New document on marriage offers “compassionate pastoral recommendations,” says Cardinal Tobin
By Catholic World News/ITV staff
Cardinal Joseph Tobin, 71, Archbishop of Newark, New Jersey, since 2017
The North American Orthodox-Catholic Theological Consultation — co-chaired by Cardinal Joseph Tobin of Newark and Metropolitan Methodios of Boston — announced on March 6 the publication of a new statement, “The Pastoral Care of Mixed Marriages: Neither Yours nor Mine — but Ours,” which was agreed upon in May 2023.
Among the statement’s recommendations is that “Catholic hierarchs seek ways to receive the pastoral decisions of Orthodox spiritual courts and hierarchs and not only recognize, with the Orthodox hierarchy, the remarriages, in some carefully examined cases, of divorced spouses in mixed marriages, but also allow such divorced and remarried Catholic parties, in marriages with Orthodox Christians, Eucharistic participation in the Catholic Church.”
“This meeting was important in many ways and marks a turning point in the Consultation’s future,” Cardinal Tobin said last May, following the completion of the statement. “I am convinced that this new document on marriage offers compassionate and specific pastoral recommendations for the care and spiritual growth of Catholic-Orthodox families.”
Divergent teachings on the indissolubility of marriage are among the issues that separate the Catholic Church from the Orthodox Churches.
The Catholic Church, citing the teaching of Jesus Christ, teaches that “the matrimonial union of man and woman is indissoluble” while the spouses are living.
Orthodox churches tolerate second and third marriages following divorce. Father Michael Fuller, general secretary of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, published an unusual “Catholic disclaimer” at the top of the document:
“This document is a dialogue statement between representatives of the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church. While it is not a statement of the Committee on Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and it has no authority beyond that of the dialogue commission itself, it has been received as a reference point for scholars and pastors in promoting unity and understanding. This document has been received by Bishop Joseph C. Bambera, Chairman of the Bishops’ Committee on Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs, and authorized for publication by the undersigned.”
Excerpt from “The Pastoral Care of Mixed Marriages: Neither Yours nor Mine — but Ours”
The grounds for ecclesiastical divorce and permissions granted for remarriage are viewed as instances in which the Church bestows the mercy of God, dissolving marriages, or rather recognizing those whose spiritual foundation has already been destroyed through human frailty, and whose continuance in name alone would result in the moral and spiritual harm of the former spouses and any children. Hierarchal permissions for remarriage allow for unions of divorced spouses, which include marriages to Catholics, who may or may not be divorced themselves. A marriage that is not completely dissolved constitutes an absolute impediment to entering into matrimony.
In dealing with failed consummated marriages, on the other hand, the Catholic Church does not permit divorce and remarriage, but conducts inquiries as to whether there may have existed some initial defect in the marriage covenant that provides grounds for annulment — a declaration on the part of an ecclesiastical authority that an impediment or defect of consent rendered the original marriage non-existent from the outset. Such a declaration of nullity consequently is a declaration that both parties to such a flawed marriage are free to marry.
Given the increasing number of civil divorces among Catholics and Orthodox, we must actively cultivate our pastoral work together to comfort the suffering, fortify their hope, and help spouses find support in our worship communities.
We recommend that Catholic hierarchs seek ways to receive the pastoral decisions of Orthodox spiritual courts and hierarchs and not only recognize, with the Orthodox hierarchy, the remarriages, in some carefully examined cases, of divorced spouses in mixed marriages, but also allow such divorced and remarried Catholic parties in mixed marriages with Orthodox Christians eucharistic participation in the Catholic Church.
(The North American Orthodox-Catholic Theological Consultation)
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