There are so many lessons that someone going through a divorce needs to learn, but three of the most powerful (and difficult) lessons I’ve learned are these. The label “divorced” does not define a person. It’s an event that happened—terrible as it is—but it in no way is the sum total of who a person Read more
The number of people marrying in New Zealand is falling, says Statistics New Zealand. It says in 1992 the marriage rate was 18.3 couples per 1000 people eligible to marry. That includes those who formed a civil union from 2005. This rate dropped to 10.9 couples in 2017. Statistics New Zealand says the highest number Read more
Silver splitters- people who divorce later in life – are on the increase in New Zealand, hundreds of family lawyers have said. A New Zealand Law Society and Grant Thornton survey of family law practitioners- the first of its kind in this country- reveal divorce trends and patterns, including the rise of the ‘silver splitter’, Read more
Cardinal John Dew has posted a link on his Facebook page about a meeting Pope Francis had last Monday with a group of 35 separated and divorced women. One participant said afterwards Francis told them “the Church welcomes and embraces us.” “Pope Francis was well known in Buenos Aires for being among the people,” said Read more
Remarried divorcees’ right to Communion is sparking a conflict in Germany. On one side, several members of the Council of German Bishops endorse Communion for the divorced and remarried. On the other, German Cardinal Gerhard Mueller, the Vatican’s doctrinal chief, says Communion for divorced and remarried people is impossible. “For us marriage is the expression Read more
Philadelphia’s mayor has characterised as “not Christian” guidelines issued by an archbishop on a papal document on marriage and the family. Archbishop Charles Chaput of Philadelphia recently released pastoral guidelines in the wake of Pope Francis’s post-synodal exhortation Amoris Laetitia. In the guidelines, one of the topics addressed was divorced and civilly remarried Catholics living Read more
American sexual behavior is much different than it used to be. Today, most Americans think premarital sex is okay, and will have three or more sexual partners before marrying. What, if anything, does premarital sex have to do with marital stability? This research brief shows that the relationship between divorce and the number of sexual partners Read more
The Church’s doctrinal chief has said Pope Francis’s document Amoris Laetitia is in line with previous Church teaching on divorce, remarriage and Communion. The prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Cardinal Gerhard Müller, told seminarians in Spain that the apostolic exhortation does not change the Church’s discipline in this area. John Read more
Early reaction to Pope Francis’s recent document on family life has seen some divorced and remarried Catholics demanding absolution at an Italian cathedral. This was stated in an article by major penitentiary at Milan Cathedral, Msgr Fausto Gilardi, a translation of which was published on the Crux website. In the article, he mentioned the reaction to a Read more
Pope Francis has spoken of his annoyance at the media’s seeming fixation on Communion for the divorced and civilly remarried. On his flight back from the Greek island of Lesbos on Saturday, the Pope was asked about a much-commented-upon footnote in his recent apostolic exhortation Amoris Laetitia. In a section of the document discussing pastoral Read more