At the October 2014 Synod of Bishops on the family, the bishops of the world grappled with the question of readmitting divorced and remarried Catholics to Communion.
Some, like Cardinal Walter Kasper, pointed to the approach taken by the Orthodox churches, where divorced people can marry in a civil ceremony and be admitted to Communion after they have gone through a penitential process.
Others felt that the Western practice of annulments could solve the problem if it was simplified and made easier.
To get a better understanding of annulments and how the process might be simplified, I interviewed Fr. John Beal, professor of canon law at The Catholic University of America. He has written extensively about the annulment process and easier marriage annulments may not be the answer. Continue reading
– Fr Thomas Reece is a senior analyst for NCR and author of Inside the Vatican: The Politics and Organization of the Catholic Church.
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