What Does it Mean to Have Your Marriage Blessed?

http://canonlawmadeeasy.com/2014/06/19/what-does-it-mean-to-have-marriage-blessed/ ^ | June 19, 2014 | Cathy Caridi, J.C.L.

[Weiss White]

Q: My daughter stopped practicing her faith and was married to a protestant in his church. Now she has come back, and her protestant husband is preparing to become a Catholic too, next Easter. They understand that their marriage isn’t valid in the eyes of the Catholic Church, but the parish priest told them he can just “bless their marriage” and it will be all right. Can that possibly be true? –Eamon

[Elsie]

Consummating a marriage does not require God's help...

Tell Joseph that!

---

Don't TOUCH me!

I'm the Mother of GOD!!!

[Elsie]

As sitetest said, sorry you had to go through whatever you did. I’d just recommend a path that does include holding pro-active bashing grudgery as part of your lifestyle.

It's all that damned Luther's fault. (or Bush's...)

[Elsie]

But rather they are asking for a strong advocate for their prayers to God.

HuH?

What does this mean; in your thinking?

[Elsie]

You hateful basher!

[Elsie]

Frankly, you write like a troll.

(Probably smells of elderberries; too!)

[Elsie]

Have a safe, and enjoyable weekend.

And a wonderful forever.

[Elsie]

I’m easily confused. This couple, one of whom HAD BEEN Catholic but then converted to a Protestant denomination, married in a Protestant church. This writer is saying the church doesn’t recognize that marriage?? That the marriage requires a Catholic blessing if the one partner returns to the Catholic Church and the other converts?

Yet, if, say, 2 Protestants marry in their church, and become divorced (which their church recognizes), the Catholic Church recognizes that marriage and will not allow a re-marriage of either divorcee to a Catholic within the Catholic Church? I think that’s the Church position. SO why does the church not recognize the marriage in question, assuming they were both members of the Protestant denomination in whose church they married?

Me; too!

And we think that homos 'marrying' are screwed up!

[Elsie]

Troll, basher...

Getting more traction than

Hater, Racist!, sexist...

[Elsie]

Unpooped, is a condition that can be cured.

[Elsie]

I truly do not know how I would handle his death.

GOD does.

And He is there at ANY time to help in your sorrow and grief.

[Elsie]

... (for their intercession).

Why?

Are your requests not good enough for GOD that someone else has to spin them for you?

[Elsie]

Only ‘true’ baseball is played at Wrigley Field.

[thesearethetimes...]

Grateful bookmarking. With thanks to you both!

Tatt

[cloudmountain]

And then there is TRADITION; when what GOD has had written in the Book is just not enough.

TRADITION isn't LAW.
ALSO Jesus told Peter in Matthew 16:19:
I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven."

God bless you and your family on this first day of summer.

[mlizzy]

Are your requests not good enough for GOD that someone else has to spin them for you?

Mary doesn't "spin" prayers. That's so tacky.

[sitetest]

Dear boatbums,

At the risk of becoming entangled in a long, drawn out debate about the theology of marriage with a non-Catholic (an activity for which I don't have the time or patience), I will point out that we've been discussing validity in the context of sacramental marriage.

Keep in mind, in Catholic theology, marriage is a sacrament. Like baptism, or the Eucharist, or Holy Orders.

But not every marriage rises to the level of the sacrament. And that's the point of the discussion. Some marriages may exist civilly, that is, they have the legal status that is granted by the state, but they don't have a sacramental quality.

To your first question, it depends. In many places, the Church requires that those who wish to be married in the Church must generally also have a civilly-recognized marriage, just as, in most places, in order to initiate a case before the marriage tribunal to ascertain the validity of a marriage with an eye toward a declaration of nullity, one must have already been granted a civil divorce.

But those are prudential decisions on how the Church thinks the intersection between the secular and the spiritual work in a given time and place.

The Church recognizes the civil institution, and in many ways, the civil institution is compatible with and complementary to the ecclesiastical institution, but they aren't quite the same.

The distinction comes down to the difference between natural marriage and sacramental marriage.

“So, talking about churches giving their ‘blessings’ is more about feelings than it is about validity. Do you agree?”

No, I don't agree. You're mixing terms. We've been talking about the sacramental nature of marriage between two Christians, not the civil legal nature of civil, marriage, generally.

sitetest

[Salvation]

No, because Luther added the word ‘alone’ to the Bible in those places.

[Salvation]

God does forgive my sins in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Check out the words of absolution below.

Catechism of the Catholic Church

 

1449 The formula of absolution used in the Latin Church expresses the essential elements of this sacrament: the Father of mercies is the source of all forgiveness. He effects the reconciliation of sinners through the Passover of his Son and the gift of his Spirit, through the prayer and ministry of the Church:

 

God, the Father of mercies,
through the death and the resurrection of his Son
has reconciled the world to himself
and sent the Holy Spirit among us
for the forgiveness of sins;
through the ministry of the Church
may God give you pardon and peace,
and I absolve you from your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

 

[ealgeone]

No, because Luther added the word ‘alone’ to the Bible in those places.

Where is the phrase/word combination "faith alone" used in the Bible explaining the concept of salvation via only faith?

[ealgeone]

Ok...I'm confused. In one post you said you could go to God and ask Him about things/for things. Yet here, you run back to the catechism to justify having to go through a priest for forgiveness of sins.

Is Christ not capable of forgiving you of your sins if you ask Him directly?

Or does this just make you "feel" better hearing someone has told you your sins are forgiven?

I really don't see the need to go a priest when we have direct access to Christ....for everything.