Francesco receives the Tribunal of the Roman Rota in audience on the occasion of the opening of the Judicial Year and highlights the most relevant aspects of the process reform he ordered ten years ago: shorter and more streamlined procedures and more organized and competent diocesan structures. “The verification of the validity or invalidity of marriage is an important possibility,” he says, “people should be helped to navigate this path as smoothly as possible.”
Tiziana Campisi – Vatican City
It is a service to the “salvation of souls” the “work of discernment” of the Tribunal of the Roman Rota “on the existence or non-existence of a valid marriage”, which aims to “help purify and restore interpersonal relationships”. Francis takes the opportunity of the opening of the Judicial Year, in the Clementine Hall, today, January 31, to highlight the “great responsibility” of the organ of the Roman Curia and the need for swift and simpler processes, because, due to a “delayed judgment,” “the hearts of the faithful awaiting clarification of their status are not oppressed for a long time by the darkness of doubt.” He reiterates his request that the procedures be free of charge, regretting the fact that ten years after the reform of the marriage nullity process, there are still faithful who are unaware of the institution of the short process, based on specific assumptions, before the diocesan bishop.
READ THE FULL TEXT OF POPE FRANCIS’ SPEECH HERE
The members of the Tribunal of the Roman Rota in audience with Pope Francis
Easy processes without compromising truth and justice
The Pope emphasizes that the purpose of the marriage nullity declaration process, as stated by Benedict XVI in the 2006 speech to the Rota, “is not to ‘needlessly complicate the lives of the faithful nor to exacerbate their litigiousness, but only to provide a service to the truth.” A concept also expressed by Paul VI, who, having “completed the reform carried out by the Motu Proprio Causas matrimoniales, in 1975, at the Rota, stated that through the simplifications introduced, the aim was to make the handling of marriage cases “easier, and therefore more pastoral, without prejudice to the criteria of truth and justice, which a process must honestly adhere to.” Principles that Francis reiterates.
The pain and hope of many faithful seeking clarity about the truth of their personal condition and, consequently, about the possibility of full participation in sacramental life, challenge us. For many who have “experienced an unhappy marital situation, the verification of the validity or invalidity of marriage represents an important opportunity; and these people need to be helped to navigate this path as smoothly as possible.”
The role of the diocesan bishop
On the tenth anniversary of the reform of the marriage nullity process, ordered with the two Motu Proprio Mitis Iudex Dominus Iesus and Mitis et Misericors Iesus, the Pope reflects on the “spirit” that permeated it and recalls that the modification of the “rules concerning the annulment process” was requested by the Synod of 2014 to make the proceedings “more accessible and agile.” The innovations also affected the structures, specifies Francis, in such a way that the administration of justice “best responded to those who turn to the Church to shed light on their marital situation.” The Pontiff emphasizes that he wanted the diocesan bishop to be “at the center of the reform,” who must “administer justice in the Diocese, both as a guarantor of the proximity of the tribunals and their oversight, and as a judge” who has decision-making power when “nullity is manifest” and therefore there is the possibility of the “processus brevior.”
I have urged the integration of tribunal activities into diocesan pastoral care, entrusting bishops with ensuring that the faithful are aware of the existence of the process as a possible remedy for their needy situation. It is sometimes disheartening to learn that the faithful are unaware of this path. Furthermore, it is important “to ensure the free of charge procedures, so that the Church […] may manifest the gratuitous love of Christ from which we have all been saved.”
The importance of training
In dioceses, the bishop must ensure the establishment of a tribunal with well-trained clerics and laypeople, “ensuring that they carry out their work with justice and diligence.”
Investire nella formazione: la visione del Papa
Il Papa sottolinea l’importanza della formazione “scientifica, umana e spirituale”, poiché investire in essa porta benefici ai fedeli. Egli ritiene che i fedeli abbiano diritto a un’attenzione speciale alle loro richieste, anche se queste dovessero ricevere una risposta negativa.
Un momento dell’udienza
Prudenza, giustizia e carità
Il Papa ha introdotto una riforma che abolisce la “necessità della doppia sentenza conforme” e incoraggia a risolvere più rapidamente le cause di nullità evidente, con l’obiettivo di portare pace alle coscienze dei fedeli. Egli sottolinea l’importanza di applicare le norme con prudenza, giustizia e carità.
La famiglia come riflesso della Trinità
Francesco evidenzia che la famiglia è un riflesso vivente della comunione d’amore della Trinità e che ogni partecipante al processo deve avvicinarsi al contesto familiare con rispetto e devozione.
I coniugi che si uniscono nel matrimonio hanno ricevuto il dono dell’indissolubilità come promessa di Dio, che rende possibile la fedeltà umana.
