With about 17,000 divorce cases filed in family courts across the state last year, there is no wishing away the reality called short-lived marriages even for Catholics.
Those among the laity traversing this path are facing a unique dilemma, as they need to wage the separation battle not only in the court of law but also within the church.
This is because they need to juggle the provisions of Canon Law with that of the civil law. That is their identities as citizens following the provisions of the civil law could potentially come into conflict against their communitarian compulsions. One could say that the church hasn’t really risen up to facing the reality of rising divorces.
Defendants could argue that the church acts as a bulwark for individuals caught headlong in the whirlpool of crumbling family lives. The reality could be somewhere in between.
True, a few thousand couples heading for splitsville may not seriously impact the church with lakhs of believers. But the number of faithful seeking annulment of marriage is on the rise.
As per statistics available with the Kerala Catholic Bishops’ Council (KCBC) family commission, on an average there are 100 petitions seeking annulment of marriage pending before each Catholic diocese in the state.
“There are 30 Catholic dioceses in the state. The number of petitions pending before various Diocesan Tribunals is around 3,000,” said Fr Jose Kottayil, secretary of KCBC family commission. The number varies from a low 60 in the Ernakulam-Angamali diocese to a startlingly high 500 in the Kanjirappally diocese.
Now, the Family Apostolate under the Changanassery Archdiocese of the Syro-Malabar Church has launched a post-marriage course for newly-wed couples, reportedly a first initiative of its kind.
“The first three years after the marriage is a crucial period in a couple’s life,” said Fr Cyriac Kottayil, director, Family Apostolate of Changanassery Arch diocese.
According to him, the relationship between a man and woman can change for the better if they are given proper counselling after marriage.