As I grew up I was sure that I would enter the convent. I decided though that I should get a degree before I “gave my life to God.” As I matured though I released that this decision to give my life to God did not necessarily entail joining an order and becoming a nun. I have never lessened my determination to give my life to God but I married and have a large family. I am sure I made the right decision for me and I suspect that I would not have been able to deepen my love for my creator any more that I have done as a wife and mother.
I do think that rules and regulations about marrage, divorce and remarriage need the imput of those who have been through all this. I have a cousin who was wanting to marry a man who had had a divorce. Neither of them were by this time still in their youth and she was fast approaching the end of her period of fertility. He applied for an annulment but the process was so protracted that they eventually went ahead with a civil marriage but unfortunately they were too late.
One of my own daughters had a rather unpleasant divorce after years of being manipulated into thinking that everything that went wrong was her fault. She has since found a partner who himself was divorced from a woman who ran off with another married man. Neither of them felt at all comfortable entering into another “marriage” but are each committed to loving and caring for the other. I can understand their reluctance. Things MUST change.{jcomments on}
The People Speak Out
Local voices connecting globally
This is important: to get to know people, listen, expand the circle of ideas. The world is crisscrossed by roads that come closer together and move apart, but the important thing is that they lead towards the Good. (Pope Francis) |
|
Canon Law 212 calls upon the laity to speak up:2 - The Christian faithful are free to make known to the pastors of the Church their needs, especially spiritual ones, and their desires.§3. - According to the knowledge, competence, and prestige which they possess, they have the right and even at times the duty to manifest to the sacred pastors their opinion on matters which pertain to the good of the Church and to make their opinion known to the rest of the Christian faithful, without prejudice to the integrity of faith and morals, with reverence toward their pastors, and attentive to common advantage and the dignity of persons. |