Annulment Due to Alcoholism

[El_PAso]

Hi,
Does the Church generally grant non Catholic marriage divorcee’s annulments if there was alcohol and/or drug abuse involved in the marriage?

A search reveled this answer (#1 hit for “Annulment Due to Alcoholism” search terms…I was not fishing for the answer I wanted)
“Under church law, an annulment is a ruling that a true marriage never existed. An Annulment is usually granted for the reason that one or both parties did not have the psychological ability or maturity to understand the commitment that they were making by getting married”

This does not sound like Canon Law to me but makes logical sense.

Thanks,

El PAso

 

[Giggly_Giraffe]

Contracts are null & void if one of the parties was under the influence of alcohal/mind altering substances … Church & common law.

 

[1ke]

Hi,
Does the Church generally grant non Catholic marriage divorcee’s annulments if there was alcohol and/or drug abuse involved in the marriage?

The answer is, “it depends”. It depends on what you mean by alcohol/drug abuse being “involved in the marriage”.

If a person was drunk or high during the exchange of vows, yes this could be grounds for nullity if it could be proven through testimony.

If a person were an alcoholic or a drug addict before marriage and somehow hid this information from the other party, then that could be grounds for nullity depending upon some other factors.

If a person starts drinking/doing drugs during a marriage, or if the problems were known to the spouse prior to marriage, then generally, no, this would not be grounds for nullity.

The above would be for Catholics or non-Catholics. Not sure why you made that distinction, as the grounds for nullity are the same for everyone.

 

[El_PAso]

The answer is, “it depends”. It depends on what you mean by alcohol/drug abuse being “involved in the marriage”.

If a person was drunk or high during the exchange of vows, yes this could be grounds for nullity if it could be proven through testimony.

If a person were an alcoholic or a drug addict before marriage and somehow hid this information from the other party, then that could be grounds for nullity depending upon some other factors.

If a person starts drinking/doing drugs during a marriage, or if the problems were known to the spouse prior to marriage, then generally, no, this would not be grounds for nullity.

The above would be for Catholics or non-Catholics. Not sure why you made that distinction, as the grounds for nullity are the same for everyone.

Alcoholism is a “disease” that is misunderstood. Even if you think you knew I was an alcoholic you may have no clue what you are in for. It’s not like hiding leukemia, a known pathology. Alcoholics live in states of denial until they consent to treatment.

For the alcoholic, intentions may be there but ability to follow through with any sort of commitment may be nigh impossible for some.

People confuse alcoholism with drunkeness when in fact that is but a symptom. Alcoholics are generally “worse” when not drinking….

What I meant by non-Catholic is a Catholic wedding is usually more thought out. I would imagine if any honesty during the process the alcoholism would see the light of day, hopefully, and the marriage counseled accordingly. Even so as above depending upon the degree of alcoholism and or drug abuse the ability to make decisions can be severely handicapped.

Thanks,

El PAso