Should the Orthodox Church Allow Marriage to Heretics?

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Lydia
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Re: Should the Orthodox Church Allow Marriage to Heretics?

Post by Lydia »

And yet, when a married couple both convert to Orthodoxy, the Church recognizes the validity of their marriage. They do not become "unmarried' and then married for real in The orthodox Church.
I'm thankful that these matters are decided by Bishops who are guided by The Holy Spirit.
Our salvation depends upon the condesension of Our Loving Saviour to the weakness and frailty of us sinful men.

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Suaidan
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Re: Should the Orthodox Church Allow Marriage to Heretics?

Post by Suaidan »

If a married couple convert to Orthodoxy, at least a blessing should be read over the marriage. The Church has rules. You don't need to do a complete do over, but this idea that the Church sanctifies a marriage license is ridiculous.

Fr Joseph Suaidan (Suaiden, same guy)

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Jean-Serge
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Re: Should the Orthodox Church Allow Marriage to Heretics?

Post by Jean-Serge »

JamesR wrote:
liefern wrote:

What should the Church actually do, do you think? What's the pastoral answer? Just consider an area temporarily lost and start again with monastic settlements and evangelization by example?

If it were up to me, I'd recommend some form of semi-arranged kinda "mail order" spouse system where Orthodox people are connected to other Orthodox people from across the globe and can then marry and be united with the one that they fall in love with. Given the advent of the internet I think that it is very much possible. Perhaps the Orthodox Church can use the internet to connect parishes together worldwide and thus work out some way for potential spouses to meet each other.

I agree with this method. When you read the story of Isaac and Rebecca, it is exactly what happened.

Priidite, poklonimsja i pripadem ko Hristu.

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Barbara
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Re: Should the Orthodox Church Allow Marriage to Heretics?

Post by Barbara »

^ Yes, that's so true !

I have been thinking about this idea of James R's for several days, turning it over in my mind.

It almost seems like there is no other choice than to go with such an internet meeting arrangement.

But you know the drawback would be that fakes would try to create profiles and find some nice young
prey in the good Orthodox girls from other countries, especially, who might be considered naive and easy to manipulate by "pro predators".

So, there would have to be a built-in way to check such infiltrators. Perhaps the identity of the prospective spouse
could be verified by his or her priest before email contact started ? That way, each party KNOWS he is dealing with
a real person, not a scary interloper.

The fact is, our parishes are not that big. So the chances of meeting someone of the right age is slender, as James R has
mentioned before here.

It does need the worldwide access to parishes all over in order for couples to meet realistic choices for their spouse.

But it's a great idea, James, very practical.

Come to think of it, there would be parishioners of ALL ages who might want to meet a True Orthodox spouse.
Not just the youth. So, someone should start this website or matchmaking service.

Too, it's excellent to hear James be so discerning about the need for avoiding "interfaith" marriage.

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Re: Should the Orthodox Church Allow Marriage to Heretics?

Post by Jean-Serge »

Well, some girls can be also real predators and take profit from men's sincere feelings. I would fear more for men than for girls... with all those gold diggers that there are in some countries. I think it is an idea; however in the US, orthodox dating sites were never a popular success.

Priidite, poklonimsja i pripadem ko Hristu.

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Re: Should the Orthodox Church Allow Marriage to Heretics?

Post by Justin Kolodziej »

Well, I found my wife using one of the Roman Catholic versions of a dating site, so it can work to some degree.
I agree with Barbara. For one intended for True Orthodox it would probably be prudent to require contact information for each applicant's spiritual father before approving the profile.

Wherever even the last two or three are gathered together in His name, there He is in their midst.

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Re: Should the Orthodox Church Allow Marriage to Heretics?

Post by Jean-Serge »

The following extract is translated from French, from the book "La vie sacramentelle" (The mysterical life) by Jean-Caude Larchet. The author is an internationally well-known sepecialist in patristics, specially in Saint Maximus the Confessor and author of many books, translated in many languages. He is the choir directorof a Serbian parish in France. This book is very interesting and very well written, dealing with the mysteries, in the number of seven for a greater easiness maybe. It always quotes its original sources and original documents giving the number of the codex for isntance.

This helps correcting many mistakes by modernists. For instance, original manuscripts do not indicate wedding took part during the liturgy. The only codex indicate this is no reliable because it has latin influence. In fact, the engagement took place before the liturgy, the crowning after the liturgy with the couple communing to pre-sanctified gifts from the liturgy. So, it is basically a very good and interesting book with maybe some fewproblematic things when the author gives his personal opinion on pastoral topics, like cohabitation without marriage, mixed marriage and the possibility to ban thosewho do not fast on Wednesday and Friay from communion.

Back to the question of the marriage with heretics. The author, who is not supporting the practice but understands its by economy, gives in the following paragraph a good explanation why the church does not like it :

But it seems to us that this reticence [reticence of the church to perform mixed marriages] is due to broader reasons : marriage is, as we said said previously, a spiritual path (that some Fathers regards as parralel and equal in terms of value to manachism) and an ascesis in a broad sense. It implies a common life that encompasses all the aspects of human being and his whole lofe, in particular, for a christian, the spiritual aspect, that is the main justification for religious wedding. So, the marriage supposes, in order to lead such life in a strict, harmonious and fruitful way, that both spouses refer to a common ethic, which can be only bases on a common faith. It also supposes that the couple is in complete agreement on the way of living the liturgical time, that is more important than secular time for a christian. Such liturgical time has its cycles of prayers, fasts, and days of abstinence, its Sunday liturgies and feast to which spouses must be able to take part together in order to really share their life and be really united and in communion. Even if there is an agreement from the non-orthodox member to go along her/his spouse in his/her religious and spiritual life, he/she [the non-orthodox] is not member of the Body of Christ and cannot take part tothe mysteries, in particular eucharitical communion that accomplishes the fullness of the union, non only regarding the wedding ceremony, but during the whole life.

Priidite, poklonimsja i pripadem ko Hristu.

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