Can an ordained Deacon be best man in non-catholic ceremony

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An ordained Catholic Deacon has been asked by his nephew to be best man in the nephews wedding. Both the groom and his bride have been previously married and divorced. The groom 's previous marriage was in the Catholic Church. His previous marriage has not been annulled. This second marriage will take place in a Protestant church. Is the Deacon prohibited by any Catholic Church law or teaching from participating as best man in this ceremony. If Deacon participation is prohibited, please cite the authority. Thank you.

Arch
 
I doubt there is a specific prohibition unless it is at the diocesan level.

I think this would fall under the more general principle of avoiding scandal but that leaves a fair amount of ambiguity and wiggle room.
 
The issue is not that the ceremony is not Catholic, because the Church recognizes marriages between two non-Catholics. The issue is that both the bride and groom have been married prior–one of them in a Catholic marriage which, in the Church’s eyes, is still a binding covenant.

Canonically speaking, I can think of no barrier that would prevent the deacon (or any Catholic person) from participating, but prudence surely would.

One’s attendance at a ceremony signals, if even in the slightest, some form of assent and confirmation to what’s happening at the ceremony. For a Catholic deacon not only to attend but as a best man to witness to a sacramental ceremony which is invalid and sacramentally empty would give the impression to his nephew that he approves of what’s going on–and he cannot do that, especially as a a deacon who is understandably held to a higher standard in matters of Catholic teaching.

If God’s not going to be there, then neither should we.
 
So the basic question is can a Deacon be the best man at an adulterous wedding. :eek:

You know the answer to that one.
 
Should not, as it is rife with potential for scandal, and is counter to his obligation to preach the Gospel…

As my dad often tells people, he was ordained to preach the Gospel, and sometimes to even use words to do so!

Attending this invalid marriage is definitely not living the gospel message.

Even if it were a valid message, he should not be taking an active nor visible role in any non-Catholic wedding (except when dispensation has been granted by the Bishop in cases of mixed marriages, in which case he may be the witness for the Catholic Church, or in certain specific Orthodox jurisdictions, may serve as Deacon with permission of both bishops and the celebrant).
 
if the parties are not and never have been Catholic, there should be no problem, assumeing there is no other barrier to their marriage.

If either is Catholic and marrying outside the Church, there is a huge problem. he should not and probably cannot take any step w/o permission of his bishop.

from OP situation is not quite clear. If it is an invalid marriage from the get-go he should have no part in it whatever.
 
Why isn’t a deacon of all people asking his spiritual director this question [edited]?

Could it be that the spiritual director is asking the question as there is no pastoral norm published by the USCCB or diocese that is controlling?? Could it be that the Deacon in question has been taught in his formation that “family” comes first? Keeping the relationship intact may be the only way to bring the groom back to the Church. The Deacons choice is to exclude himself in an attempt to make a point or to include himself and work continuously to try to cure the situation. The spiritual directors training is being taxed to the limit in this case and he would appreciate concrete answers based on Church law or teaching and maybe a bit less speculation and opinion. Thank you.
 
archbold said:
An ordained Catholic Deacon has been asked by his nephew to be best man in the nephews wedding. Both the groom and his bride have been previously married and divorced. The groom 's previous marriage was in the Catholic Church. His previous marriage has not been annulled. This second marriage will take place in a Protestant church. Is the Deacon prohibited by any Catholic Church law or teaching from participating as best man in this ceremony. If Deacon participation is prohibited, please cite the authority. Thank you.

Arch
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I cannot cite the authority but, in this case, the basic ones are both conscience and common sense. The Deacon has a public standing in the Church because he is one of her sacred ministers To stand in witness at a ceremony that fundamentally goes against the prescrptions of the Church is bad, if you are a practicing Catholic, worse if you are ordained.

Inasmuch as the person asking him to do this is a relative, the Deacon has to make the hard choice of following his conscience and the teachings of the Church and, as painful as this might be, decline the invitation. In fact, he could very well use this as a teaching moment for his nephew to say that the laws of the Church need to be followed.

The nephew is the one who is putting himself at odds against the Church by going about what he is doing. He should not have to drag his uncle, the Deacon, with him in the process.

For the deacon, this will be a difficult decision, but, he needs to do right by the Church.
 
I think this whole subject can probably be summed up in the fashion one’s grammar school English teacher might use.

Yes a deacon ***CAN ***be best man at the second wedding of his nephew but he ***MAY ***not be best man in good conscience (since both parties have been previously married and no rulings of nullity have been granted.)
 
I’m certainly not a canon lawyer, but in principle I agree with benedictgal and also think that SMHW’s reference to grammar was a good one.

A deacon is ordained to a Major Order, and as such, IMO, should not be a principal in any rite conducted in another Church. Common sense, if not a specific Canon, would indicate as much. OTOH, I see no reason why a deacon could not be in the wedding party in another (passive and non-principal) capacity.

In the situation at hand, as I see it, the deacon would simply have to explain to the nephew that he would be uncomfortable in the role of best man since it is (technically, at least) an active one, but would be pleased to take on the role of usher (or whatever a member of the groom’s party is called these days).
 
archbold said:
Why isn’t a deacon of all people asking his spiritual director this question instead of trolling for information on a public forum?

Could it be that the spiritual director is asking the question as there is no pastoral norm published by the USCCB or diocese that is controlling?? Could it be that the Deacon in question has been taught in his formation that “family” comes first? Keeping the relationship intact may be the only way to bring the groom back to the Church. The Deacons choice is to exclude himself in an attempt to make a point or to include himself and work continuously to try to cure the situation. The spiritual directors training is being taxed to the limit in this case and he would appreciate concrete answers based on Church law or teaching and maybe a bit less speculation and opinion. Thank you.
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Aren’t we touchy?

The alleged deacon should have better resources than here. Further, the deacon apparently already knows that it’s up to him and the set of circumstances.

I don’t have a problem with the alleged deacon doing what he thinks is necessary. I just dont’ see why he is trolling for opinion when he alone knows the exact situation and he alone through prayer has to make it.
 
Opinions are not ours to give. This is a matter between the Deacon and his Bishop, and should not even be up for discussion on CAF.
 
MusicMan said:
Opinions are not ours to give. This is a matter between the Deacon and his Bishop, and should not even be up for discussion on CAF.
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:confused:

Someone cannot ask a question on their mind and we shouldn’t be free to discuss it…in a FORUM? 🤷

I’d agree, though, that this is a Bishop/Deacon authority matter.
 
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