Banns of Marriage?

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I was looking through an old album and came across a copy of a parish bulletin that included the posting of banns of marriage.

I remember when I got married in 1971, our banns were posted for three consecutive weeks prior to the wedding.

I also know that none of my daughters – married in 2001, 2004 and 2006 in Catholic churches in three different states – had their banns posted.

Have the rules changed? (And who sets the rules? 🙂 I can see that once upon a time (as in 1971 when the dinosaurs roamed the earth), banns were posted locally because people stayed put and would know if there were causes that would prevent a wedding from taking place, while now people move so much that banns would likely be posted in communities who had no idea who the bride or groom was . . .
 
In 10 years of working at the parish office I’ve seen banns published once, at the request of a parish several hundred miles away. Nobody in the parish seemed to know who the parents or the bride and groom were. That is not surprising as our town has always had a large transient population, folks who are sent here by their jobs for a set period of time.

Just recently I opened the door to a gentleman from France who had come here to work at the American BX and had been here from '53 to '64. Had his children’s banns been published here only one person (a former co-worker) would have known who they were but would have known nothing about them since they were 3 & 1 when they moved back to France.

In some jurisdictions in Canada, banns take the place of a marriage licence. There are specific rules to be met where those banns are concerned, such as length of time in the parish, etc. It was based on the banns law that the first gay marriage was celebrated in Ontario. The province wouldn’t issue a marriage licence so their pastor simply published the banns in church then celebrated their wedding. The province refused to register the marriage. That was then, now these marriages are common.
 
SeekerJen said:
🤷 Our parish still posts them.
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Are they posted as true banns (multiple weeks) or more as announcements of upcoming or recent marriages in the parish, whether or not they call them “banns?”

I’m suddenly fascinated . . . my girls were married in fairly conservative diocese without banns.
 
Mary_Gail_36 said:
:confused: I often see them in the bulletin, my former parish had them, my new parish has them. I thought they were mandatory:confused:
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The whole idea of banns is to find out if there are any impediments to a marriage. In my home parish they are still published because it’s a largely stable population and it could serve the purpose intended. Not sure it would accomplish anything where I live now. The two small parishes where I was this summer still published them as I saw when I picked up bulletins.

Canon Law says this:
Can. 1067 The conference of bishops is to establish norms about the examination of spouses and about the marriage banns or other opportune means to accomplish the investigations necessary before marriage. After these norms have been diligently observed, the pastor can proceed to assist at the marriage.
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Phemie said:
The whole idea of banns is to find out if there are any impediments to a marriage. In my home parish they are still published because it’s a largely stable population and it could serve the purpose intended. Not sure it would accomplish anything where I live now. The two small parishes where I was this summer still published them as I saw when I picked up bulletins.
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Phemie, you always seem “liturgically knowledgeable” 😉 – I understand the whys of banns, can you answer my question as to who decides if banns are to be published or not?
 
We were married two years ago at what I would consider a “middle of the road” parish (not ultra conservative or liberal), and our banns were published in the bulletin, and they were called First, Second, and Third Banns. I kept them for my wedding box. 😃

~Liza
 
IrishAm said:
Phemie, you always seem “liturgically knowledgeable” 😉 – I understand the whys of banns, can you answer my question as to who decides if banns are to be published or not?
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I read Canon Law for fun. 😃 The conference of bishops sets the rules. Often that simply means the conference gives each bishop the right to decide for his own diocese.
 
Phemie said:
I read Canon Law for fun. 😃 The conference of bishops sets the rules. Often that simply means the conference gives each bishop the right to decide for his own diocese.
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We need to talk, dear. “Fun” and “Canon Law” ought not be in the same sentence. 😃

I just assumed banns had been banned, as the girls were married in Goldsboro, NC; Cincinnati, OH; and Alexandria, VA – none of which are bastions of liberalism, for sure.

Thanks to all for their (name removed by moderator)ut.
 
IrishAm said:
We need to talk, dear. “Fun” and “Canon Law” ought not be in the same sentence. 😃
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When I trained as a nurse I was trained never to do anything without knowing why. The results: a 54 year old who sounds more like a 3 year old. Why? Why? Why? Best way to find out why we do a lot of things is to read Canon Law. Been known to take it to the little girls’ room with me.

OFF TOPIC

Imagine the conflict when DH & I got married:

There’s me freshly trained to always know why (Yes, ma’am, I know why I’m giving the baby a bath. It’s in order to make him clean and to make him comfortable.)

There’s DH, in the military & freshly trained to blind obedience (Throw myself on a barbed wire fence? Sir, yes, sir!)

Example in a typical day:

“Hon, pass me a pencil, please.”
“Why?”
“Because I want to pick my nose! What the heck do you think I would I want a pencil for?”
😃
 
Phemie said:
When I trained as a nurse I was trained never to do anything without knowing why. The results: a 54 year old who sounds more like a 3 year old. Why? Why? Why? Best way to find out why we do a lot of things is to read Canon Law. Been known to take it to the little girls’ room with me.
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Hmmm . . . a little OCD here? Why do I get the feeling you were a child told “because I said so” way too often!!! 😃
 
In 2000, my parish listed banns for my ordination. I never knew this applied to priests. But it applies because banns were listed for the parish to report any reason why a person should not be married (in my case, ordained). Anyone who knew of an impediment would have the opportunity to report it to the pastor or bishop.

Fr. Bro.
 
IrishAm said:
Are they posted as true banns (multiple weeks) or more as announcements of upcoming or recent marriages in the parish, whether or not they call them “banns?”

I’m suddenly fascinated . . . my girls were married in fairly conservative diocese without banns.
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They used to be called banns. They aren’t now, but are still posted for multiple weeks.
 
SeekerJen said:
They used to be called banns. They aren’t now, but are still posted for multiple weeks.
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Well, they were certainly called Banns in my parish only two years ago! 🤷

If they aren’t called Banns anymore, then what ARE they called??

~Liza
 
lizaanne said:
Well, they were certainly called Banns in my parish only two years ago! 🤷

If they aren’t called Banns anymore, then what ARE they called??

~Liza
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The last two issues of the parish bulletin didn’t have them called anything, just the names of the couples and their wedding dates in a box on page three. As each couple is printed up for three weeks prior to their wedding date, I assume they are still intended to serve as banns. I don’t know who made the call to stop calling them Banns. I think they were still “Banns” five years ago when DH and I were married there. 🤷
 
JimG said:
Well if that gets boring, you could always switch off to the Merck Manual, the PDR, or the dash-1 operations manual for the Minuteman III system, just for kicks.
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I finished the Merck’s a long time ago. IIRC, the PDR is the American equivalent to the CPS – done that too.😃

Yeah, the Minuteman III system manual sounds like just the ticket for those empty evenings when I’m not on CAF.:rotfl: :rotfl:
 
Phemie said:
I finished the Merck’s a long time ago. IIRC, the PDR is the American equivalent to the CPS – done that too.😃

Yeah, the Minuteman III system manual sounds like just the ticket for those empty evenings when I’m not on CAF.:rotfl: :rotfl:
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Lot of long nights in Canada, eh? 😃
 
the purpose of the publication (and in the old days before there were printed bulletins they were read from the pulpit) is so that anyone who knew the couple or knew any reason why they could not validly marry, would come forward. And indeed they might very well be published in more than one location, if one party came from another parish. Now the pre-cana process includes and investigation and requires testimony of witnesses regarding freedom to marry, so that more formal processes has replaced the publishing of banns, at least in this country. Some parishes still do publish from custom, and I sure wishe they would announce marriages in the bulletin at least after they have taken place.
 
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