It has been some time since we’ve looked into issues arising from the ambiguity laden Ch. 8 of Amoris laetitia. Remember that those who wish to distort the words of the Lord and Catholic moral theology will read it one way, while those who want to be true to the same will read it another way. I suspect very few people changed positions.

I read at the ultra-liberal La Croix edited by the ultra-lib Robert Mickens, about now “happy” divorced and remarried couple joyously receiving Communion after some “accompaniment” by a French priests. The piece was originally from a French outlet, Le Pèlerin.

Divorced and remarried, they receive communion once again This is one of the first concrete outcomes of the apostolic exhortation Amoris laetitia “This couple, deprived of the sacraments for many years, will receive communion once again today,” proclaimed the priest at the beginning of the celebration. On Pentecost 2018, Benoît and Chantal walked down the nave alongside other members of the congregation in their Church in Eu, Normandy to receive the Eucharist. Neither of them made a “great fuss,” but all were well aware of the day’s significance. This is one of the first concrete outcomes of the apostolic exhortation Amoris laetitia, published three years ago. In Chapter 8 there is a footnote (no. 351) that encourages pastors to accompany divorced and remarried couples if they want to return to the sacraments. Benoît was a widower and Chantal a divorcee when they married in a civil ceremony seventeen years ago. As members of the Church, they knew that this meant renouncing the sacraments. In the eyes of the Church, the indissoluble marriage bond between man and woman is a reflection of the union between Christ and the Church. It therefore does not recognize Chantal Vivant’s second marriage with another man, which left her and Benoît in an “irregular situation.” With the publication of Amoris laetitia in 2016, the Church’s approach shifted, placing greater emphasis on the notion of mercy. It didn’t go as far as fully reinstating the right to communion or reconciliation, but as Pope Francis noted, encouraged us to remember that the Eucharist “is not a prize for the perfect, but a powerful medicine and nourishment for the weak.” It is up to priests to interpret the text as they see fit, and so far, most have been reluctant to champion it. But Chantal and Benoît live in the diocese of Rouen, which is particularly keen to explore the topic, as are those of Lyon, Évreux and Annecy. […]

This is the definition of scandal, by the way. The priest even announced it.

A public celebration of getting around adultery.

Nobody wants people to be perpetually sad and cast down. However, false mercy is not the way to avoid sadness.