New era for the Vatican? Pope Leo signals major shift in marriage rules

Pope Leo XIV has called for the Roman Catholic Church to reconsider its approach to supporting families and addressing failed marriages during a significant religious assembly in Vatican City.

In his address, he urged reflection on handling situations of fragility and apparent failures, without explicitly mentioning divorce.

This assembly revisits issues raised by the late Pope Francis' 2016 "Amoris Laetitia," which suggested case-by-case Communion eligibility for divorced and remarried Catholics, a topic of ongoing debate.

The weeklong assembly will also explore broader matters such as welcoming the LGBTQ community, concluding with a comprehensive report.

VATICAN CITY, Oct 8 — Pope Leo XIV on Wednesday called on the Roman Catholic Church to revise the way it helps families and handles failed marriages as he opened a major weeklong religious assembly.

With the church debating how it recognises separations, Leo did not directly mention divorce but called on Catholic leaders to reflect on the “experience of fragility” and the handling of “situations marked by limitations, wounds, and apparent failures.”

Leo’s predecessor, Francis, who died in 2025, made a tentative step in 2016 for Catholics who have divorced and remarried in civil ceremonies to receive Communion. It sparked a Church-wide debate and pushback from conservative Catholics. Leo’s address was made to a week-long closed assembly of bishops from 120 countries, who will be joined by leaders from Eastern churches, experts, theologians and 11 lay couples to mark the 10th anniversary of the late Pope Francis’ “Amoris Laetitia” (The Joy of Love) document.

According to Church teaching, a Catholic who divorces and then remarries in a civil ceremony remains bound by the first marriage, unless it was officially annulled, and cannot receive communion.

“Amoris Laetitia” introduced the possibility of case-by-case decisions, without challenging the principle that a Catholic marriage cannot be dissolved.

Leo said: “Young people continue to aspire to love, fidelity, and a sense of belonging, but many struggle to envision how such a vision of love can take shape in their own lives.”

“In many contexts, a gap has widened between the way sexuality and intimacy are experienced and the Christian vision of marriage,” he said.

The assembly, which is to release a final report, is to discuss marriage and difficulties faced in life and could look at ways to welcome the LGBTQ community, another one of Francis’ concerns. — AFP

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教宗良十四世在梵蒂冈城的一次重要宗教集会上呼吁罗马天主教会重新考虑其支持家庭和处理婚姻失败问题的方式。

他在讲话中敦促人们反思如何处理脆弱和明显的失败局面，但没有明确提及离婚。

本次大会重新审视了已故教宗方济各在 2016 年《爱的喜乐》中提出的问题，该教宗建议对离异再婚的天主教徒的圣餐资格进行个案审查，这是一个持续争论的话题。

为期一周的大会还将探讨更广泛的议题，例如如何欢迎 LGBTQ 群体，并最终发布一份综合报告。

梵蒂冈城，10 月 8 日——教宗良十四世周三在为期一周的大型宗教大会开幕式上呼吁罗马天主教会修改其帮助家庭和处理失败婚姻的方式。

在教会就如何承认分离问题进行辩论之际，利奥没有直接提及离婚，而是呼吁天主教领袖反思“脆弱的体验”以及“以局限性、创伤和明显失败为特征的情况”的处理。

利奥的前任教宗方济各（已于2025年去世）在2016年迈出了试探性的一步，允许已离婚并以民事仪式再婚的天主教徒领受圣餐。此举引发了教会内部的辩论，并遭到保守派天主教徒的反对。利奥的讲话是在一个为期一周的闭门会议上发表的，与会者包括来自120个国家的教区主教、东方教会领袖、专家、神学家以及11对教友夫妇，共同纪念已故教宗方济各的《爱的喜乐》（Amoris Laetitia）十周年。

根据教会教义，天主教徒离婚后再以民事仪式结婚，除非第一次婚姻被正式宣布无效，否则仍受第一次婚姻的约束，不能领圣餐。

《爱的喜乐》引入了个案裁决的可能性，但并未挑战天主教婚姻不可解除的原则。

利奥说：“年轻人仍然渴望爱情、忠诚和归属感，但许多人难以想象这种爱情愿景如何在自己的生活中实现。”

他说：“在许多情况下，人们体验性与亲密关系的方式与基督教的婚姻观之间的差距越来越大。”

此次大会将发布最终报告，讨论婚姻和人生中面临的困境，并可能探讨如何接纳LGBTQ群体——这也是方济各教宗关注的另一个方面。——法新社

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