My fiancee has done everything in his power to obtain an annullment, but the tribunal has denied it based on the lack of info from his witnesses' paperwork. we have discussed this again and again with the tribunal and our parish priest, but without anyone knowing details about his former wife and marriage, the tribunal will still not approve the annullment,even based on her lack of cooperation and infidelity in the marriage. How can we get past this? Our parish priest has shown us a law in canon law that permits an individual priest to override any of the laws based on his knowledge of the situation and depending on if it prevents the happiness of two people. My fiancee and I are both catholic, there were no children in his previous marriage, she committed adultery, and now we are having a problem with this. I am totally confused. what do we need to do to get past this as soon as possible. We have already been through catholic premarital counseling and have set a tentative date. Please respond.

-- (annmarine30@aol.com), May 20, 2002

Answers

Response to annullments

Your current plight is far more common than most realize. If your living in Canada contact the Tribunal Office in Winnipeg Manitoba as they are granting annulments in many cases where the essence of a marriage has died.

Have you attemprted to write the Tribuanl Office in your Diocese to gain another view?

-- Jean Bouchard (jeanb@cwk.imag.net), May 21, 2002.

Response to annullments

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-- Fred Bishop (FCB@heartland.com), May 21, 2002.

Response to annullments

Jean:

''Contact the Tribunal Office in Winnipeg Manitoba as they are granting annulments in many cases where the essence of a marriage has died.''

You make spurious statements like this one, and get upset when people contradict you.

No tribunal of the Catholic Church can annul a valid marriage. Your ''essence of marriage has died'' is an oxymoron. Marriage in essence is indissoluble. If a marriage is valid, it can't die. If it's invalid, it isn't ''essentially'' a marriage to begin with. There is no validity, and it may be annulled.

-- eugene c. chavez (chavezec@pacbell.net), May 21, 2002.

Response to annullments

Dear "annmarine,"

It is very clear, from the words you use and from the emotion with which you voice them, what your desire is in your present situation. Therefore I know that you are not going to like my reply. However, it is the only reply that an orthodox (genuine) Catholic can offer.

You wrote: "Our parish priest has shown us a law in canon law that permits an individual priest to override any of the laws based on his knowledge of the situation and depending on if it prevents the happiness of two people."

This is false. There is no such law. No clergyman can override the Church's marriage laws and application of them by a tribunal. If he showed you a passage in Canon Law, it does not apply to this situation, and it must not be misinterpreted out of sympathy for a suffering couple. If there were such a passage, there would be no need for tribunals to exist.

You continued: "My fiancee and I are both catholic, there were no children in his previous marriage, she committed adultery, and now we are having a problem with this. I am totally confused."

What you have mentioned (adultery) is not relevant, because a Decree of Nullity is granted based on the situation that existed on the wedding day -- not on later sins. I urge you not to use the word "fiance" to refer to your friend, because he must still be considered to be married -- and is thus not able to be engaged to you.

You stated: "We have already been through catholic premarital counseling and have set a tentative date."

No (arch)diocese that is aware of a pending "nullity process" should ever allow one of the individuals involved to take part in premarital counselling. That should have happened only after the granting of a Decree of Nullity. A Catholic who is still (presumptively) married may not "set a tentative date" for marriage.

You asked: "what do we need to do to get past this as soon as possible."

I believe that you have two options:
(1) Accept the ruling of the tribunal, say "farewell" to your friend, and continue your life serving God in peace (sharing in Christ's sufferings); or ...
(2) Contact the St. Joseph Foundation (lay experts in Canon Law in San Antonio) and ask if/how you can appeal the decision of your marriage tribunal.

If, in the end, you are unable to be married in a Catholic ceremony, "annmarine," please, please do not break God's commandments and invalidly attempt marriage in a different way. You would enter into a mortally sinful, adulterous relationship -- one leaving you without the ability to receive the Sacraments. Your life, deep within your soul, would be miserable.
Please pray for the help of the Holy Spirit.

God bless you.
John

-- (jfgecik@hotmail.com), May 24, 2002.

Response to annullments

Can anyone tell me why the church grants annullment in the first place. 1 Corinthians tells us that divorcees should never remarry, period. Widows and widowers are the only ones with permission to remarry. God's word tells us that divorce in the first place is never an option. Then to remarry is committing adultry to your original marriage vows. I am not passing judgement as my parents are divorced and both remarried. However, as a new Catholic, I'm just curious as to who made this rule, and why we follow it if it's clearly not based in scripture.

-- annullment question (jmoreau485@aol.com), June 18, 2002.

Response to annullments

jmoreau,

An annulment (or decree of nullity) is not a divorce. It is a statement that the marriage was invalid at the start. Since the marriage was invalid, a divorce is not needed and this does not contradict Jesus' words.

-- Glenn (glenn@excite.com), June 18, 2002.