No man, not even the
pope himself, has the power to sever the bonds of marriage,
German Cardinal Gerhard Ludwig Mueller said in a book titled The
Hope of the Family.
"When we are in the presence of a valid marriage, there is
no way to sever that bond," Mueller said in the interview-format
book by Ares publishers, to be released ahead of an
extraordinary synod on the family in October.
"Neither the pope nor any other bishop has the authority to
do so, because it touches on a reality that belongs to God, not
to them".
Therefore, divorced individuals who marry a second time
must not be allowed to receive communion, because that would
mean questioning the indissolubility of the marriage sacrament,
Mueller explained.
"Indissoluble marriage...removes the individual from the
will and the tyranny of feelings...and protects children above
all," said the cardinal, who was appointed prefect of the
Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith by Pope Emeritus
Benedict XVI in 2012.
Vatican observers say the synod on the family will likely
see a clash between bishops who would like to see the Church
adopt a more open stance to divorced Catholics and defenders of
the doctrine as it stands.
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