In the words of Montserrat Gas, director of the IESF, “We wanted to make it very practical. This is why it is a ‘workshop’, not a ‘congress’. In fact, through these sessions we are hoping to understand current difficulties facing the family and develop new approaches on how to help.” Gas assures that the main objective is “to train the participants so that they can learn and acquire new ideas about how to support families and create a network between professionals working in this field”.

This workshop will concentrate on four different areas: the professional field; the pastoral – relating to personal initiatives beyond parish involvement –; education; and, finally, new technology. The programme will consist of educational theory sessions and expert panels will provide practical observations on the different areas of family support.

Among the speakers of the conference are experts from the fields of medicine, education, and communication, and also from the ecclesiastical world: Milanese neuropsychiatrist and writer Mariolina Ceriotti Migliarese, author of bestselling books such as Erótica y materna, Masculino: Fuerza, eros, ternura and La familia imperfecta; professor of fundamental morality from the Pontifical John Paul II Institute, Juan José Pérez Soba; Viennese psychiatrist Raphael Bonelli, and more. All sessions can be attended in person or followed online.

In addition, all workshop participants and their families will be able to participate in the celebration of Holy Mass on Saturday afternoon in the Sagrada Familia.