Address at the opening of the judicial year of the Roman Rota

Pope urges diligence and justice in marriage annulments

Vatican City - A Catholic marriage does not provide for divorce. However, an annulment is possible – under certain conditions. According to the Pope, the competent judges should have the well-being of the parties concerned in mind.

Published  on 31.01.2025 at 13:00  – 

Pope Francis has urged church marriage judges to be careful and fair in marriage annulment proceedings. He said at the opening of the Roman Rota's judicial year that the faithful have a right to have their applications carefully examined - even if the final answer could be negative. The ecclesiastical court is the court of last resort in marriage annulment proceedings.

"For so many who have had an unhappy marriage experience, the review of the validity or non-validity of the marriage is an important possibility," said Francis. These people must be helped to follow this path as smoothly as possible. "The rules that define the procedures must guarantee certain fundamental rights and principles, above all the right to defence and the presumption of the validity of the marriage."

In the Catholic Church, marriages are indissoluble. However, it can be established in retrospect that a marriage was invalid. This can be due to formal errors, such as the lack of witnesses. In most cases, however, so-called defects of will or defects of knowledge are asserted, for example if one partner excludes children from the outset. There are separate ecclesiastical courts to decide on validity. In the event of an annulment, the parties involved may enter into a second ecclesiastical union in accordance with church law.

Procedure simplified

Ten years ago, Francis considerably simplified the procedure for examining the validity of marriages and shortened the duration of the process. However, this reform was not intended to increase the number of annulled marriages, but to speed up the processes, the Pope has now said. He had the well-being of those affected - especially in obvious cases - in mind. They should "not be oppressed for long by the darkness of doubt because of the delay in determining the judgement". Furthermore, Francis reminded the judges of their responsibility. Their work should contribute to purifying and restoring interpersonal relationships. (KNA)