I was listening to a Q & A session on a Catholic talk radio show a few weeks ago and they mentioned "Pauline Privilege". I wasn't familiar with the term, so I Googled it. In the process, I also found out about "Petrine Privilege". Here's one explanation, courtesy the Archdiocese of Chicago:
Now... I'm somewhat familiar with the Church's stance on marriage: I've read what the Catechism has to say on the subject, and I went through a Catholic marriage preparation course myself. The general theme that I took from this is that marriage, in the Catholic view, is a permanent, indissoluble bond in all cases, as long as there was a valid marriage in the first place.
How does the Church reconcile this position with the ideas of Pauline and Petrine Privilege?
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]39. What is the "Pauline Privilege"?[/FONT]
The Pauline Privilege is a dissolution of marriage in which both parties to a previous marriage were non-baptized throughout the entire duration of their married life. It can be requested when one of the parties either wishes Christian baptism or has been baptized Christian and the other party remains unbaptized. These cases remain here in the Chicago Tribunal, and are decided by the Archbishop of Chicago.
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]40. What is the "Petrine Privilege"?[/FONT]
A Petrine Privilege or Privilege of the Faith is a dissolution of marriage in which at least one of the parties to a previous marriage was non-baptized throughout the entire duration of their married life. If the petitioner is the non-baptized party or was baptized in another Christian church, he or she must either wish to be baptized or received into the Catholic Church, or seek to marry a baptized, practicing Catholic. If the petitioner is a baptized Catholic who was married to a non-baptized person, he or she must either wish to enter into marriage with a baptized Christian, or promise to enter marriage with a baptized Christian in the future. Privilege of the Faith cases involve a special petition to the Holy Father and are decided in Rome.
Now... I'm somewhat familiar with the Church's stance on marriage: I've read what the Catechism has to say on the subject, and I went through a Catholic marriage preparation course myself. The general theme that I took from this is that marriage, in the Catholic view, is a permanent, indissoluble bond in all cases, as long as there was a valid marriage in the first place.
How does the Church reconcile this position with the ideas of Pauline and Petrine Privilege?