Fiance is in the Military - can we have two ceremonies?
My fiance is in the military, is currently deployed and will only be home for a couple of months before he is deployed for another year. He is Catholic and wants to have a Catholic wedding down the road, but thought a court house wedding or something like it would be ok to do at first. Can we have a simple/court house wedding first and then later on, after he gets home, have the actual Catholic wedding in the church? I am not Catholic, so I do not really know the rules of the church.
(This post was
edited by TWQadmin on Jan 13, 2009, 12:19 PM)
TWQadmin
FORUM EXPERT
/ Moderator
Post #2 of 6
(560 views)
Re: Fiance is in the Military - can we have two ceremonies?
[In reply to]
You can only be married once. Getting married in the court house is a wedding since the result will be the two of you being married. However, there is a blessing of the marriage which is called a convalidation in the Catholic church. However, both of you must be catholic so you would have to convert. If you'd like to do this, please speak to your local priest or diocese.
If you have your heart set on a full blown, white church wedding, plan it for when your man is home.
Please let him know how much we appreciate his service and your family's sacrifices for our country. Top Wedding Questions Forum Moderator - "Write your sorrows in the sand, your blessings in stone".
DennyandKay
MARRIAGE PREPARATION ADVISORS
Post #3 of 6
(551 views)
Re: Fiance is in the Military - can we have two ceremonies?
[In reply to]
As the site administrator has suggested, it would be wise to wait and have a big wedding in the Church. If your fiance marries in a courthouse, he will be marrying outside his Church and your marriage will not be recognized as sacramentally binding in the eyes of the Church.
Each diocese has its own set of regulations for a convalidation ceremony, which you would have to have if you decide to opt for a civil ceremony first. Whether or not you have to convert will be up to the bishop of that diocese, but the Church is very open to interchurch marriages as long as the non-Catholic spouse is supportive of the Catholic spouse's faith tradition. It sounds like you are trying to be supportive. Good for you!
Re: Fiance is in the Military - can we have two ceremonies?
[In reply to]
Thank you, Kay, for the clarification. I'm a Catholic and I wasn't aware that the church would allow a marriage between a Catholic and a person of another religion. Interesting. I'm learning every day.
Thanks for your input. Top Wedding Questions Forum Moderator - "Write your sorrows in the sand, your blessings in stone".
(This post was
edited by TWQadmin on Jan 13, 2009, 1:28 PM)
Ashleelyn
Post #5 of 6
(534 views)
Re: Fiance is in the Military - can we have two ceremonies?
[In reply to]
Thank you both so much! I just want to make sure that he has the wedding he wants- Which is in the church. I honestly do not think he thought about if we could do both. He is a great guy and I am supportive in everything thing he does... Thank you, and Thank you TWQadmin- I will tell him when I hear from him. Thank you very much- It is a great feeling when you hear of the support people have for our troops
TWQadmin
FORUM EXPERT
/ Moderator
Post #6 of 6
(531 views)
Re: Fiance is in the Military - can we have two ceremonies?
[In reply to]
I hope you both get everything you want. I'm sure if you keep praying about it, the answer will come to you.
God bless both of you - a sentiment I'm sure is felt by our entire staff. While we may not all agree on war, or etiquette, I know we can all agree that we're proud of our service men and women and the families that support them. Top Wedding Questions Forum Moderator - "Write your sorrows in the sand, your blessings in stone".
Fiance is in the Military - can we have two ceremonies?
