Validity of Marriages with vasectomies/tubals

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babette_1

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Maybe some of you can help me with this question. One of the reasons you can base an annulment on, is that one of the parties witheld children from the marriage. Therefore can a man with a vasectomy, or a woman with a tubal ever enter into a valid marriage in the Catholic church?
 
I believe the answer is yes. If they did this before they were Catholic, and later repented after joining the church, I think so.
 
Well, Babette, tubals and vasectomies can sometimes be reversed. That is a consideration.

Also, a woman who has gone through menopause would no longer be capable of having children, tubal or not. So the age would be a consideration.

Also, if these men and women are Catholic converts, not knowing of the sin of the practices when they had them, that would be a consideration.

In addition, even Catholics might not be cognisant of the intrinsic evil of the procedures at the time they received them. Also, there is no sin that God cannot forgive–so if these men and women have confessed and done penance, that is also a consideration…

The mortal sin comes with full knowledge, grave matter, and full consent of the will in a baptized Catholic.

So I believe the short answer is that, yes, a man or woman with tubal/ vasectomy, even irreversible, may still enter into a Catholic marriage, in circumstances where that party was either non-Catholic at the time of the procedure, or if Catholic did not understand the nature of the mortal sin, or did not freely choose, or has repented and done penance for the mortal sin.
 
Sterility is not an impediment to marriage. A person who is naturally sterile is free to marry. A person who has been sterilized, (possibly before converting or before being informed of the Church’s prohibition) can be open to life though unable to conceive. Ever if the sterilization was sinfully done, it can be repented and confessed.

If a couple can afford it, a reversal should be attempted but is not required.

In any case both parties should be completely informed of such a situation before a marriage is entered.
 
It is my understanding (from what we were told in our marriage prep) that sterility is not an impediment to Catholic marriage, but inability to perform the marital act is.
 
Being sterile is Not an impediment to contracting a valid marriage. However, being totally hopelessly permanently impotent IS an impediment. So is having murdered your previous spouse.
 
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Pug:
So is having murdered your previous spouse.
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!!! Not something they mentioned in ordinary marriage prep, but thanks for throwing it in.
 
Okay, I found the exact canon about the murder thing:

Can. 1090 §1. Anyone who with a view to entering marriage with a certain person has brought about the death of that person’s spouse or of one’s own spouse invalidly attempts this marriage.

§2. Those who have brought about the death of a spouse by mutual physical or moral cooperation also invalidly attempt a marriage together.

can find this stuff on the Vatican site

At the same link is canon 1084 which talks about the sterility and impotence thing.
 
THANKS FOR ALL THE GREAT ANSWERS, THIS WAS MY FIRST POST ON THE FORUM.
GOD BLESS ALL OF YOU!
 
I have another twist on the question. What if the person with the vasectomy gave the impression that he regretted his actions before the catholic marriage but in fact did not feel guilty at all and after the marriage did not try to reverse it or was not open to adopting any children at all. Would that make the marriage invalid since he is not open to new life, not really? Would the fact that he had children with his wife prior to the Catholic marriage change anything?
 
ajaffres said:
I have another twist on the question. What if the person with the vasectomy gave the impression that he regretted his actions before the catholic marriage but in fact did not feel guilty at all and after the marriage did not try to reverse it or was not open to adopting any children at all. Would that make the marriage invalid since he is not open to new life, not really? Would the fact that he had children with his wife prior to the Catholic marriage change anything?
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This is an 8 year old thread. Forum rules state we are not to resurrect threads older than a year old. Please post your question as a new question.
 
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