The head of the Catholic Church says that divorce can be morally necessary in certain situations.

“There are cases in which separation is inevitable. Sometimes it can become even morally necessary, precisely when it comes to subtracting the weaker spouse, or small children, from more serious injuries caused by arrogance and violence, by humiliation and exploitation, and by indifference,” the pope said according to the New York Post.

The Pope has been focusing on family issues as he prepares for an October synod (or meeting of bishops) to talk about the family.  One of the issues that will be discussed is divorced Catholics who remarry without going through the church process.

One of the points of contention is expected to revolve around giving communion to divorcees.  Currently they are banned from communion because the church says marrying another person is a sin.

The Pope also appeared to be reaching out to those in situations where a spouse or parent is abusive.

“Around us we find several families in so-called irregular — I don’t like this word — situations, and we pose ourselves many questions. How can we help them? How can we support them? How can we support them so that children do not become hostages of their father or mother?” the pope said.