“divorced and civilly remarried”
Why wasn’t it limited to people who were divorced by the other party without their consent and they never remarried?
Divorced Catholics who have not remarried and who are not involved in an ongoing sexual relationship are already not prohibited from receiving communion.
It is the second relationship - marriage or ‘marriage equivalent’ when the original marriage is still valid - which causes the problem, not the divorce. Civil divorce does not dissolve a Catholic marriage. No Catholic is supposed to receive communion when they are aware and non-repentant of mortal sin.
Of course many Catholics do receive communion in all manner of situations when they should not. That does not change the facts in this particular situation.
Catholics believe that receiving communion unworthily is a grave sin, so the prohibitions are an act of love, not of punishment. Being a sinner does not disqualify anyone from participation in the Church, else there would never be anyone there, but public, ongoing, unrepentant sin limits participation, especially in particular sacraments, such as communion.
Love, O2
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