A
anp1215
Guest
I’ve noticed from my time here that you have become increasingly antagonistic towards the Church and her teachings. That is actually what hurts me.
- Status
C
ConstantineTG
Guest
Am I the first Catholic to be appalled with how annulments are used today?
D
dans0622
Guest
[edited]
As far as the article in the OP, the Church has given the answer to the question. If the Lord wanted her to come to a different answer, He shouldn’t have been so strict in His teaching on divorce and the adultery that results from remarriage.
Dan
As far as the article in the OP, the Church has given the answer to the question. If the Lord wanted her to come to a different answer, He shouldn’t have been so strict in His teaching on divorce and the adultery that results from remarriage.
Dan
H
Hallelujah16
Guest
Well, I hope that one day your heart will get tender and that you will know what compassion, mercy and forgiveness mean. And if you keep going in the direction you are now, I hope that you will never need mercy from anyone because to receive mercy you have to be merciful in the first place, following in the Pharisees’ footstep is not really the way to go…
That is not what I meant and has nothing to do with “divorced/remarried” brothers and sisters.… “Hey I understand. You can’t help it. Go and keep sleeping with that man who isn’t your husband.”
I’m glad that your friend succeeded to take her divorce so well, but that is not the case for the majority of people. Everybody is different, some people are so good athletes that they win at the Olympic games…well, obviously most of them don’t even make it to participate in them…
That’s great and I’m happy it went easy breezy for you, 15 days WOW! but that is not the average, it is rather unusual. And you enjoy Celibacy, well that is great too, some people anyway are not meant for marriage and they discover it later on in life or make a choice to raise their kids on their own like you do. But that is “your” choice and that is what you visibly desire but the majority doesn’t feel like you.
I’m sorry but that is how true love most of the time starts! you meet someone, or are friend with someone when “love” takes over! That has been the case for so many people who have had more than 50 years of happy marriage,loving their spouse evermore so…I know because I always like to ask how people met their spouse. I myself am happily married for 22 years and we fell in love, yes, just like that, when neither of us expected it!
I was not and I’m sorry if I have offended you. But you have to understand that not everybody is as strong as you think! I’ve seen too many divorced people falling into great depressions and some going as far as considering to commit suicide! And please, don’t go on your high horse, screaming out “blasphemy”, do not judge them when you don’t know how tormented they must have been to entertain such thoughts knowing how dreadful the results would be. You are not able to know what is in the heart of another fellow believer, don’t even try and let God be God, please.Please stop treating divorced people as if they are so weak and helpless that they couldn’t possibly follow the true teachings of the gospel.
Peace be with you.
T
TrueLight
Guest
Hallelujah,
What would like to see?
What would like to see?
- the Church provide for ecclesiastical divorce like the Orthodox?
- the Church allow any " remarried" to receive communion as long as they’re sorry?
- the Church allow remarrieds to receive after a period of penance (months to years)?
- that there be a statute of limitations. For example, after 10 years of divorce, one approaches the pastor, fill out some paperwork and then allowed to receive.
H
Hallelujah16
Guest
God bless you! and if you want you can join me in prayer on behalf of all the “divorced/remarried” children of God. Seeing how most people reacted to that article, I’m encouraged to kick it up a notch and pray a Novena to Our Lady of the miraculous medal.
Three thumbs up for what you say here, and for the Pope’s pondering!
C
Corki
Guest
Now that comment comes off as quite mean spirited.
Gertabelle and others (myself included) on this thread are voicing their support for the Church’s stand on marriage. Your comment makes it sound like all of us, and the Church herself, are lacking in compassion, mercy and forgiveness and/or acting like Pharisees. Nothing could be further from the truth.PS You might want to look up who the Pharisees were. You seem to be laboring under a misunderstanding.
T
TrueLight
Guest
You know I have an issue with it, but that should be a separate thread.
H
Hallelujah16
Guest
You are making good points! Well, I don’t know the faith of the Orthodox Catholics so I cannot say anything about it…
Then, I will say probably a mix of the 3 other options might be good…
Yes, the remarried people who have gone to their priest told everything, meaning at that point people must be given the credit that they are telling the truth…without the need to find witnesses and all like if they had committed murder and were on trial…Which is what the annulment procedure requires from what I gathered.
Knowing that someone who has the need and desire to go to Mass and receive the Eucharist regularly is not faking there would be not point, that kind of attitude shows no room for deception. Thus, we can trust that they would not dare lie to God and to their priest…
Then, yes repentance and few months of penance just to satisfy the thirst for punishment that other believers have, sad to say…
And also I have never met a “victim of divorce” remarrying quickly after being divorced. Most are deeply wounded and it takes them from 3 to 5 years before they are able to get back on their feet…What people don’t understand is that the “victims of divorce” are going through a period of “mourning” just like a widow would and like widows it will take between 3 to 5 years to fully recover, and unfortunately for some the wounds never completely heal…And that is not me talking but what Psychiatric physicians say.
Thus, there is automatically a period of excruciating inevitable “penance”. Also, we are talking about people who have not join in the 21st century, “Hollywood” habit of marrying and divorcing and marrying and…so on and so forth…
And to answer to your last option, no 10 years is unnecessary and way too harsh. Being compasionate and merciful is the key
H
Hallelujah16
Guest
I have to say that I am baffled at what most of you have posted. How can your heart be so cold? How can you look down on these brothers and sisters with a “Holier than thou, Pharisee” approach instead of a Christ like compassion?
Why do you want keep the “victims of a divorce” from the Eucharist and make them suffer so much? Why are you so quick to cast the 1st stone upon those “victims”??? And I say “victims” because that is what they are for many of them…because in the society we live in if your spouse wants to divorce you, you have no say! You can try like many fervent Catholics do to refuse to divorce…but in the end your spouse divorces you nonetheless.
Before I continue to share my point of view, let me state that I know what I’m talking about because I’ve seen it first hand and up close! My best friend and one of my cousin were the victims of divorce; like the woman in the article I’ve posted they had to undergo a depression that lasted years and for each one of them I was there in their time of need to hold their hand, and do my utmost to have them recover from the trauma of their divorce!
Thus, I know how much the victims of divorce can suffer, and after they finally get back on their feet my heart was broken to see them suffer again this time through the hands of the Church because they had had the blessing to find another spouse and desired to remarry instead of letting love and happiness pass them by; because they didn’t want to spend the rest of their lives alone. A well legitimate desire when you know that both of them had married young therefore after their divorce it would have meant to live many, many years by themselves. Not everyone is called to celibacy.
