Posted on 02/08/2005 8:02:13 AM PST by DBeers
Vatican updates rules on marriage annulment
VATICAN CITY - The Vatican today issued the first revised guidebook on marriage annulments in nearly 70 years, but a senior cardinal could not say whether it would stem the soaring number of annulments around the world.
The 111-page guidebook, called Dignitas Connubii (The Dignity of Marriage) is a complex legal code for use by Roman Catholic diocesan tribunals which decide on marriage annulments.
Catholic law bans divorce but allows believers to remarry in the Church if they get an annulment declaring a previous union void. More than 50,000 annulments are granted every year around the world, some two-thirds of them in the United States.
Many Church leaders believe the diocesan tribunals that make most of these decisions grant too many annulments. Critics deride the procedure as a "Catholic divorce" available to those able to pay the legal fees to attain it.
"This code aims to help make it easier for the tribunals to ascertain the truth," Spanish Cardinal Julian Herranz, head of the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts, told journalists.
Asked about its effect, he said it was too early to say whether the new code book would reduce the number of annulments.
In Church law, an annulment is a ruling that a true marriage never existed. It differs from civil divorce, which is a ruling that acknowledges that a legally registered marriage has failed.
It is usually granted on grounds that one or both of the parties did not have the prerequisites for marriage, such as the psychological capacity to understand the commitment it entails.
It can also be granted if one partner hid something from the other, such as a previous marriage, infertility or impotence.
The new code was produced to include changes in procedures since the Church issued its latest code of Canon Law in 1983.
Many divorced Catholics who remarry outside the Church seek annulments in order to remarry in the Church and continue to be able to receive communion.
The Church says divorced Catholics who remarry outside the Church cannot receive communion because their first marriage is still valid. This point sometimes leads Catholics who remarry without an annulment to drift away from the faith.
Herranz said the Church teaching on this was not changed by the new annulment guidebook.
There are an estimated 8 million divorced and re-married Catholics in the United States alone. Caring for their spiritual needs has long been a subject of debate within the Church.
ping
PRESENTATION OF INSTRUCTION ABOUT NORMS IN MARRIAGE CASES
VATICAN CITY, FEB 8, 2005 (VIS) - This morning in the Holy See Press Office, there was the presentation of "'Dignitas connubii' (Dignity of Marriage), Instruction to be Observed by Diocesan and Interdiocesan Tribunals in Handling Causes of the Nullity of Marriage. The Instruction was prepared by the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts, with the collaboration of other dicasteries.
Participants included: Cardinal Julian Herranz, president of the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts, Archbishop Angelo Amato S.D.B., secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Archbishop Domenico Sorrentino, secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of Sacraments, Bishop Velasio De Paolis C.S., secretary of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura and Bishop Antoni Stankiewicz, dean of the Tribunal of the Roman Rota.
Cardinal Julian Herranz explained that the Instruction Dignitas connubii aims to offer judges in ecclesial courts "a practical document, a kind of vademecum to use as a ready guide for carrying out their duties in canonical hearings on the nullity of marriage." A similar document, the Instruction "Provida Mater," was published in 1936, relating to the Code of Canon Law of 1917.
Dignitas connubii, said Cardinal Herranz, seeks to facilitate the consultation and application of the 1983 edition of the Code of Canon Law, bringing together all norms referring to the canonical process for nullity of marriage (unlike the CIC where these norms are scattered in different places through the text) and includes the juridical developments that have arisen since the publication of the Code: authentic interpretations of the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts, answers of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura, jurisprudence of the Tribunal of the Roman Rota. The Instruction "does not limit itself to repeating the text of the Canons, but contains interpretations, clarifications on the provisions of law, and further provisions on procedures for its implementation."
"This Instruction comes as a confirmation of the need to submit the question of the validity or nullity of the marriage of the faithful to a truly judicial process." At times, said Cardinal Herranz, "simpler" solutions are suggested, which would even solve the problem directly "in the heart of individuals, through the so-called 'nullity of conscience'" in which the Church "has no other role than taking note of the conviction of the spouses themselves concerning the validity or otherwise of their marriage." At other times the hope is expressed "that the Church renounce any form of hearing, leaving these juridical problems in the hands of civil courts."
"On the contrary, the Church reiterates her competency to concern herself with these causes, because on them depend the existence of the marriage" of her faithful, "above all considering that marriage is one of the seven Sacraments instituted by Christ Himself." To ignore this problem would in practice "be tantamount to casting a shadow over the sacramental nature of marriage itself. This would be even more incomprehensible in the current circumstances of confusion on the natural identity of marriage and of the family in certain forms of civil legislation that not only welcome and facilitate divorce but even, in some cases, cast doubt on heterosexuality as an essential aspect of marriage."
