EDITED: Marriage possible with divorced Greek Orthodox?

[FireEmt37]

I am a Catholic and have recieved all the sacraments thus far. I am engaged to a non-Catholic. She was Greek Orthodox but is in the process of converting to Catholicism. She is going through R.C.I.A. now. She was married before in the Orthodox church and is now divorced. She is a getting an eclastical divorce is what I think she calls it, which in her religion allows her to remarry. We have spoke with our Parrish Pastor about getting married in the Catholic Church, He couldn’t give us answer as he was unsure. He said it may be possible. Im just looking for some direction. I really want to be married in the Church. Has anyone else expierenced something like this? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

 

[1ke]

She needs to sit down with a (Catholic) priest regarding a decree of nullity. She is not free to marry. She is already married. What the Orthodox have to say about it is irrelevant.

I suggest the book Annulment: The Wedding That Was by Michael Smith Foster to help both of you understand what nullity is and isn’t.

She must petition the Tribunal for a decree of nullity. Her first marriage is considered valid unless proven otherwise.

There is no guarantee this will be granted.

You need to stop any plans for marriage until she is declared free to marry.

Regarding joining the Catholic Church, she has already received all the sacraments of initiation. All she needs to do is make a profession of faith. I don’t understand why an Orthodox Christian would be in RCIA.

 

[FireEmt37]

She s in R.C.I.A primarily to see how Catholics do things. It seems like the Orthodox church is similar but there are a few differences. She just thought it would be a good idea.

 

[FireEmt37]

And do you know how to go about petitioning the Tribunial?

 

[1ke]

And do you know how to go about petitioning the Tribunial?

She starts with the priest in the local parish. She will lay out all the facts and work with him to determine if she has any grounds for a petition to the Tribunal. If she does, the priest will work with her to get the process started.

 

[FireEmt37]

She went to a meeting about divorce. They told her to file some paperwork and she would recieve a reply in about 10 months. If they so no, what are the ramifications if we get married outside of the Church i.e can I still take Communion, can our children be batized etc. If we do decide to get married outside of the Church is there anyway for the Church to recognize our marriage down the road. From what we were told, she probably has grounds for approval but no guarentees.

 

[Warrior1979]

She went to a meeting about divorce. They told her to file some paperwork and she would recieve a reply in about 10 months. If they so no, what are the ramifications if we get married outside of the Church i.e can I still take Communion, can our children be batized etc.

As far as the Catholic Church is concerned, you would be living in a state of sin. The Catholic Church considers her married until proven otherwise, so if you marry her and have sex you would be committing adultery. You cannot receive any sacraments, except Reconcilation, provided you confess to your sin and take action to sin no more, such as no longer living with your “wife” until the situation is “corrected.”

I we do decide to get married outside of the Church is there anyway for the Church to recognize our marriage down the road. From what we were told, she probably has grounds for approval but no guarentees.

Your marriage will not be recognized because it would be considered invalid. You could have a convalidation in the future, provided the annulment was granted. However, it is treated just like a new marriage. You will be expected to receive the marriage prep just like anyone else. You will also be expected to abstain from sex, and to live as brother and sister if it is not possible to move apart.

 

[1ke]

She went to a meeting about divorce. They told her to file some paperwork and she would recieve a reply in about 10 months.

That is likely the average time in your diocese. It can vary from a few months to a few years. Ten months is actually pretty quick. Sounds like that meeting was very preliminary. There are many specific details that can impact the length of time it takes her to get the paperwork

If they so no,

Clearly you misunderstand the “paperwork”. It is not simply administrative paperwork. The Tribunal undertakes an investigation, through witness testimony, to determine whether or not she entered a valid marriage.

If it finds her marriage to be valid, you cannot marry her at all.

what are the ramifications if we get married outside of the Church

Again, you do not understand. If her prior marriage is valid, you cannot marry her at all.

i.e can I still take Communion, can our children be batized etc.

You would be an adulterer, in a state of mortal sin, and no you could not receive the sacraments. You would be putting both your souls in jeopardy to so ignore Church teaching on the sacrament of marriage.

