HELP, AGAIN, NOT SURE WHERE TO PUT THIS.

[fisherman2]

i HAVE A FRIEND THAT IS MARRIED, MARRIED BY JUSTICE OF THE PEACE, NOW LOOKING FOR A CHURCH TO JOIN, DOES ANY ONE KNOW WHAT CHURCH WILL TAKE THEM, EVEN THOUGH THEY WERE NOT MARRIED IN A CHURCH.

 

[adam332]

hmmm....I have not heard of a church refusing a couples membership based on the fact they were not married in a church. There certainly is one out there somewhere due to the huge amount of churchs and their varied beliefs...but I don't think they will have a problem. Their best bet is to pick the church they want and see if they will accept them, they probably won't even ask where, how or who married them.

 

[Polycarp1]

I be;lieve almost any church will welcome them. A civil marriage is a valid marriage, even in the eyes of the church.

Most churches will permit and indeed encourage them to renew their marriage vows before God. Our church has a formal liturgy specifically for the Blessing of a Civil Marriage.

 

[Benedicta00]

i HAVE A FRIEND THAT IS MARRIED, MARRIED BY JUSTICE OF THE PEACE, NOW LOOKING FOR A CHURCH TO JOIN, DOES ANY ONE KNOW WHAT CHURCH WILL TAKE THEM, EVEN THOUGH THEY WERE NOT MARRIED IN A CHURCH.

Any Church should be able to perform a ceremony to bind their marriage- all they should do is ask. You do not go looking for a Church who will take you on your terms.

 

[Benedicta00]

I be;lieve almost any church will welcome them. A civil marriage is a valid marriage, even in the eyes of the church.

Most churches will permit and indeed encourage them to renew their marriage vows before God. Our church has a formal liturgy specifically for the Blessing of a Civil Marriage.

A civil marriage may be considered valid. It depends but a marriage between two Christians done by a JP is not sacramentally valid. It is legally binding, but not sacramental.

 

[WesleyJohn]

Their best bet is to pick the church they want and see if they will accept them, they probably won't even ask where, how or who married them.

I'm sorry, I just have to interject here...

Their best bet is to pray and ask God which church He would have them attend...and if that church happens to require anything additional of them, to do so. (Although I think it unlikely that they will find a church that gives them any problems.)

I'm sure that's what adam332 really meant...right adam??

Peace,

WJ

 

[adam332]

Of course...I consider such things "a given".

 

[n2wolves]

One does not "join" a church but is added to it......through his blood

 

[seebs]

I am sure there are churches that would keep them out, but I don't see why.

Shelb, are you quite sure about that marriage being "not sacramentally valid"? I would expect the church to want to verify the marriage, but if memory serves, isn't marriage performed by the couple, not by any official, theologically speaking?

 

[Philip]

Shelb, are you quite sure about that marriage being "not sacramentally valid"? I would expect the church to want to verify the marriage, but if memory serves, isn't marriage performed by the couple, not by any official, theologically speaking?

In the Orthodox Church, the civil union would not be seen as valid until it was sanctified within the Church.

Holy Matrimony, like all of the Sacraments, is preformed by the Holy Spirit. The couple asks for this grace to be bestowed on them, but it is the Holy Spirit who causes the union. The priest acts as a representative of Christ, confirming to the Church what the Spirit has done. Since a JP has no authority in the Church, the Church has no reason to believe that the couple has been joined by God

I am sure there are churches that would keep them out, but I don't see why.

I am sure you are correct here. This thread does raise an interesting question. For those denominations that do not consider marriage to be a Sacrament, what consititutes marriage? Why can a couple just decide they are married? Why is there a need for any official?

 

[seebs]

My understanding is that there isn't a need for an official to become married, but it may be convenient to have an official if you want to be legally married. (In fact, there is a special exception in the Minnesota marriage statutes for the Quakers, because there's no one to perform the ceremony.)

 

[Benedicta00]

I am sure there are churches that would keep them out, but I don't see why.

The Catholic Church would not keep them out they just could not receive the sacraments or they could if they lived as brother and sister until they had their marriage sanctified by the Church.

Shelb, are you quite sure about that marriage being "not sacramentally valid"? I would expect the church to want to verify the marriage, but if memory serves, isn't marriage performed by the couple, not by any official, theologically speaking?

Phillip answered this already. I think the only way a JP marriage is valid in the Church is if it is between two non baptized, but I am not sure so don’t quote me on it.

 

[Philip]

My understanding is that there isn't a need for an official to become married, but it may be convenient to have an official if you want to be legally married. (In fact, there is a special exception in the Minnesota marriage statutes for the Quakers, because there's no one to perform the ceremony.)

Is Minnesota a Common Law state?