About Rev. Dennis W. Meinen Expertise I prefer answering questions that a typical parishioner in a typical parish asks.
Experience I was ordained to the priesthood in 1987. One year later I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. I am chaplain at a Catholic retirement/nursing home. I have a scooter (With the help of the Veterans) so I?m never at a desk! I am also involved in the Diocesan Office of Ministry to Persons With Disabilities and serve at our Catholic Hospital doing night call usually once a week. I write a column on disability for our Catholic newspaper and I try to tell how people can overcome obstacles to their disability. I freely admit to everyone that the ways of God are sometimes mysterious, but exciting. Why did God call me to the priesthood, yet will that this disability be part of it? St. Theresa told God that "It's no wonder that You don't have many friends, what with the way You treat them!" According to my human finite reasoning, I could serve God a lot better (and longer) if I was cured. But then I remember that St. Paul said that Jesus told him, ?In weakness power reaches perfection, because you?re strong in the Lord!?
Question QUESTION: What exactly happens to a Catholic when he marries a Protestant in a Protestant ceremony? Is he automatically excommunicated? Is he considered truly married in the eyes of the Church? What?
ANSWER: A Catholic needs a dispensation from his/her bishop to marry a Protestant in a Protestant ceremony. If this was done the wedding was valid.
Fr. Meinen
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QUESTION: And if a dispensation wasn't granted, then is the marriage invalid but still a marriage? Is the Catholic excommunicated?
Answer First, Terminology: 1) mixed marriage outside the canonical context, it may be used in the broad sense of Catholic with a baptized non-Catholic or with a non-baptized. Was the non-Catholic baptized? If there was no dispensation and they were baptized the marriage is illicit (or illegal) but valid.
2) in the canonical sense, it only means Catholic with a baptized non-Catholic - without permission illicit but valid. Catholic with non-baptized is disparity of worship - invalid without dispensation. For both, at least one has to be Catholic. It means the Catholic may not received the Sacraments until this is corrected.
