LEGAZPI CITY, ALBAY -– Diocese of Legazpi Bishop Joel Z. Bailon urged lawmakers to consider alternatives that support and strengthen marriages and families rather than opting for solutions that lead to their dissolution.
“We express our hope and fervent prayer that the Senate will stand firm in its previous rejections of similar measures and continue to protect the sanctity of marriage and the family,” Bailon said in a pastoral statement on the approval of the proposed Absolute Divorce Act by the congress
The House of Representatives approved on third and final reading the House Bill 9349 bill legalizing divorce in the Philippines.
Bailon said that while the church respects the legislative process, it is their moral duty to provide guidance to the faithful on this critical issue.
Pastoral care and support
He noted that the church empathizes with the pain and suffering of families affected by irreparable marriages however divorce worsens the instability of the affected families and the negative effects on children.
“It opens the door to a mindset where marriage can be easily dissolved for various reasons, which contradicts the permanence and sacredness of the marital bond,” he said.
Couples facing difficult marital challenges can seek pastoral care and support. Parish communities offer guidance and counselling and other necessary resources and spiritual support for couples and families to work towards healing and reconciliation.
Legal remedy
Instead of divorce, Bailon cited the need to improve the family code as legal remedy for irreparable unions.
“Instead of a divorce law, what is needed is a more comprehensive Family Code that includes all the known grounds for the declaration of marriage invalidity,” he said.
Bicolano lawmaker and Senate President Francis Escudero said in a press statement that he has no intention to be in favor or against the bill as it is a personal vote based on respective beliefs and religion.
With the final approval of the congress, the proposed Absolute Divorce Bill will be submitted to the senate for consideration. It will be passed into law once approved by both houses and the president.
A bill may be vetoed by the president, but the House of Representatives may overturn a presidential veto by garnering a 2/3rds vote. I Sally Altea/PIA Albay
