WAOW - Newsline 9, Wausau News, Weather, SportsPope urges church to focus on saving marriages
Member Center:
VATICAN CITY (AP) -- Pope Benedict XVI has urged church tribunals to work harder to encourage couples to stay married and not resort to granting annulments "at all costs."
An annulment is the process by which the church effectively declares that a marriage never took place. Many Catholics seek them so they can remarry in the church and receive Communion.
Benedict told members of the Roman Rota, the Vatican tribunal that decides marriage annulments, that they shouldn't confuse "pastoral charity" in granting annulments with their need to uphold church law.
The Vatican's concern largely is directed at the United States, which in 2006 had more annulment cases launched than the rest of the world combined.
(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Comments Terms of Use: We welcome your participation in our community. Please keep your comments civil and on point. You must be at least 13 years of age to post comments. By submitting a comment, you agree to these
Terms of Service
You must be logged in to leave a comment. Login or register See all comments |
