Sam,

If you were a practicing Catholic at the time of the civil marriage, that marriage is considered invalid, however, if you had left the faith and not practiced for a long time, or adopted another religion, the marriage might be judged valid because it would be considered the same as any Protestant or unbeliever's marriage.

Only Catholics are bound by the Church's rules in the case of defect of form. This refers, in this case, to being married without an official Church witness. In any case, you will need to check with your pastor before you marry again to ascertain the status of the first marriage.

May God bless and protect you and your team in Iraq.

Just to clarify: The Church doesn't need to recognize the divorce if she never recognized the marriage. She would not witness the marriage of anyone who was civilly married who had not been civilly divorced.

In other words, no matter what the nature of your first marriage was, you need to be divorced civilly before you can consider another marriage, even one in the Church.

Mary Ann

Hi, Samuel —

Actually Mary Ann's answer is wrong in the beginning but OK in the last part.

If you are a Catholic and you married outside the Church, your marriage is invalid. Drifting away from the Church does not make the marriage suddenly valid.

If you are not a Catholic and your wife was not a Catholic at the time of your marriage then it is recognized by the Church as a valid marriage. To your question:

• If the Church doesn't recognize the marriage, does it recognize the divorce?

The question is illogical. I know what you mean but if there is no recognized marriage, there is nothing to divorce. Mary Ann gave good advice — work with a priest when you can.

Hope this helps,

Fr. Jonathan