It's silly Natural Law, if the people don't understand those "complex concepts" then the church should not marry them in the first place.......No matter how the church twists the issue of divorce vs. annulment. It is still divorce. Making it "softer" by calling it annulment once again frees people of their natural guilt and opens the way for further abuse of that system.
BTW How many annulments are allowed for an individual?
At one point almost all marriages were arranged.
Married *against one’s will* a reason for an annulment?
I don’t think so.
Again, if the Catholic priest doesn’t catch in his Pre-Cana classes that the persons who intend to marry are:
-unwilling (can’t find out by talking to them separately?)
-13, 10, or 8 years old (Really? He missed that one? How? Does he need new glasses?)
-lacks the mental capacity to comprehend the concept of marriage ( He can’t figure that out by talking to them?)
-brother and sister, mother and son, father and daughter? (The last name being the same doesn’t give a clue?)
-Even if neither party knew it at the time of the marriage? (That’s such a common problem. Happens all the time)
-never intended to have children and did not disclose that (He never asked that in counseling either? Is there a Scriptural basis for that exemption? Didn’t think so...)
-if either of the parties was already married
This is the only one that he could get a pass on not figuring out. But then, I don’t think anyone would recognize it as a legal marriage and then the annulment wouldn’t be necessary.
In the rest of the cases, the priest did NOT do his job and the marriage should not have been done by the Catholic church in the first place.
But 8 years old? Really? REALLY? Is there no end to the absurdity of examples someone will go to to justify a doctrine like that?
I wasn't referring to those who had been illegitimately married in the Church I was referring to those anti-Catholics who can't or won't understand the Church's position. Frankly, I couldn't care less if you agree with the Church's teachings, I only care that you don't continue to misrepresent it as you and your posse so often do.