Invalid Marriage

[Catholic]

How should faithful Catholics approach the death of a friend’s invalid spouse? Are sympathy cards, etc. appropriate?

 

[Irish_Melkite]

Catholic,

Absolutely, as are spiritual bouquets, prayers, attendance at the wake, funeral, etc. It is not our place to judge others.

Remember:

The Beatitudes:

Blessed are they who mourn: for they shall be comforted

The Corporal Works of Mercy:

To bury the dead.

The Spiritual Works of Mercy:

To comfort the afflicted; and,
To pray for the living and the dead.

And note that none of them say, “Only do this for those you believe are without sin”.

Many years,

Neil

 

[otm]

Put yourself in their shoes. How would you want people to respond to you? Kindness to the living spouse does not equate with approval of their marriage status. Kindness may be what draws that individual back to full participation in the Church. They lost a spouse. Christ showed mercy to sinners; let Him do the judging; you show mercy.

And don’t be quick to say or imply “Well, now you can get right with the Church”. They would probably take that as saying, “Well, now they’re gone and that’s over”, and they likely have it figured out anyway. Support them in their grief.

 

[Sunniva]

We don’t know if his spouse, even if they were not considered to be in a valid marriage, confessed before she died. She might have confessed all her sins and received absolution and Holy Communion on her deathbed (if she was Catholic, of course).

That means that she was free of sins when she died and at peace with God.

That man have lost a person he loved very much, married or not. He must be devastated and in deep sorrow and need all the care and comfort we can give. Not to console him and send condolence cards and so on, and say that the reason why is because the woman that died was his illicit mistress may cause him to turn away from the Church all together.

Now he may be reconciled with God and the Church, because of the love and care from his fellow Christians.