Hey for $500 you can get an annulment from your spouse of 20 years who you have 3 kids with and are divorced. Then you can both take communion again.
Now that’s just sad. I’m pretty sure that the Catholics on the board would object to that happening. But I’m also pretty sure that it does happen.
First: It is against Canon Law to grant a declaration of nullity for any consideration of money.
Second: civil divorce itself doesn’t bar a person from Communion. It can be an act of justice in the eyes of the Church if it protects a victim from an abuser, or helps secure the rights of dependents.
What bars one from Communion, is adultery. Jesus taught — repeatedly -— in plain language -— that anyone who divorces one spouse, and marries another, is committing adultery.
I can see why people find that very difficult, but that’s the word He used: adultery.
A hard saying, but we’re stuck with it.
The only solution -— assuming the first marriage is not annulled -— is repentance and Confession, and a completely abstaining from sexual relations in the so-called second marriage.
I just googled that $500 figure and found out it’s not so. Many Diocesan Tribunals have no fees at all, at least in “ documentary cases” (ones where the paperwork is all there, its proven there was an invalidating defect in the marriage from the get-go, and there’s no need to track down respondent and witnesses.) Some Dioceses -— I noticed New Ulm MN is one -— suggest a $500 donation from those able to pay.
In every case it’s up to the individual Diocese/bishop. There’s no uniform policy.
BTW, our (small) Diocese doesn’t have a tribunal of its own, but shares with a neighboring diocese.
That will change soon because our bishop just assigned two priests to take summer courses at CUA and get degrees in Canon Law.
One of these priests told me the first thing they are told is, “EVERY MARRIAGE US PRESUMED VALID, AND EVERY BOND PRESUMED BINDING FOR LIFE, UNLESS PROVEN OTHERWISE.”
Yeah, we’ve got us a Catholic bishop.