The archbishop expressed his hope that the event would also be an "important milestone" in applying the "fruits of the Synodal process and of the Apostolic Exhortation 'Amoris Letitia'."
Although an international event, he said, the World Meeting of Families will be important for the Irish Church and its "strong family culture," which is nonetheless susceptible to "all the pressures of Western secular culture regarding marriage and the family." He spoke of the challenges many Irish families face, including "precarious economic situations" and the housing crisis.
Archbishop Martin said preparations for the Meeting will be made in Ireland through a "process of catechesis," based on the Pope's exhortation on the family, beginning 2017.
"The Church's catechetical programs regarding marriage and the family need a complete overhaul in line with what 'Amoris Laetitia' sets out," he said.
The 2018 World Meeting of Families will not be Dublin's first international Catholic event in recent years. In 2012, the city was the site of the 50th International Eucharistic Congress.
Cardinal Vincenzo Paglia, president of the Pontifical Council for the Family, was also present at Tuesday's press briefing.
"To celebrate the family – which in Europe is suffering in a particularly acute way – is an extraordinary occasion, so that all realities – civil, social, religious, political, economic – can rediscover the centrality and the strength of being the first pillar of peaceful coexistence among diverse (people)."
He told journalists that "Christian churches, the great world religions, civil and political society, can rediscover in the 'familial spirit' that common thread which permits them to confront that individualistic dimension which, unfortunately, is involving ever more the religious and civil realities in the world."