In some cases, respect for one’s own dignity and the good of the children requires not giving in to excessive demands or preventing a grave injustice, violence or chronic ill-treatment.
In such cases, “separation becomes inevitable. At times it even becomes morally necessary, precisely when it is a matter of removing the more vulnerable spouse or young children from serious injury due to abuse and violence, from humiliation and exploitation, and from disregard and indifference”.
Even so, “separation must be considered as a last resort, after all other reasonable attempts at reconciliation have proved vain”.
(For simplified reading, footnotes have been removed. The entire document can be downloaded here: bit.ly/MIA_AmorisLaetitia)