The Vatican has reversed the annulment of former US Congressman Joseph P Kennedy II's first marriage, his ex-wife Sheila Rauch says.
They were divorced in 1991 and Mr Kennedy obtained the annulment in secret in 1993, before he married his secretary Anne Elizabeth Kelly.
Ms Rauch had alleged that the Kennedy family had used its influence in the church to obtain the annulment.
source.
The annulment system is a mess in the Church. There are way too many of them. I suspect that part of the problem is that those who populate the system are too leninent.
But an acquaintance of mine who has worked in a marriage tribunal says part of the problem is that priests aren't thorough enough in making sure that the marriages being celebrated are valid. After all, that is one of the main reasons the couple witnesses in front of the priest-- to make sure the union is valid and that consent is given freely.
If annulments can be obtained so freely, then the average married couple cannot be certain that their marriages are valid. That does not bode well for the stability of the Catholic family.
Sheila Rauch did a great service to the Catholic Church by standing up for marriage.
_________________________
Visit Opinions Canada
a political blogs aggregator
_________________________
