Pope Francis talks with Mariam Yahya Ibrahim of Sudan during a private meeting at the Vatican July 24, 2014. The Sudanese woman who was sentenced to death for converting from Islam to Christianity, then detained after her conviction was quashed, flew into
Pope Francis talks with Mariam Yahya Ibrahim of Sudan during a private meeting at the Vatican July 24, 2014. The Sudanese woman who was sentenced to death for converting from Islam to Christianity, then detained after her conviction was quashed, flew into Rome on an Italian government plane on Thursday and hours later met the Pope. REUTERS/Osservatore Romano (VATICAN - Tags: RELIGION) ATTENTION EDITORS - FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTRIBUTED, EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTERS, AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS. NO SALES. NO ARCHIVES REUTERS/Osservatore Romano

Pope Francis has created a panel of theologians and canon lawyers whose main task is to simplify the process of getting annulments from the Roman Catholic Church.

The 11-member commission, the Vatican said, will work to simplify and streamline the process of annulment "while safeguarding the principle of the indissolubility of marriage."

The announcement comes as the Catholic church, under the leadership of Pope Francis, gathers for a synod on the family at the Vatican on Oct 5-19. A synod is the Catholic Church equivalent of a parliament.

Couples who wed under the Roman Catholic church are not allowed to divorce. What's only allowed is annulment which is a declaration that the marriage was void from the beginning.

Seeking annulments in the Roman Catholic church tend to be "complicated and archaic." Most annulments, a judgment that retroactively invalidates a marriage to the date of its formation but based on Church law, take place at the local diocesan level.

However, the decision of the local diocesan level needs to still needs to be reviewed by a second tribunal, which, according to Reuters, is when the process gets tedious and murky.

Pope Francis, who since rising to the leadership on March 2013, is best known for having an open mind to certain changes in the Roman Catholic faith and its doctrine. He was said to have indicated he is open to change with people with failed first marriages.

On Friday, he warned Catholic leaders against "codifying faith in rules and instructions as did the scribes, the Pharisees, and the doctors of law in the time of Jesus."

Divorce is taboo in the Roman Catholic church and is not recognised. Those who sought divorce and was able re-marry outside the Church are still very much considered married to their first spouse and thus, "living in a state of sin."

Such consequence of divorce and remarriage bars Catholics from receiving sacraments such as communion.

A book titled 'Remaining With Christ's Truth' is set to be launched soon. The book highly suggests certain tenets of Catholic teaching are not up for improvisation. It was authored by five senior Church figures, including Australian Cardinal George Pell and German Cardinal Gerhard Muller, Prefect of the Congregation For The Doctrine of The Faith.

The five authors strongly advocate relaxing the divorce rule which could negate Christ's teaching on marriage and family.