Marriage of Converts to Catholicism-need to remarry?

[jollybird]

A couple - both baptized Methodist - married in the Methodist church - want to convert to Catholicism.

Would their Methodist marriage be valid AND sacramental in the Catholic Church? (I say yes)
Do they need to con-validate after conversion? (I say no)

My friends raised/baptized their children (now adults) as Methodists but sent them to Catholic school all the way through HS, attended Catholic mass quite often but when they talked to the priest about converting, he informed them they would have to be remarried in the Catholic Church even going so far as to say they needed to divorce first.

I believe that with a Baptismal and Marriage certificate from a Methodist Church, the conversion would be very easy perhaps not even needing a conditional baptism.

I was STUNNED at this and simply said they spoke to the wrong priest. While I feel certain I am right and the priest is wrong…I want to check here to be sure.

Thanks.

 

[1ke]

A couple - both baptized Methodist - married in the Methodist church - want to convert to Catholicism.

Would their Methodist marriage be valid AND sacramental in the Catholic Church? (I say yes)
Do they need to con-validate after conversion? (I say no)

Their marriage is valid and a sacrament, unless they have an impediment such as a prior bond.

If neither has a prior marriage, they are validly married. Period.

but when they talked to the priest about converting, he informed them they would have to be remarried in the Catholic Church even going so far as to say they needed to divorce first.

Either they completely misunderstood or this priest has lost his marbles.

I believe that with a Baptismal and Marriage certificate from a Methodist Church, the conversion would be very easy perhaps not even needing a conditional baptism.

A baptismal certificate or affidavit is all that is needed. Methodist baptisms are valid.

They do not need any documentation from the Methodist church regarding their marriage. If any documentation of the marriage is requested, the civil marriage certificate is all that is needed. I’ve never heard of that, though.

I was STUNNED at this and simply said they spoke to the wrong priest. While I feel certain I am right and the priest is wrong…I want to check here to be sure.

Thanks.

Again, either a total misunderstanding or a case where they need to go elsewhere. That is truly bizarre.

 

[jollybird]

Thanks, 1ke. I thought it was crazy.

 

[puzzleannie]

A couple - both baptized Methodist - married in the Methodist church - want to convert to Catholicism.

Would their Methodist marriage be valid AND sacramental in the Catholic Church? (I say yes)
Do they need to con-validate after conversion? (I say no)

My friends raised/baptized their children (now adults) as Methodists but sent them to Catholic school all the way through HS, attended Catholic mass quite often but when they talked to the priest about converting, he informed them they would have to be remarried in the Catholic Church even going so far as to say they needed to divorce first.

I believe that with a Baptismal and Marriage certificate from a Methodist Church, the conversion would be very easy perhaps not even needing a conditional baptism.

I was STUNNED at this and simply said they spoke to the wrong priest. While I feel certain I am right and the priest is wrong…I want to check here to be sure.

Thanks.

we don’t know the whole story, presumably the priest does.
If facts were as stated, and there is no missing info (previous marriage etc) then yes the marriage was both valid and sacramental.

Either the priest has info we don’t, or they did not give him all the relevant info, or they misunderstood what he said, or he was wrong. We are not on the ground so can only speculate.

 

[jollybird]

Unfortunately I have heard this priest’s name attached to other incorrect info. Considering I was given very bad information(by a couple other priests) when I was asking for a radical sanation, I am not surprised. Once I got to the right priest and the Vatican stepped in, it went smoothly.

I am going to suggest another priest.

 

[Trishie]

**United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Frequently asked questions about marriage**

nccbuscc.org/laity/marriage/marriagefaqs.shtml

Code of Canon Law BAPTISM

Can. 869 §1. If there is a doubt whether a person has been baptized or whether baptism was conferred validly and the doubt remains after a serious investigation, baptism is to be conferred conditionally.

§2. Those baptized in a non-Catholic ecclesial community must not be baptized conditionally unless, after an examination of the matter and the form of the words used in the conferral of baptism and a consideration of the intention of the baptized adult and the minister of the baptism, a serious reason exists to doubt the validity of the baptism.

§3. If in the cases mentioned in §§1 and 2 the conferral or validity of the baptism remains doubtful, baptism is not to be conferred until after the doctrine of the sacrament of baptism is explained to the person to be baptized, if an adult, and the reasons of the doubtful validity of the baptism are explained to the person or, in the case of an infant, to the parents.

I do know this is a fact, but Canon Law is frustratingly complicated and I don’t have time right now to find the correct info from Canon Law:
Catholicism distiguishes between marriage (civil) and sacramental marriage, as of the 1983 Code. Under the 1983 Code, marriages between 2 people who are free to marry, who are baptized Christians, and neither are Catholic, they are in a sacramental marriage (we presume); the church does, however, recognize all civil aspects of marriage normally (esp as to children)whether or not the couple is Christian as most civil law pertains to the State. If a non Catholic couple validly marries, and then they convert, there is no need for a convalidiation – prior to conversion they were not subject to merely ecclesial law. The issues arise when a couple contradicts a Divine Positive law (ie man and woman, potency, etc) or Divine Natural Law which bind all people whether or not they are baptized by the nature of the lawgiver – God" Dont grumble. I know it’s not a site I want to uses but I haven’t time right now en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk%3ACatholic_marriage#Legal_Status_of_Non-Catholic_Marriages

Just as a matter of interest, a marriage ceremony is not always necessary in case of an invalid marriage:

Article 2: Retroactive Validation

Canon 1161.1 The retroactive validation of an invalid marriage is its validation without the renewal of consent, granted by the competent authority. It involves a dispensation from an impediment if there is one and from the canonical form if it had not been observed, as well as a referral back to the past of the canonical effects.

Canon 1161.2 The validation takes place from the moment the favour is granted; the referral back, however, is understood to have been made to the moment the marriage was celebrated, unless it is otherwise expressly provided.

 

[Matthew_Holford]

A couple - both baptized Methodist - married in the Methodist church - want to convert to Catholicism.

Would their Methodist marriage be valid AND sacramental in the Catholic Church? (I say yes)
Do they need to con-validate after conversion? (I say no)

My friends raised/baptized their children (now adults) as Methodists but sent them to Catholic school all the way through HS, attended Catholic mass quite often but when they talked to the priest about converting, he informed them they would have to be remarried in the Catholic Church even going so far as to say they needed to divorce first.

I believe that with a Baptismal and Marriage certificate from a Methodist Church, the conversion would be very easy perhaps not even needing a conditional baptism.

I was STUNNED at this and simply said they spoke to the wrong priest. While I feel certain I am right and the priest is wrong…I want to check here to be sure.

Thanks.

Why did the priest say this?

If neither has been married before and neither was impeded by a Divine Law impediment then there is no reason to impugn their marriage.

Are there facts that you don’t know or can’t reveal? Perhaps one of them has been married before and the former spouse is still living.

If both have never been married before advise them make an appointment to see the priest. At that appointment they should ask the priest what problems he perceives regarding their marital status. We can all easily forget things so either they should ask the priest to write down the reason or they should write it down.

They do need to check what the reason was rather than be left confused.