In an address to the Roman Rota in January, the Pope said: "The sacraments are free. The sacraments give us grace.

"And a matrimonial process pertains to the sacrament of matrimony. How I wish that all processes were free."

The Pope also told the Rota that because contemporary culture portrays marriage as a "mere form of emotional gratification", people often marry without a true understanding of the sacrament.

Therefore, many such marriages might be invalid.

"The judge, in pondering the validity of the consent expressed, must take into account the context of values and of faith - or their presence or absence - in which the intent to marry was formed," Pope Francis said.

"In fact, ignorance of the contents of the faith could lead to what the code [of canon law] calls an error conditioning the will.

"This eventuality is not to be considered rare as in the past, precisely because worldly thinking often prevails over the magisterium of the Church," the Pope said.

This sort of error "threatens the stability of marriage, its exclusivity and its fecundity, as well as marriage's orientation to the good of the other, of conjugal love as a ‘vital principle' of the consensus, of mutual giving to establish a lifelong union," Pope Francis stressed.

The Pope also called for "pastoral conversion" of ecclesiastical structures.

This is so that justice can be offered to "all those who turn to the Church to shed light on their matrimonial situation".

He observed that the great challenge faced by the Church's canonical judges is "not to keep the salvation of persons enclosed within the straits of legalism".

"The function of law is guided toward the salus animarum [salvation of souls] on the condition that, avoiding sophisms distant from the living flesh of people in difficulty, it may help to establish the truth of the moment of consent: whether it was faithful to Christ or to the deceitful worldly mentality."

Sources

• Catholic Herald
• National Catholic Register
• Image: Mental Healthy

Responding to a proposed Organ and Tissue Donation bill, the Church's parliamentary office called an opt-out system "intrinsically discriminatory".

This is because "it denies the integrity of the person by overriding the requirement for consent on how a person's organs may be used".

"The proposal aims to establish a principle in law that the consent of the person can be determined by the authority of the state," the Church's response explained.

The Church affirmed that it is an enthusiastic supporter of organ donation providing it is based on "free and consensual giving".

But it is not "morally acceptable" if the donor or his proxy has not given explicit consent.

"In aiming to meet the demand for organs and transplantations it is important not to sacrifice important ethical principles," the Church said.

The proposed bill would mean that adults would have to specify that they do not want their organs donated.

The current "opt-in" system "recognises the importance of genuine consent in the treatment of persons and the charitable nature of organ donation which is based on a gratuitous act of kindness on behalf of the donor", the Church said.

The Church response went on uphold the role of family members in the consent process.

It also supported a campaign promoting organ donation, provided it is "based on free and consensual giving".

Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI both lent their support to organ donation, with the latter at one point being a card carrying organ donor.

In 2008, Pope Benedict said that "organ donation is a peculiar form of witness to charity".

"In a period like ours, often marked by various forms of selfishness, it is ever more urgent to understand how the logic of free giving is vital to a correct conception of life," Benedict said.

A similar move to introduce an opt-out system of organ donation has been proposed in Wales and was also opposed by the Church.

There is pressure to increase the number of donated organs which can often be used in life-saving operations.

Sources

• The Tablet
• Scottish Catholic Media Office
• Image: The Guardian