According to the findings of a German bishops’ report released on Dec. 22, most of the country’s 66 bishops now favor allowing divorced Catholics living in new civil unions to participate in confession and receive Communion in “particular justified instances.” The report said the exclusion of divorced Catholics was “no longer comprehensible” to many priests. “For many Catholics engaged in church life, the pastoral care of faithful with a civil divorce and living in new unions is a test of the church’s credibility,” the document continued. “The church’s teaching and pastoral work must uphold Jesus’ instruction on the indissolubility of marriage, but also his invoking of God’s mercy on those who are sinful.” The summary said most divorced German Catholics considered their separation and new relationship “morally justified” and viewed their consequent exclusion from sacraments as “constituting unjustified discrimination and being merciless.”
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‘If God can visit us, even when our hearts seem like a lowly manger, we can truly say: Hope is not dead; hope is alive and it embraces our lives forever!’
Inspired by his friend and mentor Henri Nouwen, Metropolitan Borys Gudziak, leader of Ukrainian Catholics in the U.S., invites listeners in his Christmas Eve homily to approach the manger with renewed awe and openness.
A Homily for the Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph, by Father Terrance Klein
While Chesterton wrote on a vast number of subjects, Christmas was a favorite.
The Church—the institution as well as the individuals—needs to minister to the millions of divorced Catholics by both changing ingrained attitudes and reaching out in love. Yes, the Church is and should be pro-marriage, but, like its Lord, it must also love and support those whose marriages have failed. It’s a fine line to walk, but it is necessary.
( Edward E. from http://canadianmedicines.net )