Advice to registering officers and area meetings
Re-marriage of divorced persons
Area meetings should be sympathetic to and understanding of those who wish to marry in a Friends' meeting and who have been divorced. Many in this situation may have experienced a sense of failure in their lives and feel deeply that they have not been able to keep solemn promises they have made in the past. We should all be able to share these feelings, realising the occasions when we have experienced a sense of failure and have not lived up to promises we have made. Whilst in no way departing from our corporate testimony as to the sanctity and life-long nature of marriage, area meetings are given discretion whether or not to grant permission to those who wish to re-marry in a Friends' meeting.
In exercising such discretion, area meetings will need to be fully satisfied that those who wish to re-marry share this testimony and, except in rare cases, are well known to and associated with the meeting. As recommended by London Yearly Meeting in 1957, area meetings might well appoint certain Friends of sound judgment and discretion to consider each application and so assist the meeting in reaching a decision without undesirable discussion of details in the meeting itself. See also 16.19-16.21 and 12.22-12.25 on the use of meetings for clearness.
See also 22.73-22.79 for extracts on the ending of relationships
Next: 16.18
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