamous and indissoluble union between one man and one woman, while addressing with pastoral sensitivity the enduring question of polygamy, particularly as it manifests in parts of Africa and Asia.

According to the Secretary of the Dicastery, Monsignor Armando Matteo, the forthcoming document “is a word of truth spoken with charity,” reiterating that monogamy is not a social invention but a divine design deeply rooted in Scripture and the mystery of Christ’s unbreakable covenant with His Church. He stressed that the note aims not merely to restate doctrine but to offer guidance for bishops, priests, and pastoral agents who accompany individuals and families in contexts where polygamy remains culturally entrenched.

The doctrinal note, as Vatican observers explain, draws inspiration from the synodal dialogues on the family held in 2014 and 2015, during which bishops from Africa raised pressing concerns about the clash between traditional practices and Christian marriage doctrine. The African bishops, through the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM), had since petitioned the Holy See to provide a definitive teaching document that could assist the local churches in forming consciences and guiding pastoral practice.

In many African societies, polygamy remains woven into the cultural fabric as a symbol of lineage, economic stability, and social prestige. A 2020 Pew Research study estimated that about 11 percent of sub-Saharan Africans live in households where at least one person has multiple spouses or partners. The Church in Africa has long grappled with the challenge of upholding the sacramentality and exclusivity of Christian marriage while engaging pastoral realities that cannot simply be ignored.

The Vatican’s new document is expected to delve deeply into the biblical, theological, and anthropological foundations of monogamy. From the Genesis creation narrative where “the two shall become one flesh” to St. Paul’s nuptial analogy in Ephesians 5, marriage is portrayed as a living sacrament of fidelity and mutual belonging, mirroring the love between Christ and His Church. Patristic sources and conciliar teachings are likely to feature prominently, underscoring that exclusivity and permanence are not moral constraints but liberating dimensions of authentic love.

Importantly, “We Two” will not introduce new canonical laws. Rather, it will serve as a doctrinal-pastoral instrument meant to strengthen existing Church teaching and to guide local episcopal conferences, particularly in regions where polygamous cultures persist. Vatican insiders note that the title itself: simple, direct, and human, was deliberately chosen to underline the personal and relational essence of marriage: two persons in total self-gift, bound by mutual fidelity and love.

For Africa and the global South, the publication bears significant implications. It will serve as a theological and pastoral reference point for seminaries, diocesan marriage commissions, and Catholic educators confronting the intersection between faith and culture. In countries such as Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, and Uganda, where Christianity coexists with enduring traditional marriage systems, the note will help articulate a balance between doctrinal fidelity and cultural sensitivity.

The document is also expected to address practical pastoral questions: how to integrate converts from polygamous backgrounds; how to minister to families already formed under non-monogamous unions; and how to uphold the Church’s vision of marriage without alienating those on the margins of ecclesial life. This approach reflects Pope Francis’ broader vision of a “Church that is mother and teacher,” one that speaks truth with mercy, combining the firmness of doctrine with the tenderness of pastoral care. As Monsignor Matteo succinctly put it, “Mercy without truth is sentimentality; truth without mercy is cruelty.”

Globally, “We Two” will likely rekindle discussions on the Church’s role in shaping moral culture at a time when relativism and secular redefinitions of marriage are increasingly prevalent. Yet, within that global discourse, the African question remains unique. The document thus comes as both a reaffirmation of faith and a response to an urgent pastoral reality.

For theologians, educators, and Church leaders, this development offers a new resource for study and reflection. Theological faculties, catechetical institutes, and pastoral centers will find in the note a deep synthesis of Christian anthropology, moral theology, and intercultural pastoral engagement.

When “We Two” is finally published later this month, it will stand as both a doctrinal clarification and a pastoral bridge, reminding the world that, for the Catholic Church, the ideal of one man and one woman in a lifelong covenant of love is not merely an ethical position, but a profound reflection of divine love made visible in human fidelity.

In an age marked by fluid relationships and cultural pluralism, the Vatican’s renewed emphasis on monogamy invites the faithful to rediscover the beauty, dignity, and salvific depth of exclusive communion. It is, as the Dicastery itself describes it, “a word of truth spoken with charity”, a truth that calls the world not to constraint, but to communion.

• Fr. Dr. Okhueleigbe Osemhantie Ãmos is a priest of the Catholic Diocese of Uromi and a Lecturer at CIWA, Port Harcourt, Nigeria.