Not Baptised - Valid Marriage?

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Wouldn’t the couple receive a copy of the dispensation at the time of marriage? We did, almost 30 years ago.
 
Not normally - it goes to the diocesan chancery to be kept safe by legions of squirrel monkeys for aeons to come (okay well not quite but you get the idea 😛). However, looking at our diocesan forms (just happen to have some at my elbow) they do require the Catholic party to sign. That said, I suspect for most (if not all couples) unless they’re particularly keen on Canon Law it’s just another form, just some more paperwork which blurs readily into the background during marriage preparation. The way to know for certain is to check - marriage papers stay where the marriage takes place. One final thing I picked up on was the reference to a deacon being involved - at least in my diocese, deacons can’t dispense from disparity of cult (Catholic marrying non-baptised) but any priest can. Some dioceses are quite strict about it even to the point where, in some places, it simply doesn’t happen.
 
hotl said:
Hi,

My wife and I were married 30-odd years ago, by a priest, in a Catholic church. We were young and didn’t know or think about it at the time, but my wife was not baptised. She became Catholic several years later (praise God!) - she was baptised at the same time our first child was baptised (in a Catholic church). I am a cradle-Catholic.

I now understand there is a requirement for both parties to be baptised. I’m surprised neither the priest who celebrated our marriage, nor the priest who subsequently baptised her (knowing we were married) didn’t raise this as an issue.

I would appreciate knowing if this is “an issue” in anyway.
  • Is our marriage valid in the eyes of the Church?
  • Is it a “sacramental” marriage?
  • Does it need to be “corrected” in any way?
Thanking you in advance!
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Please understand that just because the couple might not see everything the priest does, he still knows what he needs to do. And by far (I can’t stress this enough) it usually gets done.

Yes, you needed something called a dispensation from disparity of cult.

It is highly unlikely (near impossible) that a priest would have missed this.
hotl said:
It sounds like I will need my local diocese to get in touch with our old overseas diocese to check if dispensation was obtained (there is nothing on our marriage certificate indicating this).
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Dispensations are typically not listed on a marriage certificate. Yes, they get recorded, but not on the certificate itself. So the absence of any note really doesn’t indicate anything.

Think of it this way, the certificate itself is written proof that the priest did follow proper procedures.
 
I mentioned the deacon. He did not give dispensation himself. But he did our marriage prep and made sure the paperwork got done. Our dispensation had to come from the bishop’s office. That’s all I meant.

ETA - our dispensation was for not marrying in a Catholic church building and for a mixed marriage, not disparity of cult.
 
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That would be very unusual. Most couples aren’t even aware of it.
 
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