Marriage in church after divorce

A summary of the discussion document from a Working Party
commissioned by the House of Bishops of the Church of England
produced by the Family Life and Marriage Education (FLAME) network



In 1983, the General Synod resolved that there were circumstances in which a divorced person may be married in church during the lifetime of a former spouse. This report follows on from the logic of that Synodical Resolution in the light of current practice in dioceses to help the Church of England make a response with greater consistency and confidence.

No summary can do justice to an excellent report, but this paper attempts to highlight the major points from the document for ease of study.


Theological & Liturgical Questions
Marriage is intended by God to be a permanent and lifelong union. However, marriages do fail and it can be said in a literal sense of two living people that they were married and are no longer married. In such circumstances, there is responsibility and fault to be acknowledged by the former partners before God and the Church may assist in a pastorally supportive role.
Many in the Church of England hold the view that marriage persists in being until the death of one partner.
As the Church does not have a role in formalising a divorce, the development of a liturgy for this situation is inappropriate.
A subsequent marriage should not have a different form of service and clergy should make use of the range of material within the Common Worship material to reflect each pastoral situation. Services of penitence could form part of the marriage preparation.
As marriage breakdown is a pastoral rather than a legal situation for the Church, a nullity procedure would not be an appropriate development.

SOCIAL CONTEXT
The reality the Church faces is that two out of five marriages involve a divorced person.
In 1996, 10% of all Anglican marriages in England and Wales involved a divorced person. This rose to over 60% of marriages in both the Methodist and United Reformed Churches, which would include members of other denominations seeking a church wedding.

LEGAL CONTEXT IN CHURCH & STATE
The state has the right to terminate the legal status of a marriage but neither Church nor State has the power to 'put asunder those whom God has joined together'. Therefore, the Church can only permit another marriage in cases where it is clear that the former marriage no longer exists.
Any change in the Church's approach to the marriage of divorced persons in church would require an amendment to Canon Law or the 1957 Act of Convocation.

WIDER CHURCH CONTEXT
The Roman Catholic Church has legal procedures before a divorced person can have a church marriage. The Methodist Church, the United Reformed Church and the Church of Scotland may allow second marriages after consideration of the circumstances. The Church in Wales has a similar stance to the Church of England. The Orthodox Church will allow for 2^nd and 3^rd marriages under certain conditions, but never a 4^th.

TOWARDS A COMMON POLICY
Currently, the House of Bishops' guidelines are widely interpreted. The marriage of divorcees is firmly discouraged in some dioceses, whilst in others further marriage in church is not uncommon. In all cases, the consciences of clergy who do not wish to take such marriages are protected.
The present diversity of practice leads to inconsistencies which may be perceived as unfair, not only between dioceses, but often between parishes in the same diocese. It is hoped that national criteria and guidelines reflecting current best practice will win broad acceptance and the maximum degree of consistency.
The focus of decision-making should lie with incumbents, but cases should be referred to diocesan bishops to ensure the right procedures have been followed and to offer pastoral guidance.
PCCs should be encouraged to be involved in the development of the general policy towards the marriage of divorced people in their parish church, but not in individual cases.

SERVICES OF PRAYER AND DEDICATION
There may be some occasions when a marriage in church is deemed inappropriate either by the parish priest or by the couple. In these cases, services of prayer and dedication offer the couple the possibility of beginning their married life in a Christian context.

CONCLUSIONS & RECOMMENDATIONS
Whilst still holding to the Church of England's traditional teaching that marriage is a lifelong commitment, the Church should provide a common procedure authorizing incumbents, where they see fit, to officiate at the further marriage of divorced people with a former spouse still living.

Pastoral Criteria
The couple would need to show the priest that:
§ they understand the purpose and meaning of marriage;
§ they have come to terms with the breakdown in terms of repentance and forgiveness and are ready to enter the new relationship;
§ they have made adequate provision for the former spouse and any children;
§ a reasonable time has lapsed since the divorce;
§ the new marriage will not give rise to hostile public comment or scandal;
§ the new relationship was not a direct cause of the breakdown;
§ neither partner has been married and divorced more than once; and
§ there is evidence of receptiveness to the Christian faith.

Principles
§ The decision to conduct such a marriage service should rest with the incumbent.
§ Clergy should not be obliged to conduct such services against their consciences.

Procedures
§ A parish policy should be agreed with the PCC wherever possible.
§ A document outlining the Church of England's policy and the parish's part in that should be available for all enquirers.
§ The incumbent should always interview the couple concerned.
§ Clergy should always seek the advice of their diocesan bishop, in accordance with their diocesan arrangements.
§ The incumbent should convey the final decision to the couple in person and in writing.
§ An incumbent may offer a service of prayer and dedication following a civil ceremony in preference to a further marriage in church.

These pages have been prepared by The Revd Jim Butterworth
If you would like a copy of this or any other document on the FLAME site in RTF or WORD format please email me with your request

Or contact:

The Revd Jim Butterworth
St. John's Vicarage, 48 Greenside
Mapplewell, Barnsley
S. Yorks. S75 6AY
England
Tel: + 44 (0) 1226 382261

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