Astana, Kazakhstan, Jan 11, 2018 / 16:28 pm
Fidelity to the words of Christ makes it necessary to profess the truth about sacramental marriage, Bishop Athanasius Schneider told CNA in a recent interview.
Bishop Schneider, an auxiliary bishop of Maria Santissima in Astana, was a drafter of the "Profession of the immutable truths about sacramental marriage" issued by three Kazakhstani bishops Dec. 31, 2017.
The bishops stated it is not licit to admit to sacramental communion Catholics who are divorced-and-remarried, if they are not living according to the long-standing teachings of the Church.
The three bishops – Bishop Schneider, along with Archbishop Tomash Peta of Maria Santissima in Astana and Archbishop Jan Pawel Lenga, Bishop Emeritus of Karaganda – wrote that "an approval or legitimation of the violation of the sacredness of the marriage bond, even indirectly through the mentioned new sacramental discipline, seriously contradicts God's express will and His commandment."