Convalidation question

e_jakiela

Is convalidation something that the American Catholic Church does? I keep hearing that people who get married in a civil ceremony and then have a Catholic ceremony, cannot call it a "Church wedding" but a convalidation... In Poland, traditionally there was no joint wedding, where one ceremony would make the marriage legally valid. Couples would have a civil ceremony in the morning of their wedding day (or sometimes earlier) and then a religious ceremony later that day. No one would call them separate things. During the convalidation, does the priest mention in any way that the couple has been married already in civil ceremony? How does the convalidation ceremony differ from the actual wedding ceremony? Is the only difference in the fact that the church does not have to do any paper work?

agapecarrie

In USA, religious ceremonies also count legally. There is no need for 2 ceremonies. In many countries, the law doesn't allow this. In fact, the nuptial blessing in the latin rite (and maybe other rites) are derived from the times when it was required to have a seperate legal ceremony. A convalidation is for the purposes of when one or both of the couple wants to make their living situation a sacrament. Marrying outside the church is considered a sin, it is a public act. The Church does not consider a legal ceremony outside of the church (for Catholics) a marriage. (The Church does recognize marriages of non-Catholics). A convalidation ceremony can be a quiet small statement of vows or a larger affair.

AlexiaANDRobert

My sister was married by the JOP about two months before her Catholic Wedding. Since they didn't live together or (I cannot think of the word when you sleep together the night of the wedding!) live like a married couple, they had their Catholic wedding and that is their anniversary date and that is the wedding that people went to and the one that counts. She was moving to Germany two days after her ceremony so it was easier to change her name on her passport, license, social security card, etc.  I never heard anyone call it a convalidation ceremony or anything like that. HTH.

Calypso1977

ditto agape.  

meltoine

A convalidation is a ceremony whereby a valid, natural marriage that has already occurred is elevated to the level of a sacrament. For a couple to have a valid, natural marriage outside the Church, a few conditions must be met. If neither party is Christian, they can have a valid, natural marriage according to the precepts of their religion or the state. If one or both of them chooses to become Catholic later, they may have a convalidation so they can receive the sacrament now that they are Catholics. Ditto for a Catholic who marries a non-baptised person who later decides to become Catholic. The situation you are talking about is different. If the civil law states that religious marriage ceremonies are not legally valid (as is the case in most of western Europe and South America) the civil ceremony is allowed shortly before or after the religious one. In that case, the Church sees the religious ceremony as the real marriage ceremony. If the civil law accepts religious ceremonies as legally binding, the Catholic ceremony can be the only one. I've never been to a convalidation, so I'm not sure what the priest says. But, in the sense of a true convalidation I can't imagine why he wouldn't since typically these couples have been married for years and had no reason to hide that fact since they weren't Catholic when they got married. A convalidation is not and option for people who are Catholic and just don't want to get married in a Church. If you are Catholic you must be married in a Church unless you are marrying someone who isn't baptised, which isn't a sacrament so it doesn't have to take place in a Church.

e_jakiela

WOW, meltoine, thank you for the details. My FI and I are marrying in a Catholic Church ceremony next August, but there has been so much talking about convalidation that I was curious what it meant, because, as I said, where I am from, this does not take place (or at least it is not as separated as here). Thank you again,