Source: The Wall Street Journal

With his disregard for protocol, outspoken news conferences and denunciations of global capitalism, Pope Francis has proved a disruptive leader in his three-year reign.

But nothing the pope has done has raised more hopes or fears within the Catholic Church than his decision to open a debate about divorce and remarriage that his predecessors had declared settled.

In coming days, the Vatican is expected to publish the pope’s personal contribution to that debate, which is no mere academic dispute but one that reflects widely divergent practices in the church today. The pope’s liberal leanings seem clear from his words and deeds, but that doesn’t make his task less delicate. His decision could exacerbate the church’s divisions by disappointing one side or the other—or both if he leaves the question unresolved.

When divorced Catholics who have remarried come to the Rev.Hanspeter Heinz, a parish priest near the German city of Augsburg, he gently questions them about their new marriages and their faith. If, after an interview of two hours or so, he finds the new marriage to be faithful and loving, he tells them they can receive the sacrament of Communion—despite church law saying they can’t—and offers to perform an unofficial blessing. He believes half of German priests do likewise.

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