“The purpose of this paper is to discuss the bond of marriage. I shall ask whether one can hold both that marriage is a life-long union and that remarriage after the irretrievable breakdown of a first marriage should not be ruled out; in other words, I shall ask whether there can be a middle way between indissolubility and plain dissolubility. I shall examine some implications of Roman Catholic teaching and of the report, Marriage, Divorce and the Church. …

“There are three sections to my paper: the first gives a sketch of Roman Catholic teaching on indissolubility and starts with some remarks about nullity and its relation to the principle of indissolubility; and the second examines some implications of the Report‘s views and includes some discussion of the notion of an ontological bond; the final section deals with implications of Roman Catholic teaching and practice, again with some comments on the notion of an ontological bond.”