Moreover, before you cast your first stone, you should keep in mind that these victims of divorce do not want to ever marry again after having gone through such a painful experience, thus it is only after they have somewhat healed and after God blesses them by letting them meet the right person, and after giving it much time in prayer that they finally decide to remarry. But of course I am not talking about people who make the habit of going through divorces; those people do not care about attending Mass regularly, and do not care about receiving the Eucharist!
There is a big difference and you cannot put every divorced/remarried person into the same bag! That is the mistake that the Church has been making for years now….and the “remedy” that was chosen to provide “annulments” after long investigations is not the solution at all. No, this procedure just adds on to the excruciating pain that these poor souls have already been through and this time it’s even worse as it comes from those who should be able to have compassion on them.
My best friend and my cousin should not have received the cold shoulder treatment and should not have been kept from the Eucharist. What a heartless way of dealing with their position to tell them that they can come to Mass but cannot partake to the Heart of Mass! Or to coldly say, “Get yourself an annulment”…those who say that do not know a thing about what these poor souls went through! and as far as I know that procedure just re-opens wounds that should be left alone, and according to the testimonies I read, that procedure is way too sophisticated and expensive, taking way too much time, leaving the applicant mortified while waiting for their “pardon” especially when they know that God himself has forgiven them….
In the end, these children of God who are divorced/remarried either have to suffer to go to Mass with missing on the Heart of Mass, while waiting for an annulment…. if they get it knowing as for certain cases visibly it doesn’t happen and not because they were not eligible, I’m talking about people who do have grounds, but because the system doesn’t work as it demands too many proofs that sometimes cannot be found; like I read about and like for the brother of that priest I knew. Or when these brothers and sisters cannot take it anymore to go to Mass without being able to receive the Eucharist, they just give it all up and end up either living their faith on their own or accepting second best by joining a Lutheran or Episcopal congregation.
This is not right and should not happen. And again things are not as simple as saying “let them get an annulment!”. That is why the more Christ like way to deal with “divorced/remarried” brothers and sisters who desired to be part of the Church would be to have them go to their priest or a designated priest and explain everything, and receive forgiveness and compassion from the Church. This would not increase the number of divorce nor have people take the sacrament of marriage lightly because these people who do think like that do not care about attending Mass in the first place and would not go to a priest and explain everything and are not the ones who would ask to be accepted by the Church! And for the “idea” of telling the “divorced/remarried” brothers and sisters to just live in chastity with their spouse is the best way to have them end up with going through another divorce!
Now, to talk about the other kind of “divorced/remarried” brothers and sisters who were not the “victims of a divorce”, those who actually initiated their divorce; I have not known any of them personally, thus I can only go by the testimonies I have read about or heard about.
Still, I can say that the Church should extend compassion and mercy toward those who desire to be part of the Church all the way by going to Mass regularly and have communion. That is for all those “divorced/remarried” brothers and sisters who have repented for what they have done, have tried for some of them to even consider the advice of others to brake their actual marriage to go back to their former spouse (which they should never been advised such a thing even if you think that their 2nd marriage is not valid), and for those who had not remarried and had gone all the way to seek out their former spouse and tried to get them back without success…as in most cases is not possible (people either moved on with their lives or they don’t want to have anything to do with the one that wounded them…).This is real life we are talking about not movies with easy happy endings….
Anyhow for those who initiated the divorce and repented, even if they are remarried they should be forgiven totally by the Church and welcome at the Lord’s table and if they are not remarried and would like to marry a brother or sister they should not have to go through the hassle of an annulment or have to forget about being able to remarry because something hinders the procedure.
If you would only put yourself in their shoes, and imagine what it would be like if that was happening to you, and you would be the one knowing that God has forgiven you, and would be craving for the Eucharist but kept from communion even though you are living a righteous life, you would not condemn them.
And I know many of you will say but they are not living a righteous life if they are remarried, their 2nd marriage is not valid because the Church didn’t bless it therefore they live in sin….Well, that is a point of view coming from a heart that doesn’t let room for compassion and mercy! And, it has nothing to do with the “adulterous woman” going back to her lover after receiving Christ forgiveness! IMO, if the Church would have done what needs be that 2nd marriage would be blessed and made “official” in the eyes of men as much as it is in the eyes of God.
And to go back to what I was saying about putting yourself in their shoes, if you can’t perceive that it is excruciating to participate to Mass but be forbidden to receive communion then you are probably taking the Eucharist so much for granted that you cannot even imagine what it would be like to attend Mass and be kept from communion.
Can’t you see that no one is without sin? What makes you think that your sins are less than theirs? For most of them they were either “innocent victims of a divorce” or married when they were too young, or at a period of time when their spiritual life was far from being at its best, or they were never taught what it meant to enter the sacrament of marriage, especially for those coming from a Protestant background…Why should they be so harshly treated and condemned, when they finally get serious about their spiritual life, or find out about the Faith?
And for those who were victims of divorce like my best friend and cousin, this is really outrageous and cruel!
Maybe one day you will need compassion, maybe you will need that others treat you with mercy…and will hope to receive it…Thus remember what our Lord said “Blessed are the merciful, because they shall receive mercy”. What about starting to practice having mercy right now?
I pray that you will one day succeed to put yourself in their shoes, that compassion will overtake your heart like it does mine, that you will find out that it is Christlike and a blessing to extend mercy.
No matter what you quoted from our Pope, as far as I know this is just the “solution for now” while he is pondering on the matter. And unless I’ve missed the latest news, he has not made a decision just yet!
Thus there is still hope for the “divorced/remarried”! And this thread I’ve started was intended to bring hope for all our brothers and sisters who are in this painful situation or anxiously awaiting the answer to their application for an annulment; as well as to try to stir up compassion in those who are ready to cast the 1st stone…
For those of you whose heart goes out to our “divorced/remarried” brothers and sisters, join with me in prayer so that our Pope will let his compassion make the decision, and that he will stand firm no matter what some might say about it.
I believe that if we all pray fervently about it, and offer many rosary prayers it will be done.
Peace to you all.
Why do you want keep the “victims of a divorce” from the Eucharist and make them suffer so much? Why are you so quick to cast the 1st stone upon those “victims”??? And I say “victims” because that is what they are for many of them…because in the society we live in if your spouse wants to divorce you, you have no say! You can try like many fervent Catholics do to refuse to divorce…but in the end your spouse divorces you nonetheless.
Before I continue to share my point of view, let me state that I know what I’m talking about because I’ve seen it first hand and up close! My best friend and one of my cousin were the victims of divorce; like the woman in the article I’ve posted they had to undergo a depression that lasted years and for each one of them I was there in their time of need to hold their hand, and do my utmost to have them recover from the trauma of their divorce!
