We reached out to a local representative from the Diocese of Davenport for his reaction to Pope Francis' decision to change how annulment in the church is handled.
"It's still keeping in mind that the supreme law of the church is the salvation of souls and safeguarding the sanctity of marriage, but it also emphasizes the church's role of mercy and healing for people who have had some difficulty in their marriage," said Father Paul Appel.
Father Appel said the new policies that Pope Francis has set in place are simply a leader addressing what people are taking about.
"The matters that he's speaking on do not fundamentally change what the church teaches," Father Appel said, "it changes in a way how we go about doing that."