The chancellor of Costa Rica, Roberto Tovar Faja, has said that “the State is obliged to defend the family,” especially from the moral and social relativism that is seriously threatening it.

During the closing of the International Day on Family Policy and Human Rights, Tovar explained that this duty of the State is “more than a legal imposition” and that as individuals, the defense of the family must start from “a moral conviction, especially by those of us who happen to hold public office.”

He warned that the greatest threat to the family comes not from totalitarian regimes but from “social and moral relativism which attacks the family and assaults our culture.”

In this sense, he called on those attending the event to defend the family from relativism, “because our children should continue to grow up in an atmosphere of solidarity and understanding, which is what springs forth from a strong and vigorous family, where father and mother and children foster a reciprocal sense of love.”

Tovar also thanked God for giving him “the opportunity to hold an office that allows me to defend values that are precious to our culture--life and the family--and to defend my Christian values.”