Thus, I know how much the victims of divorce can suffer, and after they finally get back on their feet my heart was broken to see them suffer again this time through the hands of the Church because they had had the blessing to find another spouse and desired to remarry instead of letting love and happiness pass them by; because they didn’t want to spend the rest of their lives alone. A well legitimate desire when you know that both of them had married young therefore after their divorce it would have meant to live many, many years by themselves. Not everyone is called to celibacy.
Moreover, before you cast your first stone, you should keep in mind that these victims of divorce do not want to ever marry again after having gone through such a painful experience, thus it is only after they have somewhat healed and after God blesses them by letting them meet the right person, and after giving it much time in prayer that they finally decide to remarry. But of course I am not talking about people who make the habit of going through divorces; those people do not care about attending Mass regularly, and do not care about receiving the Eucharist!
There is a big difference and you cannot put every divorced/remarried person into the same bag! That is the mistake that the Church has been making for years now….and the “remedy” that was chosen to provide “annulments” after long investigations is not the solution at all. No, this procedure just adds on to the excruciating pain that these poor souls have already been through and this time it’s even worse as it comes from those who should be able to have compassion on them.
My best friend and my cousin should not have received the cold shoulder treatment and should not have been kept from the Eucharist. What a heartless way of dealing with their position to tell them that they can come to Mass but cannot partake to the Heart of Mass! Or to coldly say, “Get yourself an annulment”…those who say that do not know a thing about what these poor souls went through! and as far as I know that procedure just re-opens wounds that should be left alone, and according to the testimonies I read, that procedure is way too sophisticated and expensive, taking way too much time, leaving the applicant mortified while waiting for their “pardon” especially when they know that God himself has forgiven them….
In the end, these children of God who are divorced/remarried either have to suffer to go to Mass with missing on the Heart of Mass, while waiting for an annulment…. if they get it knowing as for certain cases visibly it doesn’t happen and not because they were not eligible, I’m talking about people who do have grounds, but because the system doesn’t work as it demands too many proofs that sometimes cannot be found; like I read about and like for the brother of that priest I knew. Or when these brothers and sisters cannot take it anymore to go to Mass without being able to receive the Eucharist, they just give it all up and end up either living their faith on their own or accepting second best by joining a Lutheran or Episcopal congregation.
This is not right and should not happen. And again things are not as simple as saying “let them get an annulment!”. That is why the more Christ like way to deal with “divorced/remarried” brothers and sisters who desired to be part of the Church would be to have them go to their priest or a designated priest and explain everything, and receive forgiveness and compassion from the Church. This would not increase the number of divorce nor have people take the sacrament of marriage lightly because these people who do think like that do not care about attending Mass in the first place and would not go to a priest and explain everything and are not the ones who would ask to be accepted by the Church! And for the “idea” of telling the “divorced/remarried” brothers and sisters to just live in chastity with their spouse is the best way to have them end up with going through another divorce!
Now, to talk about the other kind of “divorced/remarried” brothers and sisters who were not the “victims of a divorce”, those who actually initiated their divorce; I have not known any of them personally, thus I can only go by the testimonies I have read about or heard about.
Still, I can say that the Church should extend compassion and mercy toward those who desire to be part of the Church all the way by going to Mass regularly and have communion. That is for all those “divorced/remarried” brothers and sisters who have repented for what they have done, have tried for some of them to even consider the advice of others to brake their actual marriage to go back to their former spouse (which they should never been advised such a thing even if you think that their 2nd marriage is not valid), and for those who had not remarried and had gone all the way to seek out their former spouse and tried to get them back without success…as in most cases is not possible (people either moved on with their lives or they don’t want to have anything to do with the one that wounded them…).This is real life we are talking about not movies with easy happy endings….
Anyhow for those who initiated the divorce and repented, even if they are remarried they should be forgiven totally by the Church and welcome at the Lord’s table and if they are not remarried and would like to marry a brother or sister they should not have to go through the hassle of an annulment or have to forget about being able to remarry because something hinders the procedure.
If you would only put yourself in their shoes, and imagine what it would be like if that was happening to you, and you would be the one knowing that God has forgiven you, and would be craving for the Eucharist but kept from communion even though you are living a righteous life, you would not condemn them.
And I know many of you will say but they are not living a righteous life if they are remarried, their 2nd marriage is not valid because the Church didn’t bless it therefore they live in sin….Well, that is a point of view coming from a heart that doesn’t let room for compassion and mercy! And, it has nothing to do with the “adulterous woman” going back to her lover after receiving Christ forgiveness! IMO, if the Church would have done what needs be that 2nd marriage would be blessed and made “official” in the eyes of men as much as it is in the eyes of God.
And to go back to what I was saying about putting yourself in their shoes, if you can’t perceive that it is excruciating to participate to Mass but be forbidden to receive communion then you are probably taking the Eucharist so much for granted that you cannot even imagine what it would be like to attend Mass and be kept from communion.
Can’t you see that no one is without sin? What makes you think that your sins are less than theirs? For most of them they were either “innocent victims of a divorce” or married when they were too young, or at a period of time when their spiritual life was far from being at its best, or they were never taught what it meant to enter the sacrament of marriage, especially for those coming from a Protestant background…Why should they be so harshly treated and condemned, when they finally get serious about their spiritual life, or find out about the Faith?
And for those who were victims of divorce like my best friend and cousin, this is really outrageous and cruel!
Maybe one day you will need compassion, maybe you will need that others treat you with mercy…and will hope to receive it…Thus remember what our Lord said “Blessed are the merciful, because they shall receive mercy”. What about starting to practice having mercy right now?
I pray that you will one day succeed to put yourself in their shoes, that compassion will overtake your heart like it does mine, that you will find out that it is Christlike and a blessing to extend mercy.
No matter what you quoted from our Pope, as far as I know this is just the “solution for now” while he is pondering on the matter. And unless I’ve missed the latest news, he has not made a decision just yet!
Thus there is still hope for the “divorced/remarried”! And this thread I’ve started was intended to bring hope for all our brothers and sisters who are in this painful situation or anxiously awaiting the answer to their application for an annulment; as well as to try to stir up compassion in those who are ready to cast the 1st stone…
For those of you whose heart goes out to our “divorced/remarried” brothers and sisters, join with me in prayer so that our Pope will let his compassion make the decision, and that he will stand firm no matter what some might say about it.
I believe that if we all pray fervently about it, and offer many rosary prayers it will be done.
