Reply #93: No, that's not true. If both were non-Catholic at the time, then the marriage was valid.

[SharonAnn]

Sorry.

You can't just convert to Catholicism and have your marriage invalidated in the eyes of the Church.

The key is that if BOTH of them were non-Catholics at the time they married, then the marriage is valid. However, if one or both of them were Catholic then they would have had to be married "in the Catholic Church" to be considered married according to Catholic rules.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annulment_(Catholic_Church)

"If someone has been married previously and the first spouse is still alive, he or she must get a Declaration of Nullity before entering into a marriage in the Catholic Church, even if neither party in the marriage was Catholic (privilege of faith being separate cases). The Catholic Church treats as indissoluble and valid every marriage when it is the first marriage for both parties. However the Church does not recognise as valid a marriage when one of the parties is Catholic but the marriage was not celebrated before a Catholic minister, unless a dispensation was first obtained."