Catholic Church uses five criteria in deciding to grant an annulment
Published: September 18, 2014 11:19 PM
By Tom Mooney
Journal Staff Writer
Remarks by Roman Catholic Bishop Thomas J. Tobin concerning divorce and remarried Catholics, and who should be allowed to receive Holy Communion, turned a spotlight Thursday on the often misunderstood church practice of granting annulments.
A Catholic marriage can be annulled, the church says, if a tribunal investigation determines the union lacked at least one of five essential elements before vows were exchanged.
According to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, those five elements of a valid marriage are:
The spouses were free to marry; they freely exchanged their consent; they intended to marry for life, be faithful and be open to children; they intended “good of each other,” and their consent was given in the presence of witnesses before an authorized church official.
http://www.providencejournal.com/breaking-news/content/20140918-catholic-church-uses-five-criteria-in-deciding-to-grant-an-annulment.ece