Peace to you all.
H
Hallelujah16
Guest
I have to say that I am baffled at what most of you have posted. How can your heart be so cold? How can you look down on these brothers and sisters with a “Holier than thou, Pharisee” approach instead of a Christ like compassion?
Why do you want keep the “victims of a divorce” from the Eucharist and make them suffer so much? Why are you so quick to cast the 1st stone upon those “victims”??? And I say “victims” because that is what they are for many of them…because in the society we live in if your spouse wants to divorce you, you have no say! You can try like many fervent Catholics do to refuse to divorce…but in the end your spouse divorces you nonetheless.
Before I continue to share my point of view, let me state that I know what I’m talking about because I’ve seen it first hand and up close! My best friend and one of my cousin were the victims of divorce; like the woman in the article I’ve posted they had to undergo a depression that lasted years and for each one of them I was there in their time of need to hold their hand, and do my utmost to have them recover from the trauma of their divorce!
Thus, I know how much the victims of divorce can suffer, and after they finally get back on their feet my heart was broken to see them suffer again this time through the hands of the Church because they had had the blessing to find another spouse and desired to remarry instead of letting love and happiness pass them by; because they didn’t want to spend the rest of their lives alone. A well legitimate desire when you know that both of them had married young therefore after their divorce it would have meant to live many, many years by themselves. Not everyone is called to celibacy.
Moreover, before you cast your first stone, you should keep in mind that these victims of divorce do not want to ever marry again after having gone through such a painful experience, thus it is only after they have somewhat healed and after God blesses them by letting them meet the right person, and after giving it much time in prayer that they finally decide to remarry. But of course I am not talking about people who make the habit of going through divorces; those people do not care about attending Mass regularly, and do not care about receiving the Eucharist!
There is a big difference and you cannot put every divorced/remarried person into the same bag! That is the mistake that the Church has been making for years now….and the “remedy” that was chosen to provide “annulments” after long investigations is not the solution at all. No, this procedure just adds on to the excruciating pain that these poor souls have already been through and this time it’s even worse as it comes from those who should be able to have compassion on them.
My best friend and my cousin should not have received the cold shoulder treatment and should not have been kept from the Eucharist. What a heartless way of dealing with their position to tell them that they can come to Mass but cannot partake to the Heart of Mass! Or to coldly say, “Get yourself an annulment”…those who say that do not know a thing about what these poor souls went through! and as far as I know that procedure just re-opens wounds that should be left alone, and according to the testimonies I read, that procedure is way too sophisticated and expensive, taking way too much time, leaving the applicant mortified while waiting for their “pardon” especially when they know that God himself has forgiven them….
In the end, these children of God who are divorced/remarried either have to suffer to go to Mass with missing on the Heart of Mass, while waiting for an annulment…. if they get it knowing as for certain cases visibly it doesn’t happen and not because they were not eligible, I’m talking about people who do have grounds, but because the system doesn’t work as it demands too many proofs that sometimes cannot be found; like I read about and like for the brother of that priest I knew. Or when these brothers and sisters cannot take it anymore to go to Mass without being able to receive the Eucharist, they just give it all up and end up either living their faith on their own or accepting second best by joining a Lutheran or Episcopal congregation.
This is not right and should not happen. And again things are not as simple as saying “let them get an annulment!”. That is why the more Christ like way to deal with “divorced/remarried” brothers and sisters who desired to be part of the Church would be to have them go to their priest or a designated priest and explain everything, and receive forgiveness and compassion from the Church. This would not increase the number of divorce nor have people take the sacrament of marriage lightly because these people who do think like that do not care about attending Mass in the first place and would not go to a priest and explain everything and are not the ones who would ask to be accepted by the Church! And for the “idea” of telling the “divorced/remarried” brothers and sisters to just live in chastity with their spouse is the best way to have them end up with going through another divorce!
Now, to talk about the other kind of “divorced/remarried” brothers and sisters who were not the “victims of a divorce”, those who actually initiated their divorce; I have not known any of them personally, thus I can only go by the testimonies I have read about or heard about.
Still, I can say that the Church should extend compassion and mercy toward those who desire to be part of the Church all the way by going to Mass regularly and have communion. That is for all those “divorced/remarried” brothers and sisters who have repented for what they have done, have tried for some of them to even consider the advice of others to brake their actual marriage to go back to their former spouse (which they should never been advised such a thing even if you think that their 2nd marriage is not valid), and for those who had not remarried and had gone all the way to seek out their former spouse and tried to get them back without success…as in most cases is not possible (people either moved on with their lives or they don’t want to have anything to do with the one that wounded them…).This is real life we are talking about not movies with easy happy endings….
Anyhow for those who initiated the divorce and repented, even if they are remarried they should be forgiven totally by the Church and welcome at the Lord’s table and if they are not remarried and would like to marry a brother or sister they should not have to go through the hassle of an annulment or have to forget about being able to remarry because something hinders the procedure.
If you would only put yourself in their shoes, and imagine what it would be like if that was happening to you, and you would be the one knowing that God has forgiven you, and would be craving for the Eucharist but kept from communion even though you are living a righteous life, you would not condemn them.
And I know many of you will say but they are not living a righteous life if they are remarried, their 2nd marriage is not valid because the Church didn’t bless it therefore they live in sin….Well, that is a point of view coming from a heart that doesn’t let room for compassion and mercy! And, it has nothing to do with the “adulterous woman” going back to her lover after receiving Christ forgiveness! IMO, if the Church would have done what needs be that 2nd marriage would be blessed and made “official” in the eyes of men as much as it is in the eyes of God.
And to go back to what I was saying about putting yourself in their shoes, if you can’t perceive that it is excruciating to participate to Mass but be forbidden to receive communion then you are probably taking the Eucharist so much for granted that you cannot even imagine what it would be like to attend Mass and be kept from communion.
Can’t you see that no one is without sin? What makes you think that your sins are less than theirs? For most of them they were either “innocent victims of a divorce” or married when they were too young, or at a period of time when their spiritual life was far from being at its best, or they were never taught what it meant to enter the sacrament of marriage, especially for those coming from a Protestant background…Why should they be so harshly treated and condemned, when they finally get serious about their spiritual life, or find out about the Faith?
And for those who were victims of divorce like my best friend and cousin, this is really outrageous and cruel!
Maybe one day you will need compassion, maybe you will need that others treat you with mercy…and will hope to receive it…Thus remember what our Lord said “Blessed are the merciful, because they shall receive mercy”. What about starting to practice having mercy right now?
