With the various complex rules concerning getting married in a church - what is premitted for myself and my girlfriend.
She has never been married before. I have been married but I am now widowed but my late wife was a divorcee (I was her third marriage and (she said) her best).
In summary, girlfriend never been married, I been married once to a divorcee and I am now widowed.
(I'm also curious to know if I could be married in a catholic church, just found out recently I was christened a catholic and so I'm looking at that part of my religion.)
Good thing I could edit this, couple of embarrassing mistakes in the first draft. :-)
2006-10-25 11:50:12 · 29 answers · asked by spear_1021 3 in Family & Relationships ➔ Weddings
Why ask the people on Yahoo!, because amid the sarcastic answers there are usually good people with good advice.
2006-10-25 11:58:00 · update #1
Why ask the people on Yahoo!, because amid the sarcastic answers there are usually good people with good advice.
2006-10-25 11:58:08 · update #2
Just in case people are wondering, I am a practising and church attending (Evangelical) christian and I only found out about my catholic connections in the last year. My vows would be with God and my wife and not for the "nice" trimmings. We haven't spoken to a priest yet as it's early days.
2006-10-25 12:03:14 · update #3
Depends on the denomination and on the local parish rules; you're going to have to ask.
Don't be surprised if the local minister wants to see you both in for pre-marital conferencing, though---it's pretty common in the US in a lot of mainline Protestant and Roman Catholic parishes.
Best of wishes to you both!
2006-10-25 11:53:52 · answer #1 · answered by samiracat 5 · 1⤊ 1⤋
What a nice person you appear to be and a good question. I havent bothered reading the replies above because often they put me off, so i would say that i think it is very likely you would be able to get married in church, and even in a Catholic one, and you are a widower and were not divorced.
I am a Catholic by the way, but dont knows all the ins and outs of the religion.
I was married for the second time in a Catholic church. My husband and i had both been married before - but in registry offices, which the RC church dont recognise as a 'proper' marriage.
The best thing to do is decide with your girl-friend what you TRULY want...... and then approach the priest. Some are more sympathetic than others. But if you want to be married in Church then i hope you get your wish, because certainly, for a believer, it means so much more than getting married in a registry office.
Good luck!
2006-10-26 03:43:04 · answer #2 · answered by Caroline 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The best thing to do is to check with your Priest.
If you do decide to marry in a Catholic Church here are a few things you will need to know:-
Getting married is a huge step. Discover how you can be married in a Catholic church. Each step is important and should be taken seriously.
1.Choose a partner that you aren't related to. The Catholic religion doesn't allow marriage between blood relatives.
2.You and your partner need to be the right age. A man has to be seventeen and older. A woman needs to be 15 and older. If you aren't of consenting age, you'll need parental permission.
3.Attend premarital counseling. (usually six months)
4.Discuss with your future spouse how you plan on raising your family and how many children. Accepting the possibility of children is a requirement in Catholic marriages.
5.Schedule to be married by a priest and you'll need two witnesses.
6.A marriage in a Catholic church is never dissolved. You are married until death do you part.
7.If you and your partner are not baptized, your marriage will be valid and your children will be legitimate in the Catholic Church. But unlike the marriage of a baptized couple, the union will not be considered a Sacrament.
8.Discuss Catholicism with your spouse and its importance.
9.Decide if you want a Mass wedding or just a wedding.
10.Meet the state requirements such as blood tests and marriage license.
Tips:
1.Remember to love your spouse and be their friend. Don't allow the wedding plans get in between you.
2.Understand that a sacrament is a life-long sacred journey.
3.Discuss wedding plans with your priest early so you can meet all the requirements and paperwork.
What You Need:
Priest
Partner
Love
Wedding license
Possible blood tests
Make sure that both you and your girlfriend are of the same mind and want to marry in whichever religion you both choose.
What you could do is find a non-denomination church and get married there.
