I am not baptized, is my former marriage valid?

[kadin0017]

I am a divorced woman who has never been baptized. My marriage was conducted in a clerk of courts office, not a church. However, I am in a relationship with a Catholic man that is progressing towards a more serious one. We have talked about marriage but are yet to be engaged. He wants to have a Catholic ceremony when he gets married. I am not sure what I would need to do in order comply with the church. My ex husband is currently engaged to be married and I wasn’t sure if once he got married if that would invalidate our marriage, since in the eyes of the Catholic Church a marriage is until death. I also read somewhere that if the couple that were married were not baptized, and the marriage was conducted outside of a church, that the marriage would not be valid… is this true? What steps would I have to take in order for my marriage to be nullified?

 

[Fr.Charles_Grondin]

Yes, your marriage is a valid one. Only Catholics are required to be married in a Catholic church. Otherwise, anytime a man and a woman exchange marriage vows in front of a witness they are validly married.
Since you were not baptized then your marriage is what is called a natural marriage. If you want to be married to someone else then there are two options:

1. You can petition the Catholic Church for a declaration of annulment for your marriage. This would involve an investigation into whether the proper elements of marriage were present when you exchanged vows with your husband.
2. Because you were not baptized, you have a valid natural marriage. A natural marriage, unlike a sacramental marriage, is not indissoluble. If you desired to be baptized and become Catholic you could apply for a Pauline or Petrine Privilege (depending on whether your husband was baptized or not). In this scenario the Church would dissolve your natural marriage.