To continue…(visibly my post is too long)
Why do you want keep the “victims of a divorce” from the Eucharist and make them suffer so much? Why are you so quick to cast the 1st stone upon those “victims”??? And I say “victims” because that is what they are for many of them…because in the society we live in if your spouse wants to divorce you, you have no say! You can try like many fervent Catholics do to refuse to divorce…but in the end your spouse divorces you nonetheless.
Before I continue to share my point of view, let me state that I know what I’m talking about because I’ve seen it first hand and up close! My best friend and one of my cousin were the victims of divorce; like the woman in the article I’ve posted they had to undergo a depression that lasted years and for each one of them I was there in their time of need to hold their hand, and do my utmost to have them recover from the trauma of their divorce!
Thus, I know how much the victims of divorce can suffer, and after they finally get back on their feet my heart was broken to see them suffer again this time through the hands of the Church because they had had the blessing to find another spouse and desired to remarry instead of letting love and happiness pass them by; because they didn’t want to spend the rest of their lives alone. A well legitimate desire when you know that both of them had married young therefore after their divorce it would have meant to live many, many years by themselves. Not everyone is called to celibacy.
Moreover, before you cast your first stone, you should keep in mind that these victims of divorce do not want to ever marry again after having gone through such a painful experience, thus it is only after they have somewhat healed and after God blesses them by letting them meet the right person, and after giving it much time in prayer that they finally decide to remarry. But of course I am not talking about people who make the habit of going through divorces; those people do not care about attending Mass regularly, and do not care about receiving the Eucharist!
There is a big difference and you cannot put every divorced/remarried person into the same bag! That is the mistake that the Church has been making for years now….and the “remedy” that was chosen to provide “annulments” after long investigations is not the solution at all. No, this procedure just adds on to the excruciating pain that these poor souls have already been through and this time it’s even worse as it comes from those who should be able to have compassion on them.
My best friend and my cousin should not have received the cold shoulder treatment and should not have been kept from the Eucharist. What a heartless way of dealing with their position to tell them that they can come to Mass but cannot partake to the Heart of Mass! Or to coldly say, “Get yourself an annulment”…those who say that do not know a thing about what these poor souls went through! and as far as I know that procedure just re-opens wounds that should be left alone, and according to the testimonies I read, that procedure is way too sophisticated and expensive, taking way too much time, leaving the applicant mortified while waiting for their “pardon” especially when they know that God himself has forgiven them….
In the end, these children of God who are divorced/remarried either have to suffer to go to Mass with missing on the Heart of Mass, while waiting for an annulment…. if they get it knowing as for certain cases visibly it doesn’t happen and not because they were not eligible, I’m talking about people who do have grounds, but because the system doesn’t work as it demands too many proofs that sometimes cannot be found; like I read about and like for the brother of that priest I knew. Or when these brothers and sisters cannot take it anymore to go to Mass without being able to receive the Eucharist, they just give it all up and end up either living their faith on their own or accepting second best by joining a Lutheran or Episcopal congregation.
This is not right and should not happen. And again things are not as simple as saying “let them get an annulment!”. That is why the more Christ like way to deal with “divorced/remarried” brothers and sisters who desired to be part of the Church would be to have them go to their priest or a designated priest and explain everything, and receive forgiveness and compassion from the Church. This would not increase the number of divorce nor have people take the sacrament of marriage lightly because these people who do think like that do not care about attending Mass in the first place and would not go to a priest and explain everything and are not the ones who would ask to be accepted by the Church! And for the “idea” of telling the “divorced/remarried” brothers and sisters to just live in chastity with their spouse is the best way to have them end up with going through another divorce!
Now, to talk about the other kind of “divorced/remarried” brothers and sisters who were not the “victims of a divorce”, those who actually initiated their divorce; I have not known any of them personally, thus I can only go by the testimonies I have read about or heard about.
Still, I can say that the Church should extend compassion and mercy toward those who desire to be part of the Church all the way by going to Mass regularly and have communion. That is for all those “divorced/remarried” brothers and sisters who have repented for what they have done, have tried for some of them to even consider the advice of others to brake their actual marriage to go back to their former spouse (which they should never been advised such a thing even if you think that their 2nd marriage is not valid), and for those who had not remarried and had gone all the way to seek out their former spouse and tried to get them back without success…as in most cases is not possible (people either moved on with their lives or they don’t want to have anything to do with the one that wounded them…).This is real life we are talking about not movies with easy happy endings….
Anyhow for those who initiated the divorce and repented, even if they are remarried they should be forgiven totally by the Church and welcome at the Lord’s table and if they are not remarried and would like to marry a brother or sister they should not have to go through the hassle of an annulment or have to forget about being able to remarry because something hinders the procedure.
If you would only put yourself in their shoes, and imagine what it would be like if that was happening to you, and you would be the one knowing that God has forgiven you, and would be craving for the Eucharist but kept from communion even though you are living a righteous life, you would not condemn them.
And I know many of you will say but they are not living a righteous life if they are remarried, their 2nd marriage is not valid because the Church didn’t bless it therefore they live in sin….Well, that is a point of view coming from a heart that doesn’t let room for compassion and mercy! And, it has nothing to do with the “adulterous woman” going back to her lover after receiving Christ forgiveness! IMO, if the Church would have done what needs be that 2nd marriage would be blessed and made “official” in the eyes of men as much as it is in the eyes of God.
And to go back to what I was saying about putting yourself in their shoes, if you can’t perceive that it is excruciating to participate to Mass but be forbidden to receive communion then you are probably taking the Eucharist so much for granted that you cannot even imagine what it would be like to attend Mass and be kept from communion.
Can’t you see that no one is without sin? What makes you think that your sins are less than theirs? For most of them they were either “innocent victims of a divorce” or married when they were too young, or at a period of time when their spiritual life was far from being at its best, or they were never taught what it meant to enter the sacrament of marriage, especially for those coming from a Protestant background…Why should they be so harshly treated and condemned, when they finally get serious about their spiritual life, or find out about the Faith?
And for those who were victims of divorce like my best friend and cousin, this is really outrageous and cruel!
Maybe one day you will need compassion, maybe you will need that others treat you with mercy…and will hope to receive it…Thus remember what our Lord said “Blessed are the merciful, because they shall receive mercy”. What about starting to practice having mercy right now?
To continue…(visibly my post is too long)
H
Hallelujah16
Guest
I have to say that I am baffled at what most of you have posted. How can your heart be so cold? How can you look down on these brothers and sisters with a “Holier than thou, Pharisee” approach instead of a Christ like compassion?
