Marriage preparation

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Prenuptial agreements are likely to render a Catholic marriage invalid.

In the case of previous marriages where there is property that is supposed to pass to children rather than a new spouse, I believe there are other means of determining inheritance (besides prenups) which will accomplish the intended purpose.

But I’m neither a canon law expert or a financial law expert (and such laws vary greatly from place to place) so I don’t know any particulars.
 
Why on earth would a Catholic even think about divorce before marriage?
 
That depends on the “pre nup”

some pre nuptial agreements have been in Catholic marriages for a long time, after all… who inherits, what happens if your wife pre deceases you, etc.

if your wife , for instance, has a necklace that belonged in her family for generations. the pre nuptial arrangement might be to determine what happens to family property if she dies before you, without heirs… etc… thats very old

who gets custody when various people die… thats perfectly acceptable.

the modern pre nup tends to only have to do with divorce… and THAT would likely make a marriage invalid, because of the implication that you were not in it for life.

i would suggest strongly you consult with an expert in religious law, and marriage/annulment issues
 
I thought I had read somehwere that the pre-nup cannot address any issue about divorce, but it can address just about anything about the death of a spouse (e.g. inheritance issues) and it can address financial or other issues that will take effect at the time of the marriage itself (e.g. an old-fashion marriage contract which may contain something like a dowry ).
However, a quick glance through the code of canon law did not confirm this.
 
kage_ar said:
Why on earth would a Catholic even think about divorce before marriage?
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I personally know of one devout little mother . . . with a chronically unfaithful abusive husband . . . who . . . legally . . . to protect herself, her life and health, and the health and welfare of their several children . . . prayer:gopray2:fully obtained a civil divorce . . . which provided a legal separation/amputation position of relative safety away from the definitely not-marvelous husband and father . . . of course a civil divorce does not affect in any way a valid marriage in the eyes of the Church . . . which marriage . . . although it may be harmful and bad in the extreme . . . in the Church’s eyes may well be still considered absolutely valid . . .

As far as prenups are concerned . . . I would think that the careful creation of appropriate legal wills should cover any intricate family situations where certain things are specifically needed to be bequeathed to certain family members, business associates, etc., . . . and in the cases of abundant wealth . . . legal trust funds can be set up for individuals such as family members, etc. . . . which protect monies from legal civil divorce and/or inheritance activities . . . etc.

The basic idea of a prenup . . . at least to my mind . . . reveals the individual requesting the prenup to have not carefully pray:gopray2:ed through the desire to marry a certain individual with the Lord . . . and not having achieved the assurance and peace from **God that this individual is the right one for him/her . . . it reveals an indecisiveness and lack of faith and essentially an attitude of irresponsibility . . . where the individual requesting a prenup wants to “have his/her cake and eat it to” . . . in other words . . . contrary to the complete comittment that entering into marriage requires . . . they are reserving a part of themselves and a part of their worldly goods just for themselves . . . to do with as they please irregardless of how it might affect their wife/husband . . . and creating a “soft place for their individual self to fall” . . . which violates the second commandment given by Jesus . . . our Lord **. . . the Blessed Christ . . .

"For all the law is fulfilled in one word,
even in this;
Thou shalt
love
thy neighbour
as thyself.
Galatians 5:14
:bible1:
Marriage in the Lord in the Church . . . is a three person and three way relationship . . . requiring first faith and trust in God . . . second faith and trust in oneself as a child of God . . . and third faith and trust in one’s future bride/groom as a child of God. . . Sacred :bible1:Scripture teaches that . . .

For the love of money
is the
root of all evil:
which while some coveted after,
they have erred from the faith,
and pierced themselves through
with many sorrows.
I Timothy 6:10
:bible1:

Entering into marriage is a giant leap of faith . . . and should be prayer:gopray2:fully, carefully and thoughtfully entered into . . . and according to Sacred :bible1: Scripture the “just” are supposed to live by faith in God . . . **if **. . . something grave should cause a couple to split up . . . all parties are encouraged to continue to live by faith in God . . . knowing in faith that He will take care of all His children whom He loves so . . .

**
. . . :coffeeread: . . .

Catholic Church Canon Law
and
The Catechism of the Catholic Church
(CCC)****Can. 1096 **
§1. For matrimonial consent to exist, the contracting parties must be at least not ignorant that marriage is a permanent partnership between a man and a woman ordered to the procreation of offspring by means of some sexual cooperation.

Can. 1101 §1. The internal consent of the mind is presumed to conform to the words and signs used in celebrating the marriage.

§2. If, however, either or both of the parties by a positive act of the will exclude marriage itself, some essential element of marriage, or some essential property of marriage, the party contracts invalidly.

**Can. 1102 **§1. A marriage subject to a condition about the future cannot be contracted validly.

**CCC 1648 **
It can seem difficult, even impossible, to bind oneself for life to another human being. This makes it all the more important to proclaim the Good News that God loves us with a definitive and irrevocable love, that married couples share in this love, that it supports and sustains them, and that by their own faithfulness they can be witnesses to God’s faithful love. Spouses who with God’s grace give this witness, often in very difficult conditions, deserve the gratitude and support of the ecclesial community.​
. . . all for Jesus+
. . . thank you Holy Mother Church+
. . . Bless the Lord O my soul
and all that is within me
bless His Holy Name+​
 
As far as prenups are concerned . . . I would think that the careful creation of appropriate legal wills should cover any intricate family situations where certain things are specifically needed to be bequeathed to certain family members, business associates, etc., . . . and in the cases of abundant wealth . . . legal trust funds can be set up for individuals such as family members, etc. . . . which protect monies from legal civil divorce and/or inheritance activities . . . etc
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For the most part, that is true. But there are somethings that a pre-nup may work better. Wills are not probated immediately after death and somethings have to be decided rather quickly. I heard of a case where a widower was remarrying and wanted to make sure he was buried next to his deceased wife and he asked his bride-to-be to sign an agreement to this effect prior to the marriage. Seems like a reasonable thing to do.
 
tafan said:
For the most part, that is true. But there are somethings that a pre-nup may work better. Wills are not probated immediately after death and somethings have to be decided rather quickly. I heard of a case where a widower was remarrying and wanted to make sure he was buried next to his deceased wife and he asked his bride-to-be to sign an agreement to this effect prior to the marriage. Seems like a reasonable thing to do.
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+A very sound constructive consideration . . . in most states in the U.S. . . . perhaps all . . . this type of request can be placed in a personal will in a specific section regarding funeral arrangements . . . the Administrator/Personal-Representative designated in the will . . . to handle the administration of the will . . . usually has full legal authority to make decisions in accordance with the will in such matters . . . prior to formal probate of a will in court which in some estates can take years . . . this may vary a bit from state to state . . . but normally this is handled very easily . . . out of Country though . . . it might be a problem . . . it would certainly be very worthwhile checking into so that no confusion is incurred . . .

. . . all for Jesus+​
 
I think a Catholic can.

I sort of think they’re bad luck though, in my opinion. Marriage is tough enough as it is. You don’t need a subconcious “get out of jail free card”.

I have no statistics on this, but I assure you that people who sign a pre-nup are MORE likely to divorce.

If my future fiancee throwed this on me-that would be a major red flag.
 
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