Sunday, October 19, 2014

Short Answer: What is the Difference Between Divorce and Annulment?

Dear Apologist, what is the difference between divorce and annulment?


When Jesus was asked about the possibility of divorce, He said, “What God has joined together, no man may separate.  Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her.  And if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery” [Mark 10:9-12].  Note that He did not merely say divorce between Christians is a regrettable thing, He said it is impossible.  Thus, Jesus teaches that Christian marriage is a bond that is indissoluble until death.  

However, it is possible for two people to come together in what is reckoned as a marriage, but upon investigation turns out not to be.  Suppose one of the spouses says the marital vows, but does not truly mean them.  Or perhaps one spouse is not freely offering his consent, but is being forced.  Or the marriage is clandestine and in violation of Canon Law.  Or the spouses were long-lost siblings!  In such cases no marriage would have come into existence in the sight of God.

That is the principle distinction between divorce and annulment. In divorce, an existing marriage is said to be undone by some human authority.  In an annulment, a putatively married person asks his diocese to investigate whether his union was ever a true marriage.  All marriages are presumed valid until proven otherwise, so the tribunal would be looking for some defect that would prevent a valid marriage from being formed on the wedding day.  No action committed after the wedding day can dissolve a marriage, but such actions can be evidence of some deficiency on the day of the wedding.  

When efforts to save a marriage are unsuccessful, people who choose to undergo an annulment investigation should be supported and accompanied by the community through this often difficult process.

No comments:

Post a Comment