It increasingly strikes me as bizarre that we excommunicate the penitent. The person has messed up, but wants to repent and stay active in the Church. Why excommunicate and officially kick him out? Help him complete the repentance process within the loving arms of the Church. Why is kicking him out a necessary step in his repentance process?
Kick out the scornful and unrepentent. But not the penitent.
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"Now I say that I know the meaning of my life: 'To live for God, for my soul.' And this meaning, in spite of its clearness, is mysterious and marvelous. Such is the meaning of all existence." Levin, Anna Karenina, Part 8, Chapter 12
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