Marriage

[LoftyLottie]

Following on from this thread in News

http://www.theanswerb...Question833129-2.html

Do true Christians consider that those who 'marry' in a registry office are not really 'married'? It is just a civil ceremony after all, much the same as the civil partnership ceremony reserved for gays.

[Booldawg]

I guess they will recognise the sanctimony of marriage; ie the pledge between 2 people to remain commited to each other. A promise is a promise regardless whether its in the eyes of God or not.

[LoftyLottie]

Hmmm. There has just been an answer on the other thread which makes me wonder if that is true. Surely a civil partnership involves the same commitment. I think it's a great shame that gays can't have exactly the same ceromony as others, i.e. a marriage ceremony in a Registry Office. I respect that religious beliefs might preclude them from getting married in a church. (Not that I agree with those views)

[naomi24]

I understood that if Catholics have a civil ceremony only, then although they are legally married, they are not married in the eyes of the church, or God - but I might be wrong.

[society]

hi Naomi :-)
you're never wrong. i've yet to read one of your post and disagree with you.

[naomi24]

Hello society, thank you - that's very nice of you - although I believe there are several who would disagree with you. Perhaps you and I just think the same way, eh? :o)

[Ankou]

people who are not catholic (and never have been) can and do enter marriages that are licit and valid, and binding for life in the eyes of the catholic church, provided that there is no obstacle (such as a previous marriage) to the union. non-catholics who are not baptized do not receive a sacrament (since no sacraments are valid except for the baptized) but enter a solemn, sacred and binding marriage contract between a man, a woman and god. baptized non-catholics possibly receive a sacrament, but since most protestant religions do not recognize marriage as a sacrament, but only a "holy ordinance" or something like that, it would be doubtful if a non-catholic who did not recognize matrimony as a sacrament would actually then receive a sacrament. in any event, for such people marriage is at least a solemn, lifelong, binding and sacred contract.

what this means is that strict christians - catholics in this case - would probably say the marriage is not valid in accordance with their church rules, but would reognise the union in law. i suppose it would be up to the wedded couple as to whether they gave a poop about that.

[LoftyLottie]

Thank you Ankou for such a detailed answer.

[beso]

In the Bible the Hebrews massacred everyone on more than 32 tribes in part because "all" the women in these societies were prostitutes. Of course they were prostitutes because they had never undergone a "proper" Hewbrew marriage so sex with any man was clearly prostitution.

Religious bigotry makes it easy to invalidate any relationship that is not sanctified by one's own ritual.