If we do decide to get married outside of the Church

Walk away from such thoughts right this minute. You are not thinking straight, otherwise you would not be contemplating how to commit a mortal sin and kill the grace in your soul. You have put the cart before the horse.

You cannot contemplate marriage to this woman at all. Her freedom to marry must first be established. If she is found free to marry, then you can make plans with her. If her prior bond is found to be valid, she cannot marry, ever (until her valid spouse dies).

is there anyway for the Church to recognize our marriage down the road.

No, if her first marriage is valid you are not married and the Church cannot and will not recognize it, you are committing adultery.

From what we were told, she probably has grounds for approval but no guarentees.

which is why you are not free to date or contemplate marriage with her at this time.

 

[FrDavid96]

I am a Catholic and have recieved all the sacraments thus far. I am engaged to a non-Catholic. She was Greek Orthodox but is in the process of converting to Catholicism. She is going through R.C.I.A. now. She was married before in the Orthodox church and is now divorced. She is a getting an eclastical divorce is what I think she calls it, which in her religion allows her to remarry. We have spoke with our Parrish Pastor about getting married in the Catholic Church, He couldn’t give us answer as he was unsure. He said it may be possible. Im just looking for some direction. I really want to be married in the Church. Has anyone else expierenced something like this? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

The Catholic Church does recognize Orthodox marriages, but does not recognize Orthodox ecclesiastical divorces. She needs to petition for a decree of nullity (annulment) from the local Catholic bishop. It seems that you’ve already started that process. Good.

If the Tribunal does issue a final decree of nullity, there are still some issues of canon law that you’ll have to work-through but those are relatively minor. If she becomes Catholic, because she began as a Greek Orthodox, she would automatically become a member of the corresponding Catholic Church (not parish, but Church) that is the closest to her original Greek Orthodox one. This is true even if she is received as a Catholic in a Latin-rite parish by a Latin-rite priest or even bishop. That means that when the time comes, you’ll be a Latin-Church Catholic marrying an Eastern-Church Catholic. That gets just a little bit complicated. An Eastern Catholic is required to marry in the parish church of the groom, for example. She will also have the option of becoming Latin-Rite at the time of the marriage (if she so chooses) or you can elect to become Eastern Catholic. All of this is very much in the future, and you need not think about it right now, but just know that when the time comes (if the marriage is determined to be null) it will be just a little bit more complicated than if you were to marry a Latin Rite Catholic. Just a little bit, so don’t be too concerned.

Concentrate on that petition for declaration of nullity. Be sure to answer exactly what they are asking. I say that because although it’s similar, a divorce is also very different and the grounds for divorce are different than those for nullity. A person often tries to answer questions from the perspective of a divorce (after spending so much time on that divorce, the answers are ready at hand). Instead, remember that although the questions might be similar, the Tribunal is looking for something that is usually very different from what the divorce court considered.

Once you know what grounds you’ll be using for the petition, be sure to answer the questions with those grounds in mind. Divorces are usually granted because of what happened after the marriage ceremony. Annulments on the other hand, deal with the situation before and at the time of the marriage. This is critical. Work with your priest on this and whoever is assigned as the case assistant (usually your pastor, assistant, or deacon).

 

[FrDavid96]

I am a Catholic and have recieved all the sacraments thus far. I am engaged to a non-Catholic. She was Greek Orthodox but is in the process of converting to Catholicism. She is going through R.C.I.A. now. She was married before in the Orthodox church and is now divorced. She is a getting an eclastical divorce is what I think she calls it, which in her religion allows her to remarry. We have spoke with our Parrish Pastor about getting married in the Catholic Church, He couldn’t give us answer as he was unsure. He said it may be possible. Im just looking for some direction. I really want to be married in the Church. Has anyone else expierenced something like this? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

A couple of questions:

1. Was she married by an Orthodox priest?
2. What was the religion of her husband at the time of the marriage? Was he Orthodox, Catholic, Protestant, non-Christian?
3. EXACTLY what version of Orthodox is she? I ask this because people sometimes use the term “Greek Orthodox” in a generic sense. Is she literally “Greek” Orthodox?