Why do you want keep the “victims of a divorce” from the Eucharist and make them suffer so much? Why are you so quick to cast the 1st stone upon those “victims”??? And I say “victims” because that is what they are for many of them…because in the society we live in if your spouse wants to divorce you, you have no say! You can try like many fervent Catholics do to refuse to divorce…but in the end your spouse divorces you nonetheless.
Before I continue to share my point of view, let me state that I know what I’m talking about because I’ve seen it first hand and up close! My best friend and one of my cousin were the victims of divorce; like the woman in the article I’ve posted they had to undergo a depression that lasted years and for each one of them I was there in their time of need to hold their hand, and do my utmost to have them recover from the trauma of their divorce!
Thus, I know how much the victims of divorce can suffer, and after they finally get back on their feet my heart was broken to see them suffer again this time through the hands of the Church because they had had the blessing to find another spouse and desired to remarry instead of letting love and happiness pass them by; because they didn’t want to spend the rest of their lives alone. A well legitimate desire when you know that both of them had married young therefore after their divorce it would have meant to live many, many years by themselves. Not everyone is called to celibacy.
Moreover, before you cast your first stone, you should keep in mind that these victims of divorce do not want to ever marry again after having gone through such a painful experience, thus it is only after they have somewhat healed and after God blesses them by letting them meet the right person, and after giving it much time in prayer that they finally decide to remarry. But of course I am not talking about people who make the habit of going through divorces; those people do not care about attending Mass regularly, and do not care about receiving the Eucharist!
There is a big difference and you cannot put every divorced/remarried person into the same bag! That is the mistake that the Church has been making for years now….and the “remedy” that was chosen to provide “annulments” after long investigations is not the solution at all. No, this procedure just adds on to the excruciating pain that these poor souls have already been through and this time it’s even worse as it comes from those who should be able to have compassion on them.
My best friend and my cousin should not have received the cold shoulder treatment and should not have been kept from the Eucharist. What a heartless way of dealing with their position to tell them that they can come to Mass but cannot partake to the Heart of Mass! Or to coldly say, “Get yourself an annulment”…those who say that do not know a thing about what these poor souls went through! and as far as I know that procedure just re-opens wounds that should be left alone, and according to the testimonies I read, that procedure is way too sophisticated and expensive, taking way too much time, leaving the applicant mortified while waiting for their “pardon” especially when they know that God himself has forgiven them….
In the end, these children of God who are divorced/remarried either have to suffer to go to Mass with missing on the Heart of Mass, while waiting for an annulment…. if they get it knowing as for certain cases visibly it doesn’t happen and not because they were not eligible, I’m talking about people who do have grounds, but because the system doesn’t work as it demands too many proofs that sometimes cannot be found; like I read about and like for the brother of that priest I knew. Or when these brothers and sisters cannot take it anymore to go to Mass without being able to receive the Eucharist, they just give it all up and end up either living their faith on their own or accepting second best by joining a Lutheran or Episcopal congregation.
This is not right and should not happen. And again things are not as simple as saying “let them get an annulment!”. That is why the more Christ like way to deal with “divorced/remarried” brothers and sisters who desired to be part of the Church would be to have them go to their priest or a designated priest and explain everything, and receive forgiveness and compassion from the Church. This would not increase the number of divorce nor have people take the sacrament of marriage lightly because these people who do think like that do not care about attending Mass in the first place and would not go to a priest and explain everything and are not the ones who would ask to be accepted by the Church! And for the “idea” of telling the “divorced/remarried” brothers and sisters to just live in chastity with their spouse is the best way to have them end up with going through another divorce!
Now, to talk about the other kind of “divorced/remarried” brothers and sisters who were not the “victims of a divorce”, those who actually initiated their divorce; I have not known any of them personally, thus I can only go by the testimonies I have read about or heard about.
Still, I can say that the Church should extend compassion and mercy toward those who desire to be part of the Church all the way by going to Mass regularly and have communion. That is for all those “divorced/remarried” brothers and sisters who have repented for what they have done, have tried for some of them to even consider the advice of others to brake their actual marriage to go back to their former spouse (which they should never been advised such a thing even if you think that their 2nd marriage is not valid), and for those who had not remarried and had gone all the way to seek out their former spouse and tried to get them back without success…as in most cases is not possible (people either moved on with their lives or they don’t want to have anything to do with the one that wounded them…).This is real life we are talking about not movies with easy happy endings….
Anyhow for those who initiated the divorce and repented, even if they are remarried they should be forgiven totally by the Church and welcome at the Lord’s table and if they are not remarried and would like to marry a brother or sister they should not have to go through the hassle of an annulment or have to forget about being able to remarry because something hinders the procedure.
If you would only put yourself in their shoes, and imagine what it would be like if that was happening to you, and you would be the one knowing that God has forgiven you, and would be craving for the Eucharist but kept from communion even though you are living a righteous life, you would not condemn them.
And I know many of you will say but they are not living a righteous life if they are remarried, their 2nd marriage is not valid because the Church didn’t bless it therefore they live in sin….Well, that is a point of view coming from a heart that doesn’t let room for compassion and mercy! And, it has nothing to do with the “adulterous woman” going back to her lover after receiving Christ forgiveness! IMO, if the Church would have done what needs be that 2nd marriage would be blessed and made “official” in the eyes of men as much as it is in the eyes of God.
And to go back to what I was saying about putting yourself in their shoes, if you can’t perceive that it is excruciating to participate to Mass but be forbidden to receive communion then you are probably taking the Eucharist so much for granted that you cannot even imagine what it would be like to attend Mass and be kept from communion.
Can’t you see that no one is without sin? What makes you think that your sins are less than theirs? For most of them they were either “innocent victims of a divorce” or married when they were too young, or at a period of time when their spiritual life was far from being at its best, or they were never taught what it meant to enter the sacrament of marriage, especially for those coming from a Protestant background…Why should they be so harshly treated and condemned, when they finally get serious about their spiritual life, or find out about the Faith?
And for those who were victims of divorce like my best friend and cousin, this is really outrageous and cruel!
To continue…(visibly my post is too long)
Why do you want keep the “victims of a divorce” from the Eucharist and make them suffer so much? Why are you so quick to cast the 1st stone upon those “victims”??? And I say “victims” because that is what they are for many of them…because in the society we live in if your spouse wants to divorce you, you have no say! You can try like many fervent Catholics do to refuse to divorce…but in the end your spouse divorces you nonetheless.
