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This Insights eNewsletter was sent to subscribers on September 11, 2015.

eNewsletter Subject: Attempting to Solve the Insoluble?

The inevitable has happened. Germany's Cardinal Marx has complained that the Pope's streamlining of the annulment process doesn't solve the real problem, which is the need to admit divorced and remarried Catholics to Communion: Cardinal Marx: Pope's annulment reforms don't go far enough.

The problem, of course, is that there is a mortal sin which must be repented, and repentance is not real if the sinful condition is not forsaken by the penitent. Difficult? Certainly. But some situations are not amenable to purely legalistic solutions. Some situations can be escaped only by the good will of those who are in bondage to them.

Meanwhile, Phil Lawler calls attention to criticisms that Canonist Ed Peters has made of the new norms: A canonist's critique of the new 'fast-track' annulment process.

For my part, though, I read these criticisms as little more than a common contemporary tendency to distrust our bishops. That's understandable, but it is also ultimately damaging to the Church. See my latest In Depth Analysis: Trusting our shepherds: A healthy Church requires true bishops, not branch managers....

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