In closing, Cardinal Herranz confirmed that in the context of a "divorcist" mentality, "even canonical nullity hearings can easily be misinterpreted, as if they were nothing more than ways to obtain a divorce with the apparent approval of the Church." The difference between annulment and divorce would thus be "purely nominal, and by the skillful manipulation of causes of nullity, all failed marriages would be nullified." By contrast, the Roman Pontiffs "have often expressed the true sense of nullity of marriage, inseparable from the search for truth because the declaration of nullity does not mean dissolving an existing bond, but rather the recognition, in the name of the Church, of the nonexistence of a true marriage right from the beginning. Moreover, the Church favors the validation of nullified marriages when this is possible. John Paul II explained it in these words: 'The spouses themselves must be the first to realize that only in the loyal quest for the truth can they find their true good, without excluding a priori the possible validation of a union that, although it is not yet a sacramental marriage, contains elements of good, for themselves and their children, that should be carefully evaluated in conscience before reaching a different decision'." (Address to the Roman Rota, January 28, 2002).
Also on the subject of the search for truth in hearings on the nullity of marriage, Archbishop Angelo Amato S.D.B. highlighted the fact that article 65, para. 2 of the Instruction states that the judge must urge the parties to a sincere search for the truth. If he does not manage to bring the spouses to validate their marriage and re-establish conjugal life "the judge is to urge the spouses to work together sincerely, putting aside any personal desire and living the truth in charity, in order to arrive at the objective truth, as the very nature of a marriage cause demands."
Bishop De Paolis noted that the "Instruction concerns nearly 800 diocesan or interdiocesan tribunals of the Latin Church that almost exclusively deal with cases of marriage nullity," which "have increased enormously in recent decades, especially in countries of long Christian tradition." He added that, among the causes, are: "widespread secularization which has an erroneous concept of marriage compared to the ideal proposed by the Church; a more precise knowledge of human psychology allowing for a better determination that matrimonial consent was not sufficient, and the fact that "many faithful, having obtained a civil divorce and the possibility to remarry according to civil law, ask for a declaration of nullity because they know that for a Catholic a valid marriage can only be that celebrated according to Church laws."
He then gave some statistics for the year 2002: of the 56,236 ordinary hearings for a declaration of nullity, 46,092 received an affirmative sentence. Of these, 343 were handed out in Africa, 676 in Oceania, 1,562 in Asia, 8,855 in Europe and 36,656 in America, of which 30,968 in North America and 5,688 in Central and South America.
Bishop Antoni Stankiewicz explained that "the just-presented Instruction disciplines in 61 articles (155-216 in Title VII, "Proofs") the instruments, that is, the means of proof in the search for objective truth in matrimonial hearings, placed at the disposition of the parties and of the judge, to allow for the ascertainment of facts alleged by the spouses-parties to the cause, and relevant for the nullity of the contested marriage. Only on the basis of the effectiveness of the results of the means of proof, admitted in the marriage causes, such as the declarations of the parties (art. 177-182), the documents (art. 183-192), the witnesses (art. 193-202), the experts (art. 203- 213), and the presumptions (art. 214-216) can the judge reach moral certainty on the cause to decide with a confirmatory sentence or decree."
"It is not a question," he said, "of absolute certainty, ... or purely subjective certainty, ... but of moral objective certainty, based objectively on the acts and the results of the proofs. In fact, according to the new norm, 'In order to declare the nullity of marriage there is required in the mind of the judge moral certainty of its nullity (art 247, para 1)'."
Dignitas Connubii is available in the official Latin text with English translation and also in Latin/Italian. It consists of a "Proemium" or Introduction, Preliminary Articles and 15 Titles, most of which are subdivided into Chapters.
OP/INSTRUCTION NULLITY MARRIAGE/HERRANZ VIS 050204 (1280)
Forget homosexual priests. The married laity are the one's destroying the Church from the inside. I can't stand divorce...
The NCR Catholics love annulments and get lots of them. They also loathe the pope (except when he speaks against war) and vote consistently for pro-abortion Democrats.
Agreed -it is like the ignored evil that is probably the most destructive evil to the Church
LOL I have noted this phenomena...
Perhaps it would be best if the Bishops were to try something new: Catholic teaching!!!