Before I continue to share my point of view, let me state that I know what I’m talking about because I’ve seen it first hand and up close! My best friend and one of my cousin were the victims of divorce; like the woman in the article I’ve posted they had to undergo a depression that lasted years and for each one of them I was there in their time of need to hold their hand, and do my utmost to have them recover from the trauma of their divorce!
Thus, I know how much the victims of divorce can suffer, and after they finally get back on their feet my heart was broken to see them suffer again this time through the hands of the Church because they had had the blessing to find another spouse and desired to remarry instead of letting love and happiness pass them by; because they didn’t want to spend the rest of their lives alone. A well legitimate desire when you know that both of them had married young therefore after their divorce it would have meant to live many, many years by themselves. Not everyone is called to celibacy.
Moreover, before you cast your first stone, you should keep in mind that these victims of divorce do not want to ever marry again after having gone through such a painful experience, thus it is only after they have somewhat healed and after God blesses them by letting them meet the right person, and after giving it much time in prayer that they finally decide to remarry. But of course I am not talking about people who make the habit of going through divorces; those people do not care about attending Mass regularly, and do not care about receiving the Eucharist!
There is a big difference and you cannot put every divorced/remarried person into the same bag! That is the mistake that the Church has been making for years now….and the “remedy” that was chosen to provide “annulments” after long investigations is not the solution at all. No, this procedure just adds on to the excruciating pain that these poor souls have already been through and this time it’s even worse as it comes from those who should be able to have compassion on them.
My best friend and my cousin should not have received the cold shoulder treatment and should not have been kept from the Eucharist. What a heartless way of dealing with their position to tell them that they can come to Mass but cannot partake to the Heart of Mass! Or to coldly say, “Get yourself an annulment”…those who say that do not know a thing about what these poor souls went through! and as far as I know that procedure just re-opens wounds that should be left alone, and according to the testimonies I read, that procedure is way too sophisticated and expensive, taking way too much time, leaving the applicant mortified while waiting for their “pardon” especially when they know that God himself has forgiven them….
In the end, these children of God who are divorced/remarried either have to suffer to go to Mass with missing on the Heart of Mass, while waiting for an annulment…. if they get it knowing as for certain cases visibly it doesn’t happen and not because they were not eligible, I’m talking about people who do have grounds, but because the system doesn’t work as it demands too many proofs that sometimes cannot be found; like I read about and like for the brother of that priest I knew. Or when these brothers and sisters cannot take it anymore to go to Mass without being able to receive the Eucharist, they just give it all up and end up either living their faith on their own or accepting second best by joining a Lutheran or Episcopal congregation.
This is not right and should not happen. And again things are not as simple as saying “let them get an annulment!”. That is why the more Christ like way to deal with “divorced/remarried” brothers and sisters who desired to be part of the Church would be to have them go to their priest or a designated priest and explain everything, and receive forgiveness and compassion from the Church. This would not increase the number of divorce nor have people take the sacrament of marriage lightly because these people who do think like that do not care about attending Mass in the first place and would not go to a priest and explain everything and are not the ones who would ask to be accepted by the Church! And for the “idea” of telling the “divorced/remarried” brothers and sisters to just live in chastity with their spouse is the best way to have them end up with going through another divorce!
Now, to talk about the other kind of “divorced/remarried” brothers and sisters who were not the “victims of a divorce”, those who actually initiated their divorce; I have not known any of them personally, thus I can only go by the testimonies I have read about or heard about.
Still, I can say that the Church should extend compassion and mercy toward those who desire to be part of the Church all the way by going to Mass regularly and have communion. That is for all those “divorced/remarried” brothers and sisters who have repented for what they have done, have tried for some of them to even consider the advice of others to brake their actual marriage to go back to their former spouse (which they should never been advised such a thing even if you think that their 2nd marriage is not valid), and for those who had not remarried and had gone all the way to seek out their former spouse and tried to get them back without success…as in most cases is not possible (people either moved on with their lives or they don’t want to have anything to do with the one that wounded them…).This is real life we are talking about not movies with easy happy endings….
Anyhow for those who initiated the divorce and repented, even if they are remarried they should be forgiven totally by the Church and welcome at the Lord’s table and if they are not remarried and would like to marry a brother or sister they should not have to go through the hassle of an annulment or have to forget about being able to remarry because something hinders the procedure.
If you would only put yourself in their shoes, and imagine what it would be like if that was happening to you, and you would be the one knowing that God has forgiven you, and would be craving for the Eucharist but kept from communion even though you are living a righteous life, you would not condemn them.
And I know many of you will say but they are not living a righteous life if they are remarried, their 2nd marriage is not valid because the Church didn’t bless it therefore they live in sin….Well, that is a point of view coming from a heart that doesn’t let room for compassion and mercy! And, it has nothing to do with the “adulterous woman” going back to her lover after receiving Christ forgiveness! IMO, if the Church would have done what needs be that 2nd marriage would be blessed and made “official” in the eyes of men as much as it is in the eyes of God.
And to go back to what I was saying about putting yourself in their shoes, if you can’t perceive that it is excruciating to participate to Mass but be forbidden to receive communion then you are probably taking the Eucharist so much for granted that you cannot even imagine what it would be like to attend Mass and be kept from communion.
Can’t you see that no one is without sin? What makes you think that your sins are less than theirs? For most of them they were either “innocent victims of a divorce” or married when they were too young, or at a period of time when their spiritual life was far from being at its best, or they were never taught what it meant to enter the sacrament of marriage, especially for those coming from a Protestant background…Why should they be so harshly treated and condemned, when they finally get serious about their spiritual life, or find out about the Faith?
And for those who were victims of divorce like my best friend and cousin, this is really outrageous and cruel!
To continue…(visibly my post is too long)
H
Hallelujah16
Guest
Continuing…
…Maybe one day you will need compassion, maybe you will need that others treat you with mercy…and will hope to receive it…Thus remember what our Lord said “Blessed are the merciful, because they shall receive mercy”. What about starting to practice having mercy right now?
I pray that you will one day succeed to put yourself in their shoes, that compassion will overtake your heart like it does mine, that you will find out that it is Christlike and a blessing to extend mercy.
No matter what you quoted from our Pope, as far as I know this is just the “solution for now” while he is pondering on the matter. And unless I’ve missed the latest news, he has not made a decision just yet!
Thus there is still hope for the “divorced/remarried”! And this thread I’ve started was intended to bring hope for all our brothers and sisters who are in this painful situation or anxiously awaiting the answer to their application for an annulment; as well as to try to stir up compassion in those who are ready to cast the 1st stone…
For those of you whose heart goes out to our “divorced/remarried” brothers and sisters, join with me in prayer so that our Pope will let his compassion make the decision, and that he will stand firm no matter what some might say about it.
