I am a divorced Catholic man. My future wife is also Catholic who resides in England now. Previously, I was married in an Episcopal Church and my to- be wife never been married before.I got divorced through NJ civil courts 8 years ago. Am I considered a married man according to the Catholic Church? How difficult is it to get married in a Catholic Church close to my house in Va. ? What paper work do I need to fill out? what process do we have to go through? how long do you think it will take? Do I need the pope approval? Please I need some advice. Thank you.
2007-10-17 10:02:25 · 13 answers · asked by Mr. J 4 in Family & Relationships ➔ Weddings
Every Church that you go to, it may be a little different.
But usually they ask you AT LEAST 4 months time to follow some pre-nuptial classes, and take some "communications" tests.
You may want to talk directly with the "Wedding Director" of the Church nearest you.
He/She will tell you exactly what you need.
The documents needed are:
- your Certificate of Baptism & Confirmation (both for you and your fiance')
- your Certificate of Divorce from previous marriage (be sure to explain that the previous rite was NOT Catholic).
- Licence (the one that you get normally get at the Courthouse)
good luck
and congratulations!
2007-10-17 10:11:03 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 0⤋
Even though you were not married in a Catholic church, you were married in a church, therefore in the eyes of God you are married still. The only way a Catholic wedding can take place now is to have it annulled through the Catholic church. This can be a time and money consuming process that, depending upon the circumstances of the divorce, may include but not limited to: your ex-wife, your parents, her parents, the witnesses to the original marriage, any friends that can corroborate the problems within the marriage, family members that may have knowledge of the inner workings of your marriage as well. Warn anyone who may get involved in the process that questions (usually in the form of a questionnaire) may involve some personal and possible embarrassing topics. Once all these questions have been answered and returned to the tribunal it then depends on where 'in line' your case is will determine how long the process will take. You will need to speak to a priest to begin the process.
2007-10-17 10:46:08 · answer #2 · answered by Cory C 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I'm confused as to why people seem to think that this varies by parish- it doesn't. The rule is that if you got permission to be married outside of the church, then it is the same as being married in the church and you need an annulment- long process. If you did not get married with permission, and just went off and did your own thing the first time, then your marriage will lack proper form. All you have to do is get proof- copy of the marriage license showing the officiant, and two witnesses to say that it didn't take place in a Catholic church and there were no Catholic officiants present- and you're done. Takes about three weeks and the cost is nominal.
2007-10-17 13:48:10 · answer #3 · answered by sarah jane 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
All previous marriages, civil or religious, have to be dealt with before someone can be married in the Catholic Church.
The Catholic Church believes that God does not recognize civil divorces.
Jesus said, "Therefore what God has joined together, no human being must separate." (Mark 10:9)
However there may be hope of a declaration of nullity.
The term "annulment" is a misnomer because the Church does not undo or erase a marriage bond.
Rather the Church issues a declaration of nullity when it discovers that the parties were not truly joined by God and hence a full spiritual sacramental marriage as understood by the Church was not present.
Then the parties are free to marry for the first time.
Approach the appropriate person your in your parish who has been trained in the process. If you encounter difficulties, you may go directly to the diocese.
Be prayerful, honest and patient. It takes a while.
With love in Christ.
2007-10-17 16:58:52 · answer #4 · answered by imacatholic2 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
My fiance and I were in the same situation. You need an annulment from the church. You need to fill out the required forms they provide, the questions are what are you and your ex-wife religion, reason for divorce, we're you and your ex-wife married in a church. You will need to bring your divorce papers, birth certificate and church records with your completed sacraments (Baptism, Communion, Confirmation and Reconciliation). It took us a week to get our Annulment, but that was because my fiance knew the head of the Tribunal (person who grants the annulment). Usually the process (if you have everything) takes about a month to three months.
Hope this helps.
2007-10-17 10:28:29 · answer #5 · answered by ☺ ♥ ☺ ♥ 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I would talk to priests in your area. I'm sure they wouldn't mind answering questions at all. And in my experience, different priests say different things depending on how conservative they are. If you wedding wasn't recognized by the Catholic church before, they may not have considered you to ever be married.
The best person to answer that would be a priest. Even if he's not the priest who would be doing the ceremony, he'd be happy to answer all your questions.
If they ask you to get an annulment, the only way that goes through I believe would be if your spouse had violated part of the marriage, such as claiming to want to have children (a Catholic must I guess) but then once you were married, refused to have children.
2007-10-17 10:23:49 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
i don't think the catholic church views your first marriage as valid. however, they may still require you to get it annulled, which can be quite time-consuming, costly, and difficult. perhaps your bride will be ok with having another civil ceremony outside of the church. you could be married by any other religion or even by a judge. you could get married at a beautiful botanical garden or other outdoor setting. if your bride is set on a traditional catholic wedding, you may have some hurdles to overcome.
2007-10-17 11:24:13 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
You have to get your wedding annulled. Its a long and tedious process and it involves contacting the ex. It would be best to do this first before setting a date since this could take a while.
2007-10-17 12:56:45 · answer #8 · answered by Utena 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Youa res till considered married. You need to petition for a decree of nulity.
Make an appointment with a priest to get it started.
BTW- if you are having sex with your lady friend, you are committing adultery against your wife. You'll need to confess that.
2007-10-19 08:05:11 · answer #9 · answered by Mommy_to_seven 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You need to see if you can get an anulment - and what exactly your situation is. Go talk to a priest, and he can explain to you the parameters, about the tribunal, etc. It does take some time.
2007-10-17 23:25:21 · answer #10 · answered by Lydia 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