Priest Question

Hi girls. How do you find out if a priest is ordained? We have a friend who is getting married and using a 'priest without a home'. Something like that. Anyway, she is concerned if he is legit or not. Is there any way we can find out?

Thanks,
Denise

Roman Catholic priests who perform ceremonies outside of a standing church are not recognized by the Roman Catholic church whether or not they are ordained.

There are other sects of Catholism that allows for non church ceremonies but it is not recognized by the RC Church.

Personally, I think the church rule is silly but that is the way it works. If your friend is concerned about being 'recognized' by the RC Church, she MUST BE married inside a parish church.

Yes, that I understand. She is not worried about it being recognized by the Catholic Church. She is getting married in her home. She knows that if its not within the 'walls' of a catholic church they do not recognize it.

She is just concerned that the priest is in fact allowed to marry her within the State of NY.

How do we find that out?

Oh ok. I dont know exactly but I would start by calling the place where you get your marriage license. Also ask the priest directly for proof and then call the issuing authority.

I think being ordained is not enough in NY State, you must also be on some sort of registry. So if he is ordained and not registered, its not legal.

We were married by a friend who was 'ordained' just for our ceremony...it is completely legal in MOST of NYS...I did a lot of research on this and I even combed through the fine print in the NYS Constitution...(you cannot do it in NYS or Kingston, NY)

it is completely legal and I have the marriage certificate to prove it..

Just to clarify...

Marriages performed by RC Priests (who are still w/ the Church) outside of the Church *are* recognized as a Sacrament as long as dispensation (in two forms: one to marry a non-baptized person and one to marry outside of the church) is obtained by the marrying Catholic.

There are MANY, MANY priests who are no longer w/ the Church - for a variety of reasons - some good, some bad... I found several in my search for a Priest to co-officiate my marriage.

But, to answer your question, call the Diocese and check references on the Priest in question. If he says he was most recently w/ a particular parish, you can call and find out under what circumstances he left. BTW, not all Dioceses/parishes will be forthcoming with this info.

Good Luck!