May 11, 2016 – Excerpted from Put Out Into The Deep, Bishop DiMarzio’s column in The Tablet:

My dear brothers and sisters in the Lord,

This is the last in a series of articles summarizing the teaching of our Holy Father, Pope Francis, on The Joy of Love.

This installment summarizes Chapter Eight which is perhaps the most difficult chapter to understand.

First of all, its title, Accompanying, Discerning and Integrating Weakness, guides us in understanding the chapter. Our Holy Father says, “the Church must accompany with attention and care the weakest of her children, who show signs of a wounded and troubled love, by restoring in them hope and confidence…”

One of the greatest things the Church can do, as our Holy Father said, is to give truth and hope to people. The truth is that there is no possibility for breaking the marital bond. It is inviolate and that ideal must always be upheld and never be trivialized because marriage is a sacrament and replicates the union of Christ and His Church which never can be broken.

Read the full text of the Bishop’s column on The Tablet website.