I am a Catholic planning to marry a devote non-Catholic christian. We both plan on keeping our own religion. What conditions does the Catholic Church place on the person I want to marry before we can be married in the Catholic Church? We are both in our 50's, so children having children is not a factor...

-- Michael (mdahl5@aol.com), March 27, 2002

Answers

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-- - (-@-.-), March 27, 2002.

Dear Michael, According to the code of Cannon Law there are no conditions placed on the non-Catholic in a mixed marriage. You will be asked to promise to continue living your faith as a Catholic.\ Father Chris

-- Father Chris W. LaBarge (marydelfr@starband.net), March 30, 2002.

Jmj

Hello, Michael.
Through your pastor, you will have to obtain a dispensation from your bishop to marry a non-Catholic.
You both must be free to enter into a valid marriage (e.g., capable of consummating the marriage; not divorced and attempting to "re-marry" without first having obtained a Decree of Nullity; acknowledging the permanence of marriage until death; etc.).
God bless you.
John

-- (jfgecik@hotmail.com), March 31, 2002.

I think that is why so many Catholics have left the church. There are so many rules that come and go, that the church misses the whole point of what Jesus said - to love one another as I have loved you. Most of the rules have nothing to do with love, only sin.

-- ann (annpleas@aol.com), January 20, 2003.

Can you have a full mass when you are marrying a non catholic?

-- Pamela Drakeford (drakeford1979@earthlink.net), May 17, 2003.

Jmj

Hello, Pamela.
The quick answer is "yes." The Catholic priest should discuss with you whether or not it would be good in your particular case. (If you want me to elaborate on this, I will.)

Ann, you left your message in January, when I was absent from the forum. Your attitude is not a reasonable one. Nor is it valid for anyone to leave the Catholic Church for the reason you mentioned (or for any other reason, for that matter).

You stated: "Most of the rules have nothing to do with love, only sin."
You should have stopped to think that "rules" that condemn sin are there to root out the biggest barriers to "love" -- offenses against God and fellow man.

God bless you.
John

-- J. F. Gecik (jfgecik@hotmail.com), May 18, 2003.

Jmj
Hello, "kathy."

Before a person posts a message on this forum, she should know what she is talking about. You forgot to do that. Let's take a look at how you went wrong ...

K: "Do yourself a favor and go to the Lutheran side of religion, where they do not make up their own rules.
J: The very existence of Lutheranism (which was begun in about 1521) is owed to the fact that a very disturbed man -- Father Martin Luther -- "ma[d]e up [his] own rules" and taught heresies.

K: "God is Love, Catholic's do not rule. God does."
J: Catholics believe the same. You were wrong to think that we don't.

K: "The Catholic Church does not accept a marriage outside of their religion ..."
J: This is absolutely false! For example, the Church presumes to be valid all first marriages between two Protestants, two Jews, two Moslems, two Hindus.

K: "... but try and get married Catholic if your spouse was married before in a non-Catholic Church, never happen."
J: That person is not "your spouse," but is presumed to be the spouse of the first person he/she married. That's what Jesus said.

K: "Unless, you sent your $$ to the Pope and get a acceptance from them. This is not a religion but a business.
J: Being a pathetic anti-Catholic, you have let your imagination run away with you. No one, least of all you, have any evidence of "$$ [being sent] to the Pope". Fortunately, sane people know that the pope is a holy man untainted by any corruption. You are one sick slanderer, "kathy." May God forgive you.

God bless you.
John

-- J. F. Gecik (jfgecik@hotmail.com), June 08, 2003.

If I am agnostic and my future husband is Catholic, is the baptism of our child in a catholic church a possibility even though I will not raise my child to believe Christianity is the one true faith?

-- Kristy Bale (kristybale@msn.com), June 12, 2003.

Kristy, I'm glad that you realized that you should ask your question on a new forum thread, since it does not pertain to the subject of this thread.
I have answered you here, on your new thread.
JFG

-- J. F. Gecik (jfgecik@hotmail.com), June 12, 2003.

You know what JFG?, Who are you to judge anyone and put them down for what they believe? Only God judges us. This forum is to help people not put them down. May God have mercy on you.

MM

-- MM (elsewhere143@yahoo.com), July 18, 2004.

first, MM, john gecik has been gone for quite some time. the only times he posts here now, by his own rules, are in the new saints of the day threads.

your post attacking him there, however, would be a major derailment of thread topic, and could probably be deleted by a moderator at john's or anyone else's request.

at the same time, john didnt judge anybody. he counseled quite truethfully, albight with blatantly little padding to soften the edges. if you want a testimony to john's case, i believe you should look at the post found here, which will show some of the consequences of what can arise from a marraige such as was described more than a year ago:

http://greenspun.com/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg.tcl?msg_id=00CE7b

in the case of a mixed marraige, certain situations must exist to make it successful. the catholic church doesnt view marraige as a solidification of the bond of love, because it isnt. its a legal, moral, spiritually binding covenant of a husband and wife in God. when you take two people of different faiths, who disagree on something so important as child rearing, marraige success becomes next to impossible. THAT is what john was counseling, and THAT is truth whether you choose to accept it or not.

-- paul h (dontsendmemail@notanaddress.com), July 19, 2004.