excerpts from Pope Benedict XVI’s 1/28/06 Address to the Roman Rota

Some excerpts from Pope Benedict XVI’s 1/28/06 Address to the Roman Rota,

“The canonical proceedings for the nullity of marriage are essentially a means of ascertaining the truth about the conjugal bond….

"in its twofold natural and sacramental dimension, marriage is not a good that spouses can dispose of nor, given its social and public nature, can any kind of self-declaration be conjectured….

"The trial's aim is rather to declare the truth about the validity or invalidity of an actual marriage, in other words, about a reality that establishes the institution of the family and deeply concerns the Church and civil society….

"pastoral love can sometimes be contaminated by complacent attitudes towards the parties….by avoiding confrontation with the truth that saves, they can even turn out to be counterproductive with regard to each person's saving encounter with Christ….

[The indissolubility of marriage]"is sometimes obscured in the consciences of Christians and of people of good will….

"pastoral sensitivity must be directed to avoiding matrimonial nullity when the couple seeks to marry and to striving to help the spouses solve their possible problems and find the path to reconciliation. That same pastoral sensitivity to the real situations of individuals must nonetheless lead to safeguarding the truth and applying the norms prescribed to protect it during the trial”