"The family is in crisis. Perhaps not the most traditional kind of crisis, that of infidelity or, as it is called in Mexico, the 'little house' and the 'big house'. No, no. But a deeper crisis. We see that young people do not want to get married or live together. They don't do this to protest, but rather because that's how they are today. Later, in the end, some even get married in Church. This means that there is a family crisis inside the family. And I believe that this is the point of view from which the Lord wants us to approach the matter: through marriage preparation, by accompanying those who are living together, supporting those who get married and conduct their families well, helping those who have experienced a failure in the family and have a new union, and preparing people for the sacrament of marriage, because not everyone is prepared." With these words, Pope Francis responded to Valentina Alazraki, Vatican correspondent for Televisa, in a long interview on March 6th, at Santa Marta, which was subsequently transmitted by the Mexican TV on the evening of March 12th, the eve of the beginning of the third year of his pontificate.
Francis focused on how to "integrate replay families into the life of the Church," that is "those of the second union, which are sometimes phenomenal ... whereas the first ones were failures. How are they to be reintegrated? Let them go to church. Then people simplify and say, 'Ah, they’ll give communion to the divorced'. This does not solve anything. What the Church wants is for you to integrate them into the life of the Church. Yet, there are some who say, 'No, I just want to receive communion and that’s all.' A rosette, an honor. No. You have to reintegrate them. There are seven things, under the current legislation, that people in second marriages cannot do. I do not remember them all, but one is being a godfather. Why? Now, what kind of testimony will he give to his godson? That of saying: 'Look dear, in my life I made a mistake. Now, I'm in this situation. I'm a Catholic. These are the principles. I do this and I'll accompany you.' That's a true testimony. But if he belongs to the mafia, if he's a criminal, someone who has killed people, but is married in the Church, he can be a godfather. These are contradictions. It's necessary to integrate. If they are believers, even if they live in a situation defined as irregular, and they recognize and accept that, and know what the Church thinks of this situation, there’s no impediment."
With respect to the Synod, for the Pope, it "is a protected space in which the Holy Spirit can work. That is why people should be free. This is why I object to the publication with name and surname of what each one says. No, no one should know who said it. I have no problem letting the public know what has been said, but I'm opposed to letting people know who said it so that all can feel free to say what they want. What's more, we have a very serious problem, that is the ideological colonization of the family. [...] This ideological colonization is destroying the family. Therefore, I believe that the Synod will produce things, very clearly, very quickly, that will help in this family crisis, which is total."
Read the transcription of the interview
