Will the Synod Change Anything?

by Admin · April 7, 2015

What are the chances that the upcoming October Synod of Bishops in Rome will find a pastoral way for divorced and remarried Catholics in a stable union to be readmitted to full participation in the Eucharist? V B Fraser

The Synod of Bishops on the Family takes place in October at the Vatican. (Graphic: The Southern Cross)

Like everything else in the institutional Church there are conservative and progressive arguments for and against.

In this case, the conservative argument is the dominant one, namely, that the Church cannot dissolve a valid sacramental marriage, and the marriage bond remains intact even if a civil divorce takes place. Divorced and remarried Catholics are not free to enter a second marriage, with the consequence that they are denied the Eucharist.

Canon law states that it is not lawful to contract another marriage before the nullity or the dissolution of the previous one has been established lawfully and with certainty (c1085.2).

Pope Francis has taken note of the deep concerns of pastors in regard to divorced Catholics who are settled into a second marriage and who feel alienated from the Church because they may not receive Communion. He said that the Church should consider a merciful approach in such situations.

Of course, mercy is shown to those who are sorry for an offence. When Catholics repent for failing to keep their marital vows by attempting a second union, yet are settled in that union and have not abandoned the faith, there are current arguments that it may be possible to let them receive Communion, which they seriously desire.

Cardinal Walter Kasper, who has written extensively on the Church exercising Christ�s mercy in the world, has suggested that the principle of epikeia should be applied in such cases. Epikeia identifies an action in an individual situation which is so exceptional that it does not fall within the ordinary provisions of canon law, that is, it is a unique and not a general event. He would like to see its application not so much in legal terms but as practical and individual cases of the divine mercy, with the caveat that it will be applied to individuals who request it, not generally.

This progressive view has been countered by canonists who believe it presents a new criterion of tolerance that is incompatible with Church teaching.

Meanwhile, the bishops of Germany have signalled their intention to admit divorced and remarried Catholics to Communion in particular cases and they are ready to debate it in October.

Pope Francis, it would appear, wants this debate to take place. He wants the Church to demonstrate the Lord�s own mercy to the poor, the marginalised and those who feel pastorally neglected. He has publicly praised Cardinal Kasper�s latest book entitled Mercy.

So, what are the chances that the synod will find a way to bring divorced, remarried Catholics fully back into the fold? We�ll have to wait till October to find out what view prevails at the synod. And even then, we will not know until the pope makes a pronouncement on the matter, possibly in his apostolic exhortation on the synod, a document for which there is no deadline.