Some bishops’ failure to fully implement the Church’s revised marriage annulment procedures has drawn a rebuke from the pope. “I am saddened to note that the reform, after more than four years, remains far from being applied in most Italian dioceses,” Pope Francis, the bishop of Rome, told other members of the Italian bishops’ conference Read more
The Catholic Church’s marriage annulment process must be quicker, cheaper and much more of a pastoral ministry, Pope Francis says. On Tuesday Francis made it simpler and swifter for Catholics to secure a marriage annulment. This is the most radical such reform for 250 years. At the same time, Francis told bishops to be more Read more
While December 8 was being marked in the wider Church as the beginning of the Year of Mercy, for canon lawyers it is, first and foremost, the day the reforms of Mitis Iudex come into force. Since Pope Francis announced the dramatic changes to the tribunal system for handling marriage nullity cases in September, the Read more