They were not. He was a priest, she was a nun. Neither was free to marry. It was ugly fornication, no better than the homos "marrying" one another.
A dialog cannot take place until a mutually accepted definition of terms is achieved. There is a fundamental difference between the Protestant concept of freedom and the Catholic concept of freedom. The Protestant belief is centered on the notion that a free person man do whatever they please. The Catholic belief is centered on a person being free from sin and its enslaving encumberances.
Pax et Bonum.
The RCC has no authority over anyone. Nobody gave it to them, they claim it for themselves with the caveat that God gave it to them so as to try to put the claim beyond dispute.
You know, though, this is a stunningly fine example of the level of control that the Catholic church seeks to impose on the lives of everyone every where. It’s been that way historically, and is obviously still that way today.
Thank you for giving a beautiful example of it for all to see so that anyone who may have been considering Catholicism can see what they’re getting in to before hand.