I am lutheran, he is catholic...we HAVE to get married in catholic church is this possible?

Question

I am Lutheran and my fiance is catholic. I am not very religious and I think his family would be crushed if we didn't marry in a catholic church. I plan raising my children catholic but I don't really have the time to convert before the wedding. Has anyone been through this or can give me information on how to go about this. What should I say upon meeting the priest. What happens if he rejects me....should I e-mail the church fisrt to see if they do interfaith weddings...

Answer 1

Yes.

You can be married in the Catholic Church and you do not have to convert first.

The Catholic Church allows marriage between Catholics and non-Catholics.

Because the Church recognizes the tremendous challenge that the interfaith couple will face, they may have to get permission from the bishop.

With love in Christ.

Answer 2

<> If neither of you are Catholic..then YES, at least one of you has to convert. The Catholic church doesn't just let 2 non-Catholics, one Luterhan and one a non-Christian, walk off the street and simply use the Catholic church as a backdrop or location for their wedding. The church is not a public space. You may be able to rent the Catholic church's Community Center, since that is a public space and open for rental. But at least 1 of the couple has to be Catholic to have the wedding in an actual Catholic church. <> I think you are perhaps confused. WHY would you get married in a Catholic church if neither of you were Catholic? If you are asking about a Catholic marrying a non-Catholic (Lutheran, other Christian or an atheist) As a Catholic who has been in an inter-faith marriage (what you call a marriage between 2 people of differing faiths) for over 15 years... I MAY have some first hand knowledge in this department. Nearly ALL the posters are getting things half right, accept Sparki777.... The REALITY IS THIS: Yes, a Catholic can get married to a non-Catholic in the Catholic church. The "norm" and obviously what everyone would prefer, is that Catholics marry Catholics. Therefore, in order to get married to a non-Catholic and have the Catholic church recognize the marriage as valid and Sacramental.. the Couple has to do 2 things. 1) attend pre-cana (pre marriage) classes. This is actually true even if BOTH are Catholic 2) Sign a form and get a dispensation from the Bishop. A 'dispensation' is a fancy term for permission to deviate from the norm. It simply means that the Bishop is aware of what is going on in his Dioceses and he sees no obvious reason why the 2 can't get married to each other. -- Basically it is a formality. I've never heard of a Bishop actually denying a dispensation for an inter-faith marriage. During the pre-cana classes, you'll meet with a Priest or a Deacon or possibly a volunteer and discuss things such as "how are you going to handle your differences in belief?" During this process the Catholic party will be asked to sign a document pledging to raise the children Catholic. That is.. to fullfill their duty to share their belief with their children. I can't remember if the non-Catholic has to sign the document..but it is done after some discussion so that the couple is in agreement. Obviously, as one person stated, IF the non-Catholic refuses to allow their children to be raised Catholic and intends to interfere..then the Church has GRAVE misgivings about the marriage and could not possibly encourage the Catholic party to go through with it, knowing the that the non-Catholic intends to interfere and prevent the faith from being passed on. This rarely happens though.

Answer 3

Do you really think you are the first mixed faith couple to get married?

It happens all the time, and it is not nearly the huge deal you are making it out to be. Oh- I forgot -brides are the center of the universe =)

No, you do not need to convert. Ever. Although it makes life HUGELY easier especially when you get to children. You don't even need to promise to raise the children as Catholics- your boyfriend makes that promise in wirting, you only acknowledge it.

RCIA ( classes to become Catholic) usually begin in the Fall, with the candidates entering the church
at the following Easter Vigil.


Marriage prep is much the same as for two Catholics marrying. The biggest difference is your fiance may not be able to have a beautiful nuptial Mass....but if it is important to him to have a Mass, Father may allow it. ( you will not receive Communion, though) My priest knew how important it was to me, so we did have the Mass.

Just call the priest, bring your baptismal certificate and QUIT SWEATING THE EASY STUFF!!

Answer 4

You should meet with the priest to discuss this. Especially since you know that if you get married in the Catholic church you have to agree to raise the children Catholic, there should be no problem. And, if you want to convert, that's even more in your favour, even if it is afte the wedding. However, you need to have enough time before the wedding for the two of you to have premarital counselling.
Good luck!

Answer 5

I am catholic and my fiance is Luthern, we are also not super religious. We researched both options and found that he would have to convert before the ceremony for the catholic church to allow it. (it may just depend on the church or priest) The exception might be if you decide on an outdoor ceremony w/ a catholic priest. Sometimes things are looked at differently as long as it isn't done in the actual church. We actually ended up going with the Luthern church for our ceremony. Hope this helps

Answer 6

Don't e-mail the church. Wait until you meet with the priest. Let the Catholic do the talking.

You will not have to convert!

You will have to attend Pre-Cana or Engaged Encounter meetings. Some EE are specifically for ecumenical couples.
Never use the term Inter-faith. You are both Christian so the faith is practically the same. The difference is how you practice the faith.

Also you will want to ask for a ceremony only. It looks kind of funny when only one family gets Communion.

Answer 7

Mixed religion marriages are common in the Catholic Church. What will probably happen is that the Wedding Ceremony will not be conducted with a mass. Congratulations. I hope you will in the future convert to The Catholic Church, the one church that has faithfully preserved the fullness of the Gospels as preached by Jesus and the Apostles.

Answer 8

Catholic Churches will perform interfaith weddings. My cousin married a Jewish girl, and a priest performed the ceremony, along with a rabbi.
If the Church will sanction a marriage between a Catholic and a non-Christian, I don't think you have anything to worry about.

Answer 9

The only person who can answer all your questions is the priest because these answers change from church to church. It is usually left to the sole discretion of the priest. I don't think you will have a problem, but you need to make an appointment to speak with the priest immediately. Also, I don't see why you don't have time to convert since you can't have set the date without consulting the priest first. You have to book the church first. good luck

Answer 10

you have nothing to worry about...you don't have to fully convert to get married in the church. the only requirement is that you will raise your children catholic, which you have said you already intend to do. you should find a priest that you feel comfortable talking to...i suggest going to a few different churches and listening to the homily and church annoucements after mass...a priest that cracks a joke or two is usually much more approachable and less "scary" than one who is serious all the time. i suggest this because you need to know and feel good around the people leading the church that your family attends.