I believe that if we all pray fervently about it, and offer many rosary prayers it will be done.
Peace to you all.
…Maybe one day you will need compassion, maybe you will need that others treat you with mercy…and will hope to receive it…Thus remember what our Lord said “Blessed are the merciful, because they shall receive mercy”. What about starting to practice having mercy right now?
I pray that you will one day succeed to put yourself in their shoes, that compassion will overtake your heart like it does mine, that you will find out that it is Christlike and a blessing to extend mercy.
No matter what you quoted from our Pope, as far as I know this is just the “solution for now” while he is pondering on the matter. And unless I’ve missed the latest news, he has not made a decision just yet!
Thus there is still hope for the “divorced/remarried”! And this thread I’ve started was intended to bring hope for all our brothers and sisters who are in this painful situation or anxiously awaiting the answer to their application for an annulment; as well as to try to stir up compassion in those who are ready to cast the 1st stone…
For those of you whose heart goes out to our “divorced/remarried” brothers and sisters, join with me in prayer so that our Pope will let his compassion make the decision, and that he will stand firm no matter what some might say about it.
I believe that if we all pray fervently about it, and offer many rosary prayers it will be done.
Peace to you all.
H
Hallelujah16
Guest
Sorry, I didn’t mean to offend you or anyone else, but that is the way it looks like when I read your posts…and no, I was not mean spirited… Sad that you take it that wayNow that comment comes off as quite mean spirited.
PS You might want to look up who the Pharisees were. You seem to be laboring under a misunderstanding.
Thank you for your suggestion in your PS, but I do know what the “attitude of a Pharisee or the Pharisee approach” is.
Peace
C
Corki
Guest
Absolutely. But what seems to be getting lost in this discussion is that the Pope, and the Church over the years, HAS been compassionate and it is very possible that he will stand firm in continuing that teaching. It does NOT mean that the Pope is lacking in compassion, mercy or forgiveness if nothing changes.
There is a lot of misunderstanding in your post about what the annullment process is and how it relates to remarriage. There is nothing in the annullment process that relates to getting a “pardon” or forgiveness. But that’s covered in a lot of other threads here on CAF and I won’t sidetrack this one. You can use the search function or read the information on the CA main site. If you are looking to understand the Church’s teaching on annullments, one book that is often recommended is “Annullment: the Wedding that was”.
You are not using the phrases in a Biblical way. Short answer. The Pharisees were not the “bad guys”. They were the ones most concerned with getting the people of Israel to heaven. They were extremely devout. The criticism Jesus levied at the Pharisees was that some of them, by no means all of them, had a “do as I say, not as I do” approach - they were hypocrites. In other words, there is nothing wrong with “the Pharisee approach” as long as you are not betraying your words with your actual deeds.Thank you for your suggestion in your PS, but I do know what the “attitude of a Pharisee or the Pharisee approach” is.
Peace
T
TimothyH
Guest
This post kinda leaves a bad taste in my mouth, that following Christ is not for the weak, “Pansies” as you put it, but only for the strong, those with fortitude. That doesn’t taste right to me.Articles and posts like this make me both sad and a bit angry…
Yes, our dear Lord forgave the woman caught in the act of adultery; but most people ignore the last part: "Go and sin no more." He called her to repentance. He didn’t say, “Hey I understand. You can’t help it. Go and keep sleeping with that man who isn’t your husband.”
The gospel was not meant to be a touchy-feely happy little self-help book. Consider these words of our Lord:
*“34 Do not think that I came to send peace upon earth: I came not to send peace, but the sword. 35 For I came to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. 36 And a man’s enemies shall be they of his own household. 37 He that loves father or mother more than me, is not worthy of me; and he that loves son or daughter more than me, is not worthy of me. 38 And he that takes not up his cross, and follows me, is not worthy of me. 39 He that finds his life, shall lose it: and he that shall lose his life for me, shall find it.” *
Following Christ certainly is not for pansies!
Marriage is not a right, it’s a vocation. Those who divorce and remarry outside the Church are making their own choices – nobody is forcing them.
I have a friend who is the single mom of three teenage children. She wouldn’t even consider dating until and unless she received a decree of nullity. It took about two years. And guess what? Waiting didn’t kill her! She devoted herself to the raising of her children, and to healing from her ex-husband’s abandonment of the familly.
My decree of nullity was a simple matter of paperwork (it’s called “lack of form”) and only took a couple weeks. That was over five years ago, but I’ve only been on a couple dates. Why? Because I can see that what my eight-year-old son needs is a relationship with his mom and his dad, and no step-parents. And guess what? Celibacy hasn’t killed me!
People don’t “accidentally” fall in love and then “have to” get married. They make a choice, and then another, and then another.
Please stop treating divorced people as if they are so weak and helpless that they couldn’t possibly follow the true teachings of the gospel.
As for those who have already divorced and remarried… Of course they should be treated with love and respect. At the same time we should not mince the teachings of our Church to make things easier in this life at the risk of an eternity of separation from God. I pleaded and joked with a good friend for years to “get right with God” and this summer she and her husband are finally getting their marriage convalidated in the Church :extrahappy:
We must encourage each other to cleave to Christ in every situation. We must remind each other that this life is short. We must point each other to our eternity, offering up the difficulties of this life for the hope of eternity in the love of God.
Gertie
-Tim-
T
TrueLight
Guest
You may not agree with everything in the post, but the important question is, should the Church change its teaching on divorce?
U
Usige
Guest
I believe Gertabelle was basically trying to say that making it as easy as possible is not the function of the Church. Christ tells us we are all called to take up our crosses. We all have trials and tribulations so doing something wrong (ie automatic declaration of nullity) merely as an act of compassion is not the right way to go. Heck euthanasia might be an act of compassion but should the Church change its teaching on that also?
J
jeanannemarie
Guest
Marriage is one of the Sacraments. Isn’t that the reason we must stand by the teaching of the Church on divorce and remarriage? It is about the consequences for actions taken without the Church’s permission, not just feeling compassion for people who have to face the consequences of their actions. Dealing with the Sacrament of marriage is different than just going to Confession (another Sacrament) to be absolved of sin. The Church is here to guide us through our mistakes, not let us make up our own rules. Our own thinking is what gets us in trouble. It is a matter of obedience to Church teaching that is important in this issue.
C
cradlecatholic5
Guest
I'm right w/ you! HALLELUJAH! This makes me very HAPPY! :dancing::clapping:- Status