Renewal of vows

[divorced123]

My wife and I were initially married by a Justice of the Peace and then ten years later had our vows renewed in the Catholic Church. At the time of the wedding and the renewal of vows, neither of us were confirmed Catholics. We were confirmed together a few years later. We are now divorced and I am considering marrying a woman I am in love with. Will I be able to receive communion after I marry my new love?

 

[Claire_from_DE]

The fact that you were not confirmed before you exchanged vows isn’t relevant to the fact that you were married in the church. If your former wife is still living, you will need to have the church examine your marriage and grant an annulment before you are free to marry again in the church. If you don’t marry in the church you won’t be able to receive communion. Please see a priest and begin the process if you are thinking about marrying again. It would have been a good idea to do so before you began dating after your divorce.

 

[JulianN]

My wife and I were initially married by a Justice of the Peace and then ten years later had our vows renewed in the Catholic Church. At the time of the wedding and the renewal of vows, neither of us were confirmed Catholics. We were confirmed together a few years later. We are now divorced and I am considering marrying a woman I am in love with. Will I be able to receive communion after I marry my new love?

At the time you “renewed your vows”, did the priest make it clear to you that you were – in the eyes of the church – actually getting married? In other words, did you understand that this was a convalidation and not a blessing of an already-existing marriage?

Alternatively, did the priest speak with you about a radical sanation?

If not, you may want to explain that to your pastor as you begin the process of obtaining a declaration of nullity. Your grounds may be related to an invalid convalidation.