Divorced Catholics The church, striving always to imitate the compassion of Jesus, is most attentive to and concerned about the spiritual needs of Catholics whose marriages have failed and who have attempted a second marriage outside a Catholic ceremony. They are, even more in their suffering and pain, beloved children of God and valued members of the body of Christ. In true concern for their spiritual well-being, we strongly encourage all divorced and remarried persons "to listen to the word of God, to attend the sacrifice of the Mass, to persevere in prayer, to contribute to the works of charity ant to community efforts of justice, to bring up their children in the Christian faith, to cultivate the spirit and practice of penance and thus implore, day by day, God's grace." [6]We are deeply grateful for the many sincere and pastorally sound initiatives in our local churches that offer spiritual care for families who have experienced the very real pain and disillusionment of separation and divorce. Many priests, religious and laypersons have dedicated themselves to this ministry, and in so doing have shared in a very beautiful way the spiritual journey of divorced Catholics and their families. In this year of the family we have a special opportunity to recommit ourselves to the authentic spiritual and pastoral care of the members of the Catholic family who are separated and divorced, including those who have entered into irregular marriage situations. The church has much to offer such persons and we invite them to participate in a rich variety of pastoral efforts, including educational workshops, support groups, moments of prayer and personal spiritual direction. We also encourage our pastors to do everything possible to include to the extent allowed divorced Catholics in the life of their parishes. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3. Unacceptable Initiatives But we are also aware and deeply concerned that well-intentioned but unacceptable initiatives are sometimes proposed in an attempt to minister to those involved in irregular marriages. For the sake of clarity and truth, and for the spiritual welfare of the faithful, we need to clarify once again that in reference to divorced Catholics only those who have received an ecclesiastical declaration of nullity of a previous marriage or whose former spouse is deceased are free to marry in the church and to participate fully in her life. For a person to remarry while a previous marriage is presumed to be valid, even though a civil divorce has been granted, is to enter a relation- ship which violates the teaching of Christ: "The man who divorces his wife and marries another is guilty of adultery against her. And if a woman divorces her husband and marries another, she is guilty of adultery too" (Mk. 10:11-12). It is the adulterous situation and not simply the divorce which places those in this situation in opposition to the faith and practice of the church and which excludes them from eucharistic communion and from the reception of other sacraments, as well as from participating in certain ecclesial roles. Therefore, it is helpful to keep in mind several distinctions among divorced persons whose previous marriage(s) have not been declared sacramentally invalid by the lawful authority of the church. Such distinctions include first of all those who have not remarried, as well as those who have remarried and seek to live in complete continence. These persons are eligible to receive the eucharist according to the regular norms of the church. However, those who have remarried and live in a sexual relationship cannot be admitted to holy communion. In speaking of persons in such a situation, Pope John Paul II unequivocally teaches: "The church reaffirms her practice, which is based upon sacred Scripture, of not admitting to eucharistic communion divorced persons who have remarried. They are unable to be admitted thereto from the fact that their state and condition of life objectively contradict that union of love between Christ and the church which is signified and effected by the eucharist. Besides this, there is another special pastoral reason: If these people were admitted to the eucharist the faithful would be led into error and confusion regarding the church's teaching about the indissolubility of marriage. [7]This instruction which summarizes the church's canonical pastoral response to divorced persons is sometimes misunderstood even by those who are well -intentioned. Some people inside and outside of the Catholic community incorrectly think that once a person has divorced he or she is no longer a member of the church. Such is not the case and we are inspired by the many divorced persons who have worked through their pain and suffering without remarriage and have continued the full practice of their Catholic faith. Others who know that divorced Catholics remain members of the church and understand that those who have entered into irregular marriages cannot be admitted to holy communion react to this moral reality in different ways. Those who understand the teaching of the church on the indissolubility of marriage and on sexual morality regard this practice as fitting since the couple have placed themselves in an objectively adulterous situation that stands in direct violation of the teaching of Christ and his church.[8] Others look upon this practice as the mere imposition of church regulations or rules which they view as outdated in a society where so many marriages end in divorce. Some have proposed an approach that would allow divorced and remarried persons who, for any number of reasons, have not received a declaration of nullity of their first marriage(s) to receive holy communion on the basis of their sincere judgment of conscience that their first marriage was invalid. This so-called "internal forum solution" has also been invoked to justify reception of holy communion by persons in other objectively immoral situations. We believe that those who promote unacceptable pastoral initiatives among divorced Catholics are in fact harming the spiritual welfare of those very ersons they intend to help, and as shepherds of the flock we are concerned that the faithful not be misled in this regard. In light of the serious confusion that sometimes occurs in this matter, we need to enunciate once again that divorced Catholics in irregular unions are not permitted to receive the eucharist. The Catechism of the Catholic Church helps us to understand the theological and pastoral reasons for this necessary restriction. Unacceptable for Divorced and Remarried For similar reasons, the use of the so-called "internal forum solution" for cases of divorced-and-remarried persons who are personally convinced that their previous marriage was invalid is unacceptable, unnecessary and pastorally unsound. The canonical judicial procedures established by the Code of Canon Law to examine claims that a previous marriage was invalid are, in our view, comprehensive and responsive enough to declare invalid all marriages which truly are. As Msgr. Mario F. Pompedda, now dean of the Rota, remarked: "It would be purely academic to hypothesize about the existence of cases in which moral certitude could be reached only in the internal forum, that is, in onscience; such would be so rare that they should be considered practically nonexistent."[12] This is especially true since Canon 1536.2, combined with anon 1679, allows tribunals to grant a declaration of nullity, in the absence of other "objective" proofs of a previous marriage's invalidity, on the basis of personal depositions of the parties themselves. The canons, however, further require that these personal depositions of the parties be corroborated by character witnesses for the parties, if possible, and by other relevant facts nd supporting evidence ().[13] These canons were dded to the Code of Canon Law when it was revised in 1983 precisely to address cases in which proofs of invalidity-other than the declaration of the parties-are not available. Their presence in the code refutes one of the principal arguments for the use of the so-called "internal forum solution, " making any use of it unnecessary and unacceptable. Apart from the question of the canonical judicial procedure the "internal forum solution" in which individuals make a personal and subjective judgment about their canonical status is, in fact, a flawed pastoral solution because it cannot bring about the full reconciliation of the couple to the church. The couple's full participation in the life of the church can be re-established only through an ecclesiastical declaration of nullity or the death of a former spouse and the convalidation of the new union. Through these public acts of the church the couple will not only be admitted to holy communion, but will be entitled to share in the full life of the church available to all the laity. We encourage all Catholics who find themselves in irregular marriage situations, and there- fore sadly separated from holy communion, to avail themselves of the tribunal process in their local diocese with the hope of being completely reconciled to the sacramental life of the church.