"Firstly, marriage is the image of God, man and woman become one flesh. If this is destroyed, the image of God is soiled or disfigured. Amoris Laetitia speaks about how to treat these cases, how to treat wounded families, and here mercy enters." Pope Francis said this on the return flight from his apostolic visit to Georgia in response to the journalists' questions about the "world war" against marriage.
"I like telling about a beautiful capital, from around the 12th century—said Francis—that is in the Church of Saint Mary Magdalene, in Vézelay. On one side of the capital, Judas is portrayed hanging, with his tongue and eyes bulging out; and, on the other side of the capital, Jesus, the Good Shepherd, takes and carries him with him. Now, if we look closely a Jesus' face, we see that the lips of Jesus are sad, on the one hand, but, on the other, there is a little smile of complicity. Those people understood with Judas what mercy is!"
"Therefore—the Pope explained—Amoris Laetitia discusses marriage, the foundation of marriage as it is, but then problems arise, and the issue of how to resolve them. They can be resolved according to four criteria: welcoming wounded families, accompanying them, discerning each case and integrating, reconstructing. This would mean collaborating in this second… in this wonderful re-creation that the Lord achieves in redemption."
When reading Amoris Laetitia "everyone goes directly to chapter eight. No, no! It has to be read from the beginning to the end," and the core of Amoris Laetitia—said Francis—"is the fourth chapter, which serves for a lifetime. But it must be read entirely and re-read entirely and integrally discussed, it is a whole. There is sin, there is a break-up, but there is also mercy, redemption, care."
