How do annulments of marriage work in the Christian Church?

Question

As I understand, in the Catholic Church, you can have your marraige annulled and remarry in the church as did Frank Sinatra. Does that make your children illegitamate? In the Morman Church, you can have your marriage "unsealed". Is this like an annullment? Are Marie Osmond's children with her first husband now illegitate in the eyes of the Morman Church like Frank Sinatra's kids are in the eyes of the Catholic Church? Does Marie Osmond have to go to hell because she got a divorce?

Answer 1

>>As I understand, in the Catholic Church, you can have your marraige annulled and remarry in the church as did Frank Sinatra. Does that make your children illegitamate?<<

No. "The children conceived or born of a valid or putative marriage are legitimate." -- Code of Canon Law, #1137 (A putative marriage is one thought to be valid by at least one of the partners.)
http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG1104/__P43.HTM

Answer 2

The catholic church, for some reason, insists that it does not believe in divorce. However, some cases it couldn't get around. So it began the policy of "annulments". I see it as a dishonest term for divorce. I mean when a couple has been together for a number of years and has several children, to say their marriage never took place (as annulment means), just makes no sense. And as you suggest, it could lead to the question about whether the children of the non-marriage were "illegitimate" (although personally I don't believe illegitimate children exist. Just illegitimate parents).
I have never seen anything in the Bible that would justify an annulment. And in logic, I can't think of much that could justify an anullment (perhaps a forced marriage that was renounced within a short time, would be an exception). Let's be honest, and call it divorce, recognizing that the first marriage is real, that it failed, and the second marriage is also real. We get to be like the pharisees who would strain at a gnat and swallow a camel.

Answer 3

In the Catholic Church your marriage can be annulled if and ONLY if there was a serious impediment present at the time of the wedding that rendered the marriage invalid. Annulment is not an automatic thing. Many petitions for annulment are denied because the investigation by the marriage tribunal does not find any such impediment. Children of an annulled marriage are NOT considered illegitimate.

Annulment is entirely different from divorce. Divorce is available on demand. It is a civil procedure that dissolves a civil contract. Annulment is not available on demand. It does not dissolve anything, for a valid Christian marriage cannot be dissolved by anything except the death of one of the spouses. Annulment is simply an official statement to the effect that the required conditions for a valid Christian marriage did not exist at the time of the wedding.
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Answer 4

Actually, the Catholic Church does not allow divorce in any circumstance. However, if a divorce occurs the catholic can apply for a declaration of nullity. Which simply means that a sacramental marriage never existed. If the tribunal finds that a sacramental marriage did exist, then it always will because "what God has brought together, no man can put asunder". The Catholic Church alone remains true to this teaching of Jesus.

This doesn't say anything about the legitimacy of the children. It says that although the couple may have been legitimately married according to civil law (which the Church recognizes), there was some impediment to the sacramental quality of the marriage from it's beginning.

Even after a civil divorce if a marriage is found to be sacramentally valid the parties involved must live as if they were married (celibate, attempting to reconcile).

Answer 5

First, the children are not illegitimate because they came from a proper marriage. Second, annulments in the Catholic Church are investigative processes where the Church tries to determine if the marriage sacrament was valid or invalid at the time the marriage took place. If you're considering one, speak to a priest for help and information.

God bless.

Answer 6

divorce is different from annulment. divorce is the one that is prohibited and annulment is the one which is accepted by the church. In order for a marriage to be annulled, either one of the couple must have a VALID reason(you could search these reasons in the Cathechism of the Catholic Church). Once you have been annuled, only will you be allowed to remarry yet the children that you had with your past wife will still be legitimate.

Answer 7

Re: Illegitimacy of children after annulment. No. Not in the eyes of the Catholic Church.

Answer 8

There is no annulment of marriage in the Christian CHurch.

The bible gives no reasons for doing this, so it is not done. divorce is permitted under very specific circumstances, but no annulments or acting as if the marriage never took place.