Mixed Marriages, Annulments, and Holy Communion! Oh my!
I’ve been hitting the Catholic Answers Forums pretty heavily lately. It seems that there are frequent questions about people in awkward marriage situations and what they have to do to be able to receive Holy Communion. There is also much misinformation given. For example, many people seem to think that a person can’t go to Confession until he’s gotten an annulment!
For guidelines from the Vatican on this issue, read Letter Concerning the Reception of Holy Communion by the Divorced and Remarried Members of the Faithful.
Note: Simply being divorced (without attempting marriage again) does not keep a Catholic from being able to receive Holy Communion.
Anyway, to facilitate matters, I thought about making a “simple” flow-chart that would cover many of the scenarios that could emerge. It really only covers situations arising from defect of form or from lack of liberty to marry. Sorry that mistaken identity and consanguinity aren’t covered here!
You can view a higher-quality version of the flow-chart in PDF.
Have fun!
Disclaimer: The chart is for entertainment purposes only. Please speak with a priest for serious questions about real situations.
