Pope Francis announced a substantive reform of marriage annulments on Tuesday that will allow the process to be quicker, less expensive and give increased power to local churches.
With two documents, issued Motu Proprio meaning “by his own initiative”, Francis has removed the requirement for an automatic review of each annulment decision while allowing a local bishop to offer a speedy declaration where both parties agree on the nullity of the marriage and the details of the case are straightforward.
With the removal of the automatic appeal of each decision, a single judgment is considered sufficient with one judge, working under the bishop, to be appointed to oversee this process.
This does not, however, remove the right of a party to appeal a decision.
The changes, which become part of canon law, are the fruit of the work of a commission to look into a reform of the annulment process announced by Francis last September.
For many years bishops have called for a change to the annulment procedures, which have been criticised for being lengthy, laborious and expensive. When he was Archbishop of Buenos Aires, Francis witnessed his niece María Inés Narvaja wait four years for the annulment of her partner to come through.
The announcement this week also states that bishops’ conferences should ensure the annulment “processes are free” as far as is possible. Cases that end up in a lengthy appeal process can cost individuals thousands in legal fees. However, the money that people pay for an annulment normally cover the costs of the running of a diocesan marriage tribunal which oversees the process and the Pope states they too need to be paid fairly.
An annulment, or declaration of nullity, states that a church marriage was invalidly contracted. The reasons given for this include a lack of genuine consent, psychological capacity or the refusal by one spouse to have children: these remain unaltered by Tuesday’s announcement. After receiving an annulment a Catholic is free to marry in church.
In an introductory letter to one of the documents, Mitis Iudex Dominus Iesus (The Gentle Judge, the Lord Jesus) the Pope admits that speedier annulments might “endanger the principle of the indissolubility of marriage”. Canon lawyers have in the past resisted changes to annulments on these grounds.
But Francis went on to say that he has given responsibility to local bishops to judge the speedier annulment process because they are the best people to guarantee “Catholic unity in faith and in discipline”.
They come into effect on 8 December to coincide with the start of the Jubilee Year of Mercy.
PICTURE: Cardinal Francesco Coccopalmerio, president of the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts, arrives for a press conference with Pope Francis' Apostolic Letter
Loading ...
