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Herman B. wrote: |
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Hi, guys —
I searched your website but couldn't find an answer to my question. I also searched the internet and found confusing answers as many were outdated and, previously valid answers, are no longer valid because of recent changes in Canon law.
- Can you explain how someone who:
- was born into a Catholic family, and
- was baptized Catholic as an infant, and
- was confirmed as a child,
- but as an adult is not Catholic,
can formally leave the Catholic Church and be considered non-Catholic by the Catholic Church's registration records?
Thank you,
Herman
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| { How can a Catholic formally leave the Church and be considered a non-Catholic by their records? } |
Eric replied:
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Herman,
The reason you got conflicting information is because the law changed fairly recently (by church standards). What you describe used to be possible, but it is no longer possible. Once you are baptized Catholic or otherwise enter into it canonically, you are considered Catholic for life, regardless of:
- what you do
- what sacrilege you commit
- what disavowal you make, or
- what religion you join.
See Wikipedia:
Eric
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Herman replied:
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Eric,
Thank you for your response.
- How does this impact marrying a non-Catholic outside the Catholic Church?
Herman
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Eric replied:
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Herman,
Anyone who has ever been baptized into or received into the Catholic Church will require a dispensation to marry a non-Catholic (i.e. someone who has never been Catholic) for the marriage to be valid in the eyes of the Church.
They will also need to marry within the Church for the marriage to be valid unless they get a dispensation from form. Both will need to either:
- never had been married, have a declaration of nullity for all previous marriages (annulments), or
- been widowed (all previous spouses are deceased).
- Does this adequately answer your question?
Eric
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Herman replied:
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Yes,
Thank you very much.
That answers my question.
Herman
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