Posted on 06/19/2007 6:19:46 PM PDT by Mike Bates
The most controversial "marriage that never was" in recent U.S. political history is back. Sources tell TIME that the Vatican has reversed the annulment of Joseph P. Kennedy II's marriage to Sheila Rauch. The annulment had been granted in secrecy by the Catholic Church after the couple's 1991 no-fault civil divorce. Rauch found out about the de-sanctification of their marriage only in 1996, after Kennedy had been wedded to his former Congressional aide, Beth Kelly, for three years.
The annulment was the subject of Rauch's 1997 book Shattered Faith, which lambasted her ex-husband and was severely critical of the Catholic Church's proceedings, which made the marriage (which had produced twin boys) null and void in the eyes of the church. Rauch argued that Kennedy was able to unilaterally "cancel" nearly 12 years of marriage because of his clan's influence in the church. Kennedy argued at the time that the annulment was the right thing to do in religious terms. Few observers thought the appeal to Rome by Rauch, an Episcopalian, had a chance against the well-connected Kennedy. With women's groups loudly on Rauch's side, the controversy may have contributed to Kennedy's decision to give up his plans to seek re-election to Congress in 1998.
(Excerpt) Read more at time.com ...
ping
The full article fails to note whether the second marriage, performed as a Catholic rite, is valid. I assume it cannot be. And if the first marriage remains valid, is Mr. Kennedy now a bigamist?
Doing this behind her back, and the Church acquiescing to this, is infuriating. Kennedy’s and closed door proceedings = bad news
The Church’s handling of such cases gives ammunition to those who don’t wish it well.
The good news is that it kept a Kennedy for running for office again.
Seems like the second marriage would not be recognized by the Church, but is a legal marriage.
The second marriage in Church is not valid, because Kennedy had a wife.
If you read the article, what happened was the wife's appeal was filed in proper form, and the Rota (the final authority) overturned the lower tribunal's decision.
His second marriage was a civil ceremony, he couldn't marry in the Church until the annulment was final . . . and now it never will be.
The only 'secrecy' was the usual confidentiality until the decision is final. There's no point in releasing an interim decision that may be overturned (as this one was).
The glacial speed of these tribunals is something that Pope Benedict XVI is trying to change. But short of flat lying about what happened, I don't see that it reflects poorly on the Church (other than that they take way too much time to decide these things).
Joe Kennedy, when he was in Congress, was consistently voted as the dumbest congressman (as I recall), and now that he’s gone, Patrick “Patches” Kennedy has taken up that particular torch.
BTW, I was just up in Massachusetts, and noticed that the Catholic Church is selling off it’s properties left and right, including its churches. The gay priest scandals are having a real financial impact, and the church is liquidating its real estate to come up with the cash.
No surprise. The Kennedys own the Boston Archdiocese. Teddy had no problem annulling his long-time marriage to Joan, kids and all.
He is not a bigamist. The state recognizes Kennedy’s first divorce and second marriage. The Catholic Church ruled on the sacramental nature of the first marriage. It does not deny a legal marriage occurred, but ruled that the sacramental nature did not occur (thus, no valid marriage in the eyes of the Church). Now Rome has overruled the local diocese in declaring the first marriage was indeed sacramental. The Church views his current marriage as an adulterous situation.
Kennedy knew about the appeal to Rome. All parties are required to be contacted in annulment proceedings.
The article is confusing, but this isn't really true. It would appear that the annulment was granted by the Boston Archdiocese, in what would seem to have been a corrupt proceeding. It was appealed to Rome, which reversed the decision. Joe Kennedy remarried, but only in a civil marriage. He was not remarried in the Catholic Church by a priest.
That would make him legally married to his second wife according to US and Massachusetts law. But he is not considered to be properly married by the Catholic Church, but living in a state of sin.
This seems to have been another of Cardinal Law's bad decisions, while he was still running things in Massachusetts. I had met Cardinal Law several times, and he seemed to be a good, conservative bishop to all appearances, but as we learned after the fact there were some terrible things going on behind the scenes. I also was good friends with a priest on the marriage tribunal, who seemed like a good guy. Maybe he was too ready to do what the bishop told him to do, ordinarily a virtue.
The last time I saw Cardinal Law (and my friend), he presided at my Aunt's funeral in Massachusetts. Bizarre. I can understand the thoroughly bad bishops, but Cardinal Law has always been a mystery to me.
"There was a real marriage. It was a marriage that failed, but as grown-ups we need to take responsibility for that. The [annulment] process was dishonest, and it was important to stand up and say that." But Rauch says she worries that the practice, particularly in the U.S., of giving what she called "easy annulments" will continue. "They don't give people a fair defense. The Boston Archdiocese doesn't even tell you that you can appeal to Rome."
One simply notes the holier-than-thou Roman Catholics in this. Gee, the church issues an annulment and then retracts when the Zeitgeist shifts to a new direction???
Holy Mother Church is a fad-follower groupie, it would seem. (I would be delighted to be proved otherwise, but... I need the proof!)
The Kennedys thumb their noses at God with every proabortion vote they cast.
The book cited in the article, Shattered Faith, is a pretty chilling look inside how the annulment process is actually handled here in America.
Or maybe just Kennedy annulments. Regardless, Rome has done the right thing.
place mark for later reading
From the article:
Rauch found out about the de-sanctification of their marriage only in 1996. . .
Don't you think the former Mrs. Kennedy should have been notified?
However, just who are YOU to suggest it is the Catholics that are "holier-than-though"? After that remark, can YOU really stand before Jesus and cast the first stone at the Church? Think carefully. ;^)
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