The sin of marrying outside the Church as it relates to government laws

[Mort_Alz]

I have heard it said that in France, it is illegal to have a religious ceremonial wedding until one gets it legalized. (A “wedding” with a court justice).

If this is the case, then are all legal Catholics who get married in France sinning since they are first getting “married” outside the Church?

 

[HelenRose]

I don’t see how if they don’t sleep together until after the wedding in the Church.

 

[Louishacker]

In Mexico also the state only recognises a civil ceremony as legal; a couple wanting to marry in the Church gets married legally and later that day goes to Church for a saramental marriage. In the United States by, contrast, Church marriages are also accepted as valid by the government…

 

[Phemie]

I have heard it said that in France, it is illegal to have a religious ceremonial wedding until one gets it legalized. (A “wedding” with a court justice).

If this is the case, then are all legal Catholics who get married in France sinning since they are first getting “married” outside the Church?

In this case, as long as they don’t live as man and wife before the marriage is celebrated in Church, they are not sinning by following the law of the land.

 

[minkymurph]

I have heard it said that in France, it is illegal to have a religious ceremonial wedding until one gets it legalized. (A “wedding” with a court justice).

If this is the case, then are all legal Catholics who get married in France sinning since they are first getting “married” outside the Church?

I’m not sure this ia quite right, but I will check out French law.

A situation similar to this existed in Ireland at one time in that Jehovah’s Witnesses and other non-mainstream religions had to have two ‘weddings.’ The reason was because bothe the the building in which the wedding was to be held and the person who performed the ceremony had to be registered. Kingdom Halls and ‘elders’ were not so they had to have a civil ceremony in addition to a religious one for it to be legal., although sometimes the registrar would come to the Kingdom Hall. This is not the case now as they are registered.

It may be the case in France that you have to register the marriage with the civil authority for it to be recognised in law. I would guess Catholics would see the religious marriage as the ‘real’ one. There are also problems on Europe at the moment concerning marriage and free movement of people, as some people who don’t know each other have got married to get, for example, a British passport. In such cases the registrar can alert the proper authorities., so it may be a form of immigration control.

 

[SMHW]

In the United States (and in many other countries) the priest or deacon is a legal agent of the state so he can witness marriages. Countries like France and Mexico do not have that arrangement with clergy.

In the United States couples must obtain a marriage license from the state prior to marrying in the Church. But they only need to exchange vows once. In countries like France and Mexico the exchange of vows must be done in front of both state and religious officials.

The Church expects us to follow the laws of the state when marrying so if a separate exchange of vows is necessary then that must be done. But the Church expects the couple to understand that the Church does not recognize the state marriage as sufficient any more than she considers obtaining a marriage license but failing to exchange vows as sufficient. (Unless the couple obtained a dispensation from the Church to be married in a different fashion) the couple is not married until the couple exchanges vows before a recognized witness of the Church.

 

[minkymurph]

I’m not sure this ia quite right, but I will check out French law.

A situation similar to this existed in Ireland at one time in that Jehovah’s Witnesses and other non-mainstream religions had to have two ‘weddings.’ The reason was because bothe the the building in which the wedding was to be held and the person who performed the ceremony had to be registered. Kingdom Halls and ‘elders’ were not so they had to have a civil ceremony in addition to a religious one for it to be legal., although sometimes the registrar would come to the Kingdom Hall. This is not the case now as they are registered.

It may be the case in France that you have to register the marriage with the civil authority for it to be recognised in law. I would guess Catholics would see the religious marriage as the ‘real’ one. There are also problems on Europe at the moment concerning marriage and free movement of people, as some people who don’t know each other have got married to get, for example, a British passport. In such cases the registrar can alert the proper authorities., so it may be a form of immigration control.

Just looks it up. Religious marital ceremonies have no legal status in France. French law recognises only civil ceremonies so it is similar to that of non-mainstream religions in Ireland in the past. As suc,h, the civil ceremony is the legal part and for Catholics, the religious ceremony would be the sacramental part.

 

[Phemie]

Just looks it up. Religious marital ceremonies have no legal status in France. French law recognises only civil ceremonies so it is similar to that of non-mainstream religions in Ireland in the past. As suc,h, the civil ceremony is the legal part and for Catholics, the religious ceremony would be the sacramental part.

It’s the same way in Germany, Switzerland, Luxembourg & Austria. It’s forbidden to marry in the Church first and in most places the Catholic Church will ask to see a valid marriage certificate before the religious ceremony.