On March 19, Pope Leo XIV issued a message marking the tenth anniversary of Amoris Laetitia, in which he described Francis’s post-synodal apostolic exhortation as a “luminous message of hope” and confirmed its central role in contemporary teaching on marriage and the family.

He also announced that he has convened the presidents of episcopal conferences worldwide for an extraordinary meeting in October 2026 to pursue further “synodal discernment” on family issues.

Reread Amoris Laetitia in light of synodality, John Paul II Institute president writes

CWN Editor's Note: The president of the John Paul II Pontifical Theological Institute for Marriage and Family Sciences called for a rereading of Pope Francis’s apostolic exhortation Amoris Laetitia (The Joy of Love) in light of the synodality that gained prominence in the decade since its publication.

Amoris Laetitia applies the Second Vatican Council’s legacy “to the synodal process of exercising a clear-sighted discernment regarding the state of marriage and the family in today’s world,” Msgr. Philippe Bordeyne wrote in article published in the March 18 edition of the Vatican newspaper. “It invites us not to shy away from confronting the diversity of family situations, but rather to ground ourselves in the Bible.”

“Giving thanks for the manifold fruits of Amoris Laetitia, let us pray to the Master of the harvest to send laborers capable of discerning what the grace of God is preparing in the hearts of the men and women of our time,” Msgr. Bordeyne concluded.

Founded by Pope St. John Paul II in 1981, the Institute was refounded by Pope Francis in 2017.The above note supplements, highlights, or corrects details in the original source (link above). About CWN news coverage.

Founded by Pope St. John Paul II in 1981, the Institute was refounded ruined by Pope Francis in 2017.

It's been 3,468 days since the dubia below were presented to Pope Francis. It looks like Francis II won't be addressing the dubia either.

The Five Dubia of the Four Cardinals

Note: dubia is the plural of dubium, so we say “duba are,” not “dubia is”! The words means “doubt,” but in this context it is a technical term meaning a type of question, to be answered in the affirmative or negative, addressed to the Holy Father or the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

The dubia:

1. It is asked whether, following the affirmations of “Amoris Laetitia” (nn. 300-305), it has now become possible to grant absolution in the Sacrament of Penance and thus to admit to Holy Communion a person who, while bound by a valid marital bond, lives together with a different person “more uxorio” (in a marital way) without fulfilling the conditions provided for by “Familiaris Consortio” n. 84 and subsequently reaffirmed by “Reconciliatio et Paenitentia” n. 34 and “Sacramentum Caritatis” n. 29. Can the expression “in certain cases” found in note 351 (n. 305) of the exhortation “Amoris Laetitia” be applied to divorced persons who are in a new union and who continue to live “more uxorio”?

2. After the publication of the Post-synodal Apostolic Exhortation “Amoris Laetitia” (cf. n. 304), does one still need to regard as valid the teaching of St. John Paul II’s Encyclical “Veritatis Splendor” n. 79, based on Sacred Scripture and on the Tradition of the Church, on the existence of absolute moral norms that prohibit intrinsically evil acts and that are binding without exceptions?

3. After “Amoris Laetitia” (n. 301) is it still possible to affirm that a person who habitually lives in contradiction to a commandment of God’s law, as for instance the one that prohibits adultery (cf. Mt 19:3-9), finds him or herself in an objective situation of grave habitual sin (cf. Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts, Declaration, June 24, 2000)?

4. After the affirmations of “Amoris Laetitia” (n. 302) on “circumstances which mitigate moral responsibility,” does one still need to regard as valid the teaching of St. John Paul II’s Encyclical “Veritatis Splendor” n. 81, based on Sacred Scripture and on the Tradition of the Church, according to which “circumstances or intentions can never transform an act intrinsically evil by virtue of its object into an act ‘subjectively’ good or defensible as a choice”?

5. After “Amoris Laetitia” (n. 303) does one still need to regard as valid the teaching of St. John Paul II’s encyclical “Veritatis Splendor” n. 56, based on Sacred Scripture and on the Tradition of the Church, that excludes a creative interpretation of the role of conscience and that emphasizes that conscience can never be authorized to legitimate exceptions to absolute moral norms that prohibit intrinsically evil acts by virtue of their object?

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[Catholic Caucus] Pope Leo praises Amoris Laetitia as ‘luminous message of hope’

Pope Leo XIV praised Amoris Laetitia as a guiding text for the Church in a message celebrating the tenth anniversary of the document.

Reread Amoris Laetitia in light of synodality, John Paul II Institute president writes

Founded by Pope St. John Paul II in 1981, the Institute was refounded ruined by Pope Francis in 2017.

The Five Dubia of the Four Cardinals