[dangus]

OK, so here's the questions:

I've known the Church recognizes that people who marry outside the Church to be legitimately married. Hence, if they convert, they are not sinning by having relations with each other before they get married in the Church. But if they are divorced, I would've thought the Church would automatically accept that since the marriage took place in an institution that allowed divorce, the Church would accept the divorce as evidence that the couple did not believe in the permanence of marriage, and would be annulled simply by the fact they got remarried.

If they haven't been annulled, then isn't the second marriage invalid? Can they even continue to have marital relations until they get their annulment? As long as there's the potential for the 1st marriage to not be annulled, how can they believe that the second marriage did occur?

[sitetest]

Dear dangus,

Oy, if I have to answer these sorts of questions, I need more coffee. ;-)

I'll take a go at them, subject to correction by those more knowledgeable than myself.

For non-Catholic Christians, the Catholic Church assumes the validity of their Christian marriages, until proven otherwise. It would be a sin against the Eighth Commandment to do so otherwise.

Thus, upon wishing to be received into the Catholic Church (believing baptized Christians don't technically "convert" to the Catholic Church, as they are, in her eyes, already in imperfect communion with her), the non-Catholic Christian who married in a Christian ceremony is assumed to have validly married. They must go through the Church's process to obtain a declaration of nullity. The process, I've been led to believe, is not especially trivial. I've known several former Protestants who've gone through just this, and they have related to me that the tribunal didn't just rubber stamp their application for a declaration of nullity.

The process is not meant, I am led to understand, only to be a juridical process of getting technicalities in order. I have been led to believe that through the process, the Church also endeavors to heal, correct, and instruct.

You can be granted a declaration of nullity, but also be told that you may not validly marry in the Church because you still have an inappropriate understanding of Catholic marriage, or an insufficient commitment to Catholic marriage. I actually have a friend whose former husband initiated the annulment process. They were granted the declaration of nullity, and she was free to marry again in the Church. But the tribunal found the fellow so messed-up that they forbade him to marry in the Church.

Others to whom I've spoken say that the process is wrenching, and requires much soul-searching. The Church wishes to heal, correct, and instruct, leading the parties involved to a more whole, correct, and informed understanding of Catholic marriage, and their own ability to contract such a marriage.

As to the two Protestants who wish to be received into the Church, if they've been married before, their current marriage cannot be recognized by the Church until all impediments are cleared away, including granting declarations of nullity for prior invalid marriages.

Hope that helps.


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