Problemy duszpasterskie dzieci i młodzieży upośledzonej umysłowo

Abstract

During the times of the increasing awareness of man’s dignity and the permanent rights of the person, one can observe a growing interest in the children and young people who require special care; the so-called mentally retarded children. The fact of mental handicap does not in any way limit the basic value and dignity of the person, and in the religious context the retarded should be defined as the privileged receivers of the Gospel of Christ, who came to preach the Good News to the poor. The Church nowadays wants to recognize mentally retarded children and young people not only through specialized institutions but also in regular centres of spiritual guidance. This group of young people needs care not only from the Church but from the parents as well. Likewise the parents of those young people, because a child is introduced to religious concepts and into religious life mainly through the participation in the life of the religious environment. The condition of a fruitful education, also in the area of religious and moral life, is not only the conviction about human dignity and the rights of the mentally retarded but also a basic knowledge of the psychology of the retarded, both in the area of their deficiencies and the positive features of their personalities. Mental handicap must not be an obstacle in the participation in the sacramental life of the religious community, and especially in receiving the Sacraments of Penance and Eucharist. The condition of receiving the Sacrament of Penance is the ability to differentiate between the good and the bad and some kind of ability to answer the questions asked by the priest to facilitate the confession. The Communion can be received by the child who is aware that the Eucharistic food is something holy, even if he does not realize Christ’s presence in the Eucharist. Religious education and the catechesis of the children and young people who require special care should not only lead to the Sacraments of Christian initiation but to a relatively independent participation in the life of a religious community.