Pope Francis announced one of the most significant reforms of his papacy on Tuesday — changes to how Catholics can nullify a marriage.
The changes are radical. An annulment is a finding by Catholic officials that a marriage between a man and a woman was not a real marriage for a variety of reasons. An annulment is not a divorce — marriage in the Catholic church is an indissoluble bond, and so technically there isn’t such a thing as “Catholic divorce,” but Catholics can have their marriage annulled if Church leaders deem that the marriage was never valid in the first place.
An annulment declares that a marriage did not meet the standard of a binding union, including being open to having children or being based on deceit. Previously, annulments could take years but the new process will reduce time, eliminate most fees, and increase the authority of the local bishop.
Pope Francis is not favoring annulments — he is streamlining the annulment process. His concern is spiritual, the salvation of souls, which as he explained in his introduction to the announcement remains the “supreme goal” of the Catholic Church’s laws and institutions. He also is not unfamiliar with divorce — his sister Maria Elena is divorced and not remarried — and he has repeatedly said that the Church must find ways to embrace divorced people.
Unlike changes in tone, annulment reform changes actual church laws. Pope Francis announced that starting December 8, 2015 — non-coincidentally the same day that the Pope’s declared Jubilee Year of Mercy begins — the new laws about the nullity of marriage go into effect. The new laws are the most sweeping changes to the annulment process in 300 years, according to Pope Francis biographer Austen Ivereigh.
Pope Francis’ strategic timing is as interesting as the actual reforms. Francis made the announcement a month before the upcoming Synod of the Bishops on the family, a worldwide gathering of bishops to continue to discuss family and marriage issues that began last October at the Extraordinary Synod. The bishops last year called for faster and more accessible annulment process, Francis said in his announcement. Instead of waiting to announce annulment reform as a conclusion of this year’s gathering, Francis preempted the process. He cleared the way for this next synod to discuss other issues of marriage and family — everything from how to better embrace gay people to how to help families separated by migration, poverty, war, and economic realities.
It is another sign that Pope Francis is thinking large about his papacy. Last week Pope Francis announced that priests can forgive the Catholic sin of abortion during the Year of Mercy. He also announced that the Vatican will, and every parish in Europe should, host refugee families. Families are at the core of his mission, and that topic will be central when he visits the United States late September for the World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia.
The Most Surprising Photos of Pope Francis
The wind lifts Pope Francis' mantle as he delivers his speech in front of Independence Hall in Philadelphia, on Sept. 26, 2015.Tony Gentile—APPope Francis looks at the Statue of Liberty from the window of a helicopter on his way to the John F. Kennedy International Airport, in New York City, on Sept. 26, 2015.L'Osservatore Romano/APA Pope Francis mannequin rides around in a car in Times Square as New York City waits for the arrival of the Pope to the city, on Sept. 24, 2015.Timothy A. Clary—AFP/Getty ImagesKaydn Dorsey, 4, and Lionel Perkins, 4, draw on a coloring sheet bearing the image of Pope Francis as they wait for him to arrive on a visit to Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington in Washington, on Sept. 24, 2015.David Goldman—ReutersNuns with the Hospitaler Sisters of Mercy in Pleasantville, N.J., pose for a selfie with a cutout of Pope Francis, at the World Meeting of Families conference, in Philadelphia, on Sept. 22, 2015. Matt Rourke—APPope Francis blows out the candles of a birthday cake to celebrate his 78th birthday during a general audience at the Vatican on Dec. 17, 2014. Osservatore Romano/AFP/Getty ImagesPaying the bill at Rome's Domus Internationalis Paulus VI hotel, where Pope Francis stayed as a cardinal before entering the conclave and being elected pope.Osservatore Romano/APWelcoming Pope emeritus Benedict XVI as he returns to the Vatican from the pontifical summer residence of Castel Gandolfo.Osservatore Romano/APHolding a disabled child after celebrating Easter Mass.Alessandro di Meo—ANSA/Zuma Press Pope Francis masks in a factory in Brazil, where the Pontiff took his first overseas trip. Christophe Simon—AFP/Getty ImagesLeading the Worldwide Eucharistic adoration at the Vatican.Alessandra Benedetti—CorbisA gust of wind blows the pope's mantle. Alessandra Tarantino—APAttending the opening of the Pastoral Convention of the Diocese of Rome. Stefano Rellandini—ReutersLeaving a welcoming ceremony at Guanabara Palace in Rio de Janeiro. Ricardo Moraes—ReutersGreeting the weekly General Audience. Stefano Rellandini—ReutersPointing to the statue of Our Lady of Aparecida from the balcony of the Aparecida basilica in Brazil. Domenico Stinellis—APA Catholic faithful in Brazil bears a sticker of Pope Francis on his forehead. Ueslei Marcelino—ReutersImages of Pope Francis projected onto screens at Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro. Paulo Whitaker— ReutersDeparting Rio de Janeiro. Ricardo Moraes—ReutersA stray dog walks across the stage near the altar where Pope Francis celebrates the World Youth Day's closing Mass on the Copacabana beachfront. Victor R. Caivano—APListening to confessions of young people in a park in Rio de Janeiro. L'Osservatore Romano—EPAPosing with youths in Saint Peter's Basilica.L'Osservatore Romano—EPAGreeting the faithful on a rainy day during the General Audience.Fabio Frustaci—Eidon Press/Zuma PressArriving to lead his General Audience in a firefighter's helmet.Stefano Rellandini—ReutersA quiet moment after meeting with Equatorial Guinea's President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo at the Vatican.Max Rossi—ReutersMarking the 110th anniversary UNITALSI, a Catholic organization dedicated to helping the sick. Francesco Zizola—NOOR for TIMEA private Audience with Russian President Vladimir Putin. L'Osservatore Romano/APKeeping warm during a General Audience. Alessandra Tarantino—APComforting a disfigured man at the end of his General Audience. Claudio Peri—EPABlessing a sick man with deformed facial features. Evandro Inetti—Zuma PressVisiting the parish of the Sant'Alfonso Maria de Liguori during the Epiphany day.L'Osservatore Romano—AFP/Getty ImagesReacting to devotees at a weekly General Audience.Alessandro Bianchi—ReutersA seagull attacks a dove released during a prayer conducted by Pope Francis.
Alessandro Bianchi—ReutersA scarf is tossed at Pope Francis by a faithful. Tony Gentile—ReutersItalian artist Mauro Pallotta's superhero rendering of Pope Francis in a street near St. Peter's Basilica.Alessandra Benedetti—CorbisBlowing a kiss to pilgrims gathered at Saint Peter's Square. Vincenzo Pinto—AFP/Getty ImagesMeeting with U.S. President Barack Obama in the private library of the Apostolic Palace in Vatican City.Vatican Pool/Contrasto/ReduxWith Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip at the Vatican.Alessandra Benedetti—Vatican Pool/CorbisA wind gust lifts Pope Francis's mantle as he arrives at the traditional Washing of the Feet during Holy Thursday. Alberto Pizzoli—AFP/Getty ImagesKissing a man's at the traditional Washing of the Feet. Alberto Pizzoli—AFP/Getty ImagesVisitors take photos of Pope Francis as he speaks from the central balcony of St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican. Michael Sohn—AP