Marriage is and should be insoluable until death.......or barring some extraordinary circumstance.
The only really morally valid arguments for an anullment - that is to say, a declaration that the marriage was null and void - would include homosexuality, known infertility undisclosed to the spouse, bigamy, marriage of a close relative, etc. These are examples of things which involved some manner of trickery/deceit - of not honestly entereing into the sacramental covenant of marriage. Also - in these matters - those things which would preclude the proceation of children (the primary purpose of marriage) should be taken into account.
As painful as it may be, infidelity is not sufficent grounds to dissolve the marriage bond. Rather the church should compel the philandering party to repent of his sins, and reconcile with his spouse. Many saints - declared & undeclared suffered and bore the cross of marital infidelity of their spouses. That is indeed heroic virtue - and such faithfullness to God's law surely has its reward in heaven.
It would be well if there were enforceable ecclesials sactions excersied against philandering or abusive spouses. THAT would stop a lot of bovine feces!
Being made to do penance on ones knees on the steps of the Cathedral, in public view, for a few hours a day for a month, would do much to stop the philandering or violent husband. He refuses - then he is excommunicated. He must honor the bond which is marriage. Period.
"Psychological factors" are nothing but lame excuses to obtain annulments. We each have our own "baggage". Part of the job of being married is to learn to deal with this in a mature manner. So to is listening and accomadating the spouses quirks.
Or.......maybe..........just perhaps......priests, deacons, and canonists who are involved in annulment work need to consider that they will be asked by Christ to account for each of their acts. And that there are and will be consequences...........very hot ones!
I've heard it said divorce is when a family commits suicide.
Being beaten within an inch of one's life is not a "quirk." In many, many cases, this "abusive mentality" manifested itself to the prospective spouse during courtship, but was ignored. Or, maybe it manifested itself to someone else and not the spouse.
That's the reason for the investigation, the testimony, the witnesses.
The Church has determined that, for instance, an addictive personality may not be capable of contracting a sacramental marriage due to lack of psychological freedom.
These new grounds are in keeping with the Church's understanding of what constitutes a valid marriage.
Your post reeks.......just reeks of the "thought" typically seen in so called clerics who make their living peddling annulments.
Psychology is an atheistic pseudoscience which in its study and practice ignores and often rather blatently denies the existance of God, his saving grace, and influence in human affairs.
There is no such creature as a man with an addictive personality - the reality is that he is mired in and entrapped by SIN. It is that simple. He does not know God on any real level, and is not in love with HIM. Were he, it would be impossible for him to consistantly act in such a manner.
Only God can free the drunk from his "problem" = sin. Just ask Blessed Matthew Talbot. And His healing is totally free!
What he needs is penance, prayer, and the spiritual counsel of a priest or good religious. That is the road to healing for him/her - not the "shrink's couch", but the confessional. Once a man gets in touch with his SIN, then he can be healed by God. All else is naught but contemporary pop-culture bovine feces.
"The Church has determined that, for instance, an addictive personality may not be capable of contracting a sacramental marriage due to lack of psychological freedom."
OK - let's roll with this one. If so, then some 85% of all priests whom I have ever met should be automatically defrocked.........as they either are "sexually addicted", drunkards, gluttons, and even literal drug addicts
The so-called "addictive personality" is the result of sin. These tempataions which the person has fallen to are his "cross to bear" in life. His Christian duty is to bear them manfully. his spouses duty is to help him do this - and to bear patiently his wrongs. These are spiritual virtues which lead to holiness, and hence are the road to heaven.
If any church official, commission or whatever - even the Pope himself has espoused this nonesense about the "addictive personality" totally outside of the context of the reality of SIN being the root cause (and hence the key to its solution), then they are dead wrong.
By your definition, St. Rita of Cascia should have left her husband - instead of suffering patiently the trials which were given her by God. Such trial are imposed upon us to both test us - in our love for and faith in God - and to strengthen us spiritually.
The road to heaven is not through ladeling soup in a soup kitchen, nor by some membership on a "JUstice & Peace Commission". Rather it is ONLY through the crucifxion of the self - the total abegnation of the self, throu8gh which Christ is found and loved.
Countless numbers of saints - named & unnamed - knew and know this. Popes and Doctors of the Church know this. Little old Black Baptist ladies living in poverty who only know and love their Jesus know this totally in their hearts......and it show in the love in their eyes when you mention HIs holy name.
It is so sad that they are not enlightened to the Gospel according to Sinkspur.
