Married in Protestant church, divorced, remarriage in Catholic?

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My fiance and I were both baptized and confirmed as Catholics. I am a practicing Catholic. This will be my fiance’s second marriage. Several years ago, he was married in the Methodist church. He was young, it was a mistake, etc. I know the Catholic church does not recognize his marriage, as it was in the Methodist church. Does that mean we can be married in the Catholic church without him having to seek an annulment? I know the situation is complicated. My faith is very important to me, and I really want to be married in the Church. I appreciate any guidance you can give me.
 
kfm216 said:
My fiance and I were both baptized and confirmed as Catholics. I am a practicing Catholic. This will be my fiance’s second marriage. Several years ago, he was married in the Methodist church. He was young, it was a mistake, etc. I know the Catholic church does not recognize his marriage, as it was in the Methodist church. Does that mean we can be married in the Catholic church without him having to seek an annulment? I know the situation is complicated. My faith is very important to me, and I really want to be married in the Church. I appreciate any guidance you can give me.
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If your finance was married in Methodist Church without dispensation, then the Catholic Church will not recognize the marriage. There is still paperwork to be filled out and matters to be addressed, but it is fairly straightforward. This will have to be handled before you can start marriage preparation. The priest will guide your fiance through the procedure.
 
Thanks for your response. So an annulment would not be necessary?
 
kfm216 said:
Thanks for your response. So an annulment would not be necessary?
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We cannot possibly answer completely here. There may be details involved that would effect the answer. From what you say, it seems that it is merely a “lack of form” decree…which in my diocese still must go through the tribunal, but it doesn’t take long.

But we can’t say for sure. Meet with a priest as soon as possible.

For a Catholic, there is no other option than to marry in the church.
 
I understand that a complete answer cannot be given here. It’s just something that is on my mind right now, and I was hoping for some (name removed by moderator)ut before seeking further information.
 
kfm216 said:
I understand that a complete answer cannot be given here. It’s just something that is on my mind right now, and I was hoping for some (name removed by moderator)ut before seeking further information.
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You’ve been given all the possible (name removed by moderator)ut. We can’t say definitely either way. Something could come up in the investigations that means he would need a full annulment, but there’s too many variables.

See a priest as soon as possible.
 
kfm216 said:
Thanks for your response. So an annulment would not be necessary?
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What you described would be a “lack of form” case. I don’t know if it is technically called an annulment. An investigation is still required, but once they see a civil marriage certificate and no indication of a marriage on the sacramental record the case won’t be going any further. This is about as easy as it gets when dealing with prior “marriages.”

I’m basing my answer on what you provided. Oftentimes important details are omitted from questions simply because posters don’t know what is and is not relevant. Only the priest and/or the bishop can answer these questions for a particular case.
 
Just as an example of a circumstance that could change the answers you are getting: did your fiance receive a dispensation from his bishop to marry in the Methodist Church? If so, the marriage is presumed valid, and he would need to seek a declaration of nullity before he could be considered free to marry.

It sounds like it’s probably just your typical lack of form case, which only requires some paper work to address, but there may be details that you’re not aware of that could affect the situation. Make an appointment to talk to your pastor. God bless.
 
See your priest. It may just be a lack of form case. If it is depending on the diocese you are in will depend on what is required and how long it will take. Lack of form requirements vary diocese to diocese.
 
kfm216 said:
Thanks for your response. So an annulment would not be necessary?
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Yes, an annulment is necessary, but those are possible grounds for an declaration of nullity to be granted.

It would be officially called a declaration of nullity due to a defect of form.

But it would require that a marriage tribunal investigate the issue and verify the particulars of your fiance’s marriage. A marriage is always presumed valid until shown otherwise.

Your pastor should be your initial contact, and he will get the ball rolling.
 
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