If they wish to go to Holy Communion and are not living chastely then they really can't. If they continue to live together but chastely then they can go to Holy Communion. They can do spiritual communions. Only God can really judge their situation but the protection of the sacrament and the authority of the church has to be respected. It is a great cross but if accepted with love and they continue to pray and live out their Catholic faith as best they can God will respect their situation. He is a God of Mercy. It's a problem these days that everyone seems to think they are entitled to receive Holy Communion even if they don't go to confession. The person who foregoes this gift because they accept they are not in full communion with the church displays humility and reverence and God's mercy will be there for such a person.
9 I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another woman commits adultery.” Been thinking about this passage. I have this vague memory of reading one time that Our Lord’s comment ‘except for sexual immorality’ referred to the man ‘who divorces his wife’, in which case He is reminding His listeners (and readers) that the man has already committed adultery regardless of whether he goes on to marry another. It seems tautological, on the face of it, but Our Lord knows what we are like and was ensuring that He was going to leave no loopholes. Perhaps, the passage would read less clumsily in the original Aramaic, or in the Greek or Latin. At any rate, The Church always took the view that divorce and remarriage was always forbidden. It was the Orthodox (later on) and the Protestants that (conveniently?) misinterpreted this passage.
I think the gist was that, regardless of whether the man marries again, he is forcing his wife to commit adultery, since a woman of marriageable age without a male around was usually in a very bad spot.
The new young priest in our Parish has started weekly confession, every Thursday during Adoration. A huge blessing. He sat at the back of the Church and I knelt before him. It seemed so strange at my age 71 years old to be kneeling before a young man in his 20's. It reminded me that at the center of the Sacrament is humility, humility, humility. It is very,very humbling to confess ones sins like this. When I was younger I think it was a lot easier. Padre Pio told his disciples that they should go to confession weekly. When one objected he said that even if a house was clean it still needs dusted. So I will do my best to go weekly now I have the chance once again. In Ireland I have been doing this weekly confession pretty well all my life. Ij there were no other reason to go to confession regularly it would be the joy and happiness it brings. It is like taking a spiritual shower. There used to be an American lady called Mary Pyle who lived beside Padre Pio in San Giovanni. She was a real saint and her cause for sainthood is going forward in Rome. But after she died Padre Pio said she had spent 11 days in Purgatory. So sobering. Mary was a lady of whom we could truly say that she went about doing good. I suspect regular confession is a great way to avoid a bad purgatory. But I love what St Therese of Liseaux said about purgatory. She said she hated to see souls who feared Purgatory as she said it insulted God's love and mercy. She said the best way to avoid Purgatory is to wish to avoid Purgatory not for our own sake but for God's. Because it would be pleasing to God if we avoided it.
But last year, Catholic gay rights activists were welcomed with open doors. What is the contradictory message? Ovey!