The point is that a man addicted to alcohol, for instance, may not be able to contract a sacramental marriage. In fact, the Church presumes he cannot. The Church will not ordain an alcoholic seminarian, since it is assumed he cannot live the life required of a priest.
So, yes, sin can be the cause of the addiction, but the addiction is still an invalidating factor in full consent.
I have a degree in this field and I'd have to say that statement is pretty much right on the money. As far as annulments go, maybe if they actually taught the pre cana couples what a Sacramental Marriage actually is they could eliminate the excuses for an annulment. Informed consent.
Some numbers to ponder:
Annual number of divorces in U.S.: "The total numbers of U.S. divorces (excluding the non-counting states) reported finalized annually are 957,200 in 2000." Include those in the non-counting states and we can say roughly a million.
Annual number of Catholic annulments: 50,000 worldwide, and about 2/3 of these, or 33,000, in the U.S.
Thus, the number of Catholic annulments is a little over 3% of the number of divorces. In the light of this comparison, it would seem that the accusation that "annulment is the equivalent of a Catholic divorce" (quite aside from the theological distinctions between the two) is unfounded. It should also be noted that, while many of the grants of annulments may seem controversial, others are granted on indisputable grounds (prior marriage with spouse still living, marriage within the forbidden degrees, etc.).
Catholics are about 25% of the U.S. population. Assuming that they divorce at about the same rate as the rest of the country, they would account for 250,000 of the annual number of divorces. That would mean that the number of annulments is about 12% of the number of divorces. Obviously the great majority of divorced Catholics do not seek annulments. Not all divorced persons remarry, of course, but the number of divorced Catholics who have remarried is estimated at around 8 million.
The numbers don't mean anything either way. I have seen this argument used many times as if it had meaningful relevance regarding tribunals issuing erroneous declarations... Truth does not require moral relative argument to support it. The Vatican is issuing guidelines to the 'pastoral' US tribunals for good reason...
The numbers are an effort to gain some perspective on the magnitude of the problem, not to deny that one exists. But it is one thing to point to the existence of a problem, and quite another to exaggerate its extent. There is a vast difference between saying that 12% of divorced Catholics received annulments (if that is the figure) and saying that 100% did so (implied in the accusation that annulments are the Catholic divorce), or that all of the annulments were granted for frivolous reasons or only some of them are. In logic we make a distinction between universal and particular propositions. Numbers may not be the desideratum in moral matters, but they do have significance - e.g., in estimates of the degree of proportionality in applications of the principle of double effect, or in the evaluation of the gravity of a sin. I agree that the Vatican is issuing guidelines "for good reason," but this hardly carries the implication that numbers "don't mean anything" or are somehow irrelevant.
More like the death certificate, the 'suicide' is over by the time the divorce goes through.
Maybe not, but I sure don't miss standing in line.
(S)He refuses - then (s)he is excommunicated.
How about then? is an anullment OK?
Granted, there are those of us who should have been more careful when choosing a spouse, but people do change sometimes, and not always for the better. The unrepentant abusers and violators of the marriage bed are the worst.
I agree with you -the numbers are significant but not upon the measure of tribunal validity... The fact that many Catholics do not even attempt to maintain their vows within the bounds of Church teaching e.g. no 'remarriage' til death or decree of nullity is far more devastating to people and harmful to the Church -more harmful than the relatively minor tribunal crisis.
A mutual divorce is the exception -each faithful spouse that is deserted by their other has a seemingly unbearable cross to bear that becomes an injustice that cries to Heaven when the Church does not defend the bond -the Church in essence deserts the faithful to pastorally console the persistent defiant sinner. The Church SHOULD console the suffering faithful and provide clear fraternal correction and teaching to the sinner. The way things are done now seems backwards to me -it seems the Church is more concerned with saving the flesh than saving souls...
The divorce crisis simply points to a lack of faith and a lack of the Church to teach and uphold by positive action the sacrament of marriage... -the fact that there are many more divorces than tribunal investigations does not in any way validate a tribunal process that rubber stamps many erroneous declarations for those few that happen to actually seek truth from the Church. They seek truth yet are pastorally 'guided' to jump through the right hoops for an erroneous decree... Someone will pay come judgment day...
The tribunal does not need to protect its image and improve rubber stamping capability and throughput like the US Bishops would like. That would just be deserting those who need moral guidance and leadership by those who wish to protect image and not deal with the actual problem -e.g. the abuse scandal...
The divorce crisis is becoming scandal -[it] upon us and the US Bishops still wish to do nothing...
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