Divorce is an epidemic that is affecting attitudes and behaviour across the world. In Britain alone 230,000 people divorce each year, causing turmoil not just to themselves but also among their family and friends. One in two children now see their parents separate, so it is easy to see that, inside and outside of the Church, the impact of divorce is substantial.

The Church is at the heart of supporting marriage, thereby reducing the number of divorces. However, in general we have left the care of the impact of divorce to others. The analogy here is of an infectious disease where we spend much effort on ensuring people don’t catch the disease but little on alleviating the consequences and effects of the disease. I think this is a tragic waste of the priceless gift that the Church has to both prevent and cure the disease.