All the best for the upcoming nuptials
2006-10-25 19:09:04 · answer #3 · answered by ME 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
To marry in a catholic church at least on of you has to be a confirmed catholic and actively attending a catholic church. The other has to commit to become a catholic and be confirmed in the catholic faith before marriage (in some catholic churches they'll marry a unconfirmed catholic to a confirmed catholic providing they have been attending the conversion classes and the church is convinced they will go on to confirmation).
The divorcee issues come down to the individual priest. It's unlikely to be an issue as neither you or your partner are divorced. Your marriage to a divorcee is irrelevant .
Getting married in a catholic church is far more complicated than any other 'christian' church. You'll have to jump through a lot of hoops and prove you're a catholic. You'll be expected to remain an active catholic after marriage and your children will need to be raised as catholics.
Go talk informally to your local priest.
2006-10-26 04:13:14 · answer #4 · answered by salvationcity 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
In the catholic church, one of you need to be catholic and be able to provide evidence (your baptismal certificate) or be an active member of a parish. You will need to speak with the priest (pre-marital interview) who will take you through the steps and speak to your non-catholic partner.
You would need a special dispensation if you were a divorcee but as you are a widower (and your former wifes marital history is irrelevant) this won't be an issue.
As for other churches and religions, I'm quite sure that they too would have similar requirements.
Unless at least one of you is active in a particular faith, it isn't generally possible to just visit a church and ask to be married in it.
Good luck and much happiness to you in your upcoming marriage.
2006-10-25 19:09:59 · answer #5 · answered by mildly_adiktiv 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Because your Gf hasnt been married and you are a widower (even though your wife had been married before) you should be able to getmarried in church. Some churches marry you even if you have been married before (baptist, United Reform) I dont think you would have any problem, getting married in Catholic church, may be difficult though if your not practising catholic, If you started going to catholic church now you may be ok, especially since you were christened catholic. Go and chat with your local priest and see what he says. Hope this helps x
2006-10-26 11:43:29 · answer #6 · answered by looby1967 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You need to talk to a priest in the diocese and parish in which you want to be married. He will give you all the info you need to know - . However, if you have been raised evangelical, that's a far cry from Catholicism - you should be doing some research to know that. What religion is your girlfriend? Were you also confirmed in the Catholic church? These are things you will have to tell the priest. Also, whether you have been a practicing Catholic, and you have not. You may have to take more classes, in addition to the regular pre-marital counselling.
Anyway, wish you luck.
2006-10-25 21:41:34 · answer #7 · answered by Lydia 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I'm a catholic and would think that you could marry in the catholic church don't know if the rules are the same now only that years ago if you married and not in a catholic church it was not recognised and also if you did and your wife has passed away then why not it's much more laid back than years ago. I'm a divorced catholic and cannot marry in their church but could marry in another Good luck hope you are both happy
2006-10-25 19:04:23 · answer #8 · answered by Bernie c 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If neither you nor your girlfriend are yourselves divorced, then you should be able to get married in any Church of England church. The fact that your late wife was a divorcee has no bearing - you yourself are a widower.
Not sure about the Catholic church - might be enough that one of you is Catholic but check.
Good luck
2006-10-27 11:40:37 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
To questions you are asking about marrying in the church, there is no problem in the catholic religion in getting married, or that you were a member of another faith, what is going to help you with your problem is you were baptized in the catholic faith but, you need to have your confirmation papers which if you are not confirmated you will have to do it before getting married and, also your first comunion needs to be done before the wedding talk to the clergy of the catholic church that is nearby where you live and do not worry about being married before with another women she already died so, it does not matter. Good Luck to you and your soon to be bride may God shine his light on both of you forever.
2006-10-25 20:34:08 · answer #10 · answered by a.vasquez7413@sbcglobal.net 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If you want to get married in a church, go for it. If getting married in the Catholic church is truly important to you, you probably have to meet with a Priest, go through pre-marital counselling, and jump through the hoops. It shouldn't be a problem that you're a widower, since you didn't divorce her or committ any adultry with another woman.
Go for it dude- Good Luck!!
2006-10-25 19:56:44 · answer #11 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