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The better question we might ask is “may Catholics divorce?” The Church teaches that a valid marriage between two baptized Christians is indissoluble, meaning that once God has joined a man and woman in such a union, no civil authority may dissolve that bond or declare it null, not even the Catholic Church (CCC 2382). The Church does have the divinely ordained power to determine whether a couple exchanged valid consent in getting married (see Matt. 16:18-19; 18:15-18), and thus possibly to issue a declaration of nullity if determined they did not (see CCC 2384; 1625-1629). The State may claim to end a marriage through granting a civil divorce, but the State has no God-given power to break a marriage covenant or declare one null.
Because God established marriage as a natural and permanent union between a man and woman (Gen. 2:23-24), and then elevated it in Christ to the level of a sacrament (Matt. 19:3-9; Eph. 5:21-33 ), God hates divorce (Mal. 2:16). Consequently, the Church considers divorce a grave offense when chosen as a way to abandon one’s marriage or to enter a new romantic union. According to the Catechism of the Catechism (CCC), a divorced person who seeks to contract a new union—without receiving a declaration of nullity regarding his (or her) marriage—places himself (or herself) in a situation of “public and permanent adultery,” harming not only the couple but also their families and society (CCC 2384).
However, the Church also recognizes that sometimes civil divorce is forced upon an innocent spouse—or may be the only means to protect oneself, children, or property from an unjust partner. In such cases, the Church teaches that the innocent spouse does not sin, and that civil divorce may function as a form of legal separation when necessary, provided it is not treated as ending the marriage (CCC 2383).
What civil divorce cannot do is determine whether the marriage itself is valid or dissolved. Only Christ, through his Church, has authority over the sacrament of marriage. As Jesus said, “What therefore God has joined together, let no man put asunder” (Matt. 19:6).