Civil and Religious Aspects of Marriage

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If a recognized civil marriage has taken place, even if only a common law marrage, there are legal implications -- such as legitimacy of children, property and inheritance rights, and a legal relationship between the two spouses. Here in the United States the Decisions of the Catholic Church Tribunals, consequently, have no effect whatsoever on the legitimacy of children, the decrees of the civil courts regarding alimony, child support, or property during the divorce proceedings.
The Catholic Church Tribunal's concern is with the religious and sacramental aspects of marriage. It begins with the presumption that every marriage, including those contracted according to the laws of other religious or civil bodies, is valid (CCEO Canon 779). Only when the evidence presented and contained in the Acts shows that this presumption of validity is not true, is a marriage declared null. An annulment says that this particular marriage was not a valid sacred bond because some aspect of the requirements for validity, as understood by the Catholic Church was absent from the very beginning. Thus, an annulment is not the dissolution of a marital bond but a declaration that such a bond did not exist in spite of the parties' best efforts.

In making such a declaration, the Tribunal follows the jurisprudence contained in the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches, stated in Vatican Documents, especially in the "Church in the Modern World" of Vatican Council II and "Familiaris Consortium," and followed by the Church's Supreme Tribunals: The Roman Rota and the Apostolic Signatura.

Major areas are:

  • Whether or not the marriage was freely contracted?
  • Whether or not both spouses intended that this marriage be permanent, faithful and fruiful (that is, open to children)?
  • Whether or not both spouses possessed the maturity of judgment as understood by the Catholic Church that indicates a readiness for Christian marriage?
  • Whether or not one or both parties married according to the mind of the Catholic Church and its understanding of the marriage covenant?
  • A Declaration of Nullity does not deny that a relationship existed, nor does it imply that the relationship was entered with ill will or moral fault. There is no attempt during the Ecclesiastical Process to impute guilt of any kind. Rather, the Declaration of Nullity is the end of the process of searching for the truth about a marriage and a decision that the marriage in question fell short of at least one of the elements considered essential for a true marital bond, as understood by the Catholic Church.
The Petitioner is the party who asks the Tribunal to study his/her marriage in the light of Church teachings and jurisprudence. The first step is the completion of a Preliminary Application Form which should be done with the assistance of one's local priest/deacon/subdeacon. The Petitioner then is guided through the writing of a personal history and a history of the relationship in question.

The Respondent is the former spouse. After the Petitioner's request for a hearing of his/her case has been accepted by the Tribunal, the Respondent is contacted and is given a copy of the Petitioner's statements and allegations so that the Respondent can respond. The Tribunal has a moral obligation in justice to protect the rights of both parties. Thus, the Respondent must be contacted and must be informed about the application and the grounds, and is encouraged to provide the Tribunal with his/her view of the marital relationship.

The Petitioner and the Respondent have equal rights before any Church Tribunal. Both have a right to state their views on their relationship and have them taken into account, the right to information about what's happening in the case, and the right to provide witnesses to the Tribunal. The Tribunal's process is not adversarial regarding the parties, pitting one spouse against the other. The Tribunal process, however, is "adversarial" in that the Eparch/Bishop appoints a Defender of the Bond to defend the Church's presumption that every marriage is presumed valid till proved otherwise. Likewise, the Petitioner and the Respondent each appoint an Advocate who represents the interest of that particular party. The Advocate also brings to the Tribunal the concerns of the party they represent. Thus, the Tribunal seeks to obtain as complete a picture as possible of the marriage-in-question in order to weigh that picture against the Church's teachings and laws on marriage. So necessary is this representation, that if the Respondent fails to cooperate, an Advocate is appointed by the Presiding Judge to protect the rights of the Respondent until he or she decides to join the case and appoints his/her own Advocate.

Key witnesses are those who knew the spouses before and during the first years of this marriage, and who are knowledgeable:

  • about the parties,
  • about the parties' intentions, and
  • about the parties' relationship.
After all evidence is collected, the Advocate for the Petitioner and the Advocate for the Respondent present their arguments (Briefs) and the Defender of the Bond presents his case for validity of the bond. Finally, the Judge renders a Decision and writes a Sentence defending the Decision and Judgment.