Marriages

• If a divorced Catholic remarries, is his only hope of salvation a second divorce and then living alone, even if he has children from the second marriage?
  
  
• If a Catholic girl is married by a judge, may she receive the sacraments? Can she be remarried in the Catholic Church later? Can she go to Mass on Sunday?
  
  
• May a deacon preside at a wedding and marry a couple?
  
  
• I have a Catholic friend who was married in a Lutheran Church. He was told by a priest he cannot receive Holy Communion because he is living in a state of sin, not being really married. Is that true?
  
  
• Does a couple who receive the sacrament of matrimony receive the full blessing and benefits of the sacrament when they have been cohabiting before they were married?
  
  
• Does the Catholic Church allow interracial marriages?
  
  
• If a man's wife becomes paralyzed a year after his wedding, do you not think it is his right to divorce her and find some happiness for the rest of his life?
  
  
• What is the nuptial blessing?
  
  
• If two Jews get married by a Rabbi, does the Catholic Church consider that they are truly married? If they later get divorced can one of them marry a Catholic?
  
  

• I am a Catholic but I was married in the courthouse because my husband was divorced. Is it all right to ask a priest to bless my wedding ring?

• Outside of Catholic marriages, which marriages does the Catholic Church recognize as valid marriages (Lutheran, Methodist, etc?)

• A friend of mine who is a Christian Scientist told me that they do not have marriages in their churches. Why not?

• If a Jew marries another non-Catholic in front of a Protestant minister, is she really married in the eyes of the Catholic Church?

• When is a Catholic allowed to separate from a spouse?

• If a Catholic gets married while in the state of mortal sin, is the marriage valid?

• May a Catholic be a witness (maid of honor or best man) at a wedding of two non- Catholics in a Protestant church? The couple have never been married before and have never been Catholics

• If a spouse is sterile and incapable of having children, may a couple then continue to have a sexual relationship in their marriage?

• Are parents allowed to veto a child's choice of a spouse?

• Are pre-nuptial agreements permitted for Catholics?

• When a spouse commits adultery, must the other spouse still live with him or her? Must the other spouse forgive him or her?

• Are a couple in a mixed marriage (Protestant and Catholic), who completed their Catholic marriage preparation and were permitted to be married by the Catholic Church, required to raise their children as Catholics?
  
  

If a divorced Catholic remarries, is his only hope of salvation a second divorce and then living alone, even if he has children from the second marriage?

People who have children, even outside a valid and lawful wedlock, have a serious responsibility in natural law before God to care for, support, educate and nurture their children. A person who is in an invalid and illicit matrimonial situation is not dispensed from this natural law obligation. At the same time, he may not persist in his seriously sinful union, since this also violates God's law and places his eternal salvation in grave jeopardy. A way must be found for such a person, who by his folly has gotten himself into this terrible situation, to discharge his two obligations. Therefore, such a person needs the constant spiritual direction and advice of a skilled priest to assist him to find such a way, as well as needing constant and persistent prayer seeking help from God.

Reprinted from February 13, 1998

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If a Catholic girl is married by a judge, may she receive the sacraments? Can she be remarried in the Catholic Church later? Can she go to Mass on Sunday?

Catholics are obliged to observe the laws of the Church regarding marriage. Unless dispensed from the "Catholic form of marriage" by a bishop, a Catholic who married otherwise than before a priest and two witnesses entered a marriage which is illicit and invalid in the eyes of God and of His Church. It is no marriage at all. A Catholic in such a situation may not receive Holy Communion and were she to do so, the heinous sin of sacrilege would be added to the other mortal sins committed. Such a Catholic, however, would still have the obligation of attending Mass on Sundays and holy days. Any Catholic in an illicit and invalid union should consult with a priest to see if the union could be convalidated by the Church. If there is no canonical obstacle for the marriage, this can be done.

Reprinted from April 17, 1998

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May a deacon preside at a wedding and marry a couple?

If he has the proper jurisdiction and authorization from a bishop, an ordained deacon in the Catholic Church may witness marriage vows and thus preside at a wedding.

Reprinted July 4, 1997

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I have a Catholic friend who was married in a Lutheran Church. He was told by a priest he cannot receive Holy Communion because he is living in a state of sin, not being really married. Is that true?

All Catholics are bound for licitly and validity, to the Catholic form of marriage, unless they receive a dispensation from that form. Therefore, a Catholic who would marry outside the Catholic form without a dispensation from the bishop would not be married in the eyes of God. His or her marriage would be illicit and invalid and such a person would be living in a state of serious sin.

Reprinted from March 7, 1997

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Does a couple who receive the sacrament of matrimony receive the full blessing and benefits of the sacrament when they have been cohabiting before they were married?

To receive the sacrament of matrimony worthily a person must be in the state of grace, that is, free from unforgiven mortal sins. Fornication is a very serious sin. One who would receive matrimony with such an unforgiven grievous sin on his or her soul would truly be married, but would not receive any grace at all, but instead would incur a further heinous mortal sin of sacrilege. Confession, contrition, repentance, and penance, of course, can remove serious sins from our souls. It is hopped that people who commit sins of fornications before their marriage would approach confession and receive absolution before bestowing or receiving the sacrament of matrimony. Of course, it should be pointed out that many young Catholic engage couples lead lives of chastity and purity, reserving sexual activity for marriage, as God wills and when it is sacred and holy in God's eyes.

Reprinted from May 2, 1997

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Does the Catholic Church allow interracial marriages?

There is no law of God or the Church forbidding interracial marriages, nor would there be any reason for such a law. One of the basic rights of human beings is the right to marry the person of one's choice so long as there is no obstacle to the marriage and the person freely enters the union, understanding it is lifelong.

Reprinted from May 30, 1997

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