Can I date before an annulment is received?

[Heather_Haywort]

I was married for three years and am now separated and in the process of divorce and annulment. I have seen a few priests to understand the Church’s teachings on dating. So far, the first three I have spoken to told me if it is a pure relationship, entered into prayerfully, it is not a sin and I may go to Communion. Is this correct?

 

[Michelle_Arnold]

No. Currently you are not even legally divorced, much less have you received a decree of nullity from the Church. In every sense of the word, you are a married woman and may not date anyone.

Once you are legally divorced, you will no longer be married in the eyes of the state, but you *will *be married in the eyes of the Church unless and until you receive an annulment – and there is never any guarantee that an annulment will be granted. That means that you may not date unless and until you receive that annulment. If you maintain a life of chastity, appropriate to your state as a married woman legally separated from her husband (the Church considers civil divorce the equivalent of a legal separation), and otherwise remain in a state of grace, then you may receive Communion.

Only once an annulment is granted will you be free to date.

Recommended reading:

Annulments: What You Need to Know by Jimmy Akin
Annulments and the Catholic Church by Edward Peters