A timely piece.  When Jesus spoke out against divorce (which he did on a theological basis), divorce was perfectly legal under both Jewish and Roman law—yet it was remarkably uncommon, far less common than in the modern west.  One important reason was the economic implications of divorce:  under most circumstances it would mean returning the dowry (initially paid by the bride’s family) AND handing over a settlement in the same range as the marriage present (which was initially supplied by the groom’s family).  Such economic entanglements kept families together.

For all the deficiencies of Am.Laet, the pope does well to reach out to those affected by divorce.  But one thing we rarely hear from the hierarchy:  divorce harms children and it harms society, and should be restricted, if not banned outright.  This is the counter-cultural message of the gospel and it’s what bishops should be saying.  We’ve done the experiment with no-fault divorce and the results are evident.