Marriage Blessed By Church

afeith6658

I had my beautiful wedding September 8th, 2012. After 3 months of marriage I would only change one thing....my wedding being blessed by the Catholic Church. I don't want a do over, I don't want the white dress or 140 wedding guests. I want an intimate blessing by the church with only the parents and my bridal party present and dinner afterwards....maybe a little dancing. :

I want to do it on my parents wedding anniversary next year, 12/14/13.

Does what I want even exist????

In case anyone was wondering, I didn't do the church wedding in September because this was my second marriage, his first.

NYCMercedes

Can you post this on the Catholic board? They seem pretty sharp.

nafallon

Yes, what you want exists, but if your first marriage was in the Catholic Church and ended in a divorce or civil annulment you will need to get an annulment from the Catholic Church before you can have your present marriage blessed in the Church.  Even if you were not married in the Church you will need to go through a process where your 1st marriage is declared null.  They will probably also require some sort of marriage preparation.  You should contact your priest and he will help you determine what you need to do and how to begin the process.  My husband and I both had to go through the annulment process (even thought I was not a Catholic at the time and my 1st marriage had been in the Methodist Church) and we attended a Marriage Encounter Weekend and had some private counseling sessions before we had our marriage blessed by the Church.  

Lisa50

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/special-topic-wedding-boards_second-weddings_marriage-blessed-by-church?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Special%20Topic%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:35Discussion:0501ed61-d526-40ce-b2c4-afaec73be99dPost:ab82df43-00bc-4743-8372-b22f5b49120a">Marriage Blessed By Church</a>:
[QUOTE]I had my beautiful wedding September 8th, 2012. After 3 months of marriage I would only change one thing....my wedding being blessed by the Catholic Church. I don't want a do over, I don't want the white dress or 140 wedding guests. I want an intimate blessing by the church with only the parents and my bridal party present and dinner afterwards....maybe a little dancing. : I want to do it on my parents wedding anniversary next year, 12/14/13. Does what I want even exist???? In case anyone was wondering, I didn't do the church wedding in September because this was my second marriage, his first.
Posted by afeith6658[/QUOTE]

You should go to YOUR parish and speak with the pastor.  He will walk through what can and cannot be done.  You've not given enough information here for an answer either way.  Good luck!

nraymond1

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/special-topic-wedding-boards_second-weddings_marriage-blessed-by-church?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Special%20Topic%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:35Discussion:0501ed61-d526-40ce-b2c4-afaec73be99dPost:cfbf5046-694b-4e87-b73c-5f63e6b8425f">Re: Marriage Blessed By Church</a>:
[QUOTE]Yes, what you want exists, but if your first marriage was in the Catholic Church and ended in a divorce or civil annulment you will need to get an annulment from the Catholic Church before you can have your present marriage blessed in the Church.  Even if you were not married in the Church you will need to go through a process where your 1st marriage is declared null.  They will probably also require some sort of marriage preparation.  You should contact your priest and he will help you determine what you need to do and how to begin the process.  My husband and I both had to go through the annulment process (even thought I was not a Catholic at the time and my 1st marriage had been in the Methodist Church) and we attended a Marriage Encounter Weekend and had some private counseling sessions before we had our marriage blessed by the Church.  
Posted by nafallon[/QUOTE]

<div>What she said. Technically, it's a sacrament, so the way the Church sees it, you only get one. If the first wasn't valid for very specific reasons, you can get it annuled. However, you might be able to ask your priest for a blessing of the union without it being a sacrament. Good luck!
</div>

jennylee813

Agree with PPs. You will need an annulment.

Personally, I've been through the experience, and it was horrible for me. I will no longer practice the faith and found it to be an awful, invasive and hurtful experience.