Will the Catholic Church be damaged by yesterday's wedding at Westminster Cathedral?

You have to admit Boris is consistent, even his religion isn't straightforward.

grumppa

Presumably the Chaplain of Eton accepted Boris’s RC baptism as sufficient for him to be confirmed in the CofE. Or did he have to be baptised again? Dunking Boris could be the basis for a new party game.

I know that party game but haven't played it with Boris.
I got caught by it many years ago

I felt sad for my parish priest when Anglican vicars were allowed to become Catholic priests, some were married. My priest was a lovely man and was very good with children, my DD adored him when she was a little girl, I saw him looking at the new priest giving Communion to his wife and children and it was a sad look.

I lived opposite a massive Catholic Church which was a place of pilgrimage when I was growing up. The priest lived with woman she was apparently his 'housekeeper' but those that lived by the Church witnessed otherwise...that said, I don't know why they don't let them marry if that is what they want to do (unless the rules have changed)

I've had lovely and not so lovely parish priests, only one I'd call nasty. As a child of 7 I became friends with a priest, I used to go for walks with him and I'd sit in church when he was preparing for mass. I suppose now everyone would assume he was dodgy but he was lovely, when he moved with the missions he used to write to me. I can't imagine how he put up with me but I guess there was a child shaped gap in his life and I filled it.

He is buried abroad and I'd love to visit his grave one day.

There are some nasty spiteful Catholic priests possibly because their family ear marked them for priesthood from a very early age.

We also had some wonderful priests who were very dedicated and quite reasoned in their expectations.

The vicars and choir masters in some non Catholic Churches also used their position to cover up their paedophile intent.

There were families who ignored complaints that their children were being abused by family, family friends, teachers, scoutmasters and the list goes on.

Fortunately we are, hopefully much more aware nowadays and are unlikely to be fobbed off.

Catholic’s will be pleased on the whole and it’s not really anyone else’s concern.

Presumably the Chaplain of Eton accepted Boris’s RC baptism as sufficient for him to be confirmed in the CofE. Or did he have to be baptised again? Dunking Boris could be the basis for a new party game.

Is an atheist PM more acceptable

Does it matter if Boris Johnson is a Catholic PM? I think the religion of the PM is nothing to do with the rest of us or the state.

The RC Church regards Mr Johnson as a catholic who has never ceased to be a catholic. Johnson was christened catholic.

Presumably Mr Johnson confessed his sins before the wedding, and in accord with the RC doctrine, God forgives penitent sinners. (I am not a lawyer but have just finished reading The Cloister and the Hearth).

I suppose Mr Johnson confessed to the sins of his previous marriages which the RC Church did not recognise as sacred rites.

What I do not understand is how BJ may remain as a RC prime minister.

What, how ridiculous. If it was anyone but Boris, this question wouldn’t even have been raised. You think that the Archbishop of Westminster would have allowed it if it was illegal for them to marry or for it to be against the Catholic faith. You can’t bend the rules in this way to suit one person. Good luck to them. As for covering up, ALL religions have covered up worse.

No, the cover-up was much as done by other groups including local authorities. I am sure it is continuing in those faith commuities who do not recognise sexual abuse as happening in their communities.

"This is no way defends are justifies the terrible things that happened, but these problems were not unique to the catholic church."
No, but what is unique is the way that the Catholic church covered up abuse and the people involved stretch from the local parish right to the very top. That is before you get to the death of babies in their care, the abuse of single mothers by the likes of nuns etc and the facilitating of the spread of AIDS in Africa. BoJo's marriage pales into insignificance.

I'm reading a book about Katherine Parr all be it fiction it does make you realise how far we have moved on with religious tolerance in England or supposed to have. Though the Northern Irish are not so sure.
Does it matter where Boris married as the saying goes"When the mistress is married, who replaces the mistress?".The next might be Muslim one of his ancestors was Turkish.

No worse than what was being done by other denominations and social work and goernment policy and usually the general consent of society, at the time they happened.

Sadly paedophiles seek, in a very calculated way to find the opportunities for unsupervised contact with children whether churches, scouts, or care homes.

This is no way defends are justifies the terrible things that happened, but these problems were not unique to the catholic church.

Not sure this will, after all they have survived many instances of paedophile priests abusing young boys, snatching babies away from unmarried mothers and illegal adoptions and weren't there dead babies found in a convent in Ireland?

It does make you think that Johnson must have very good personal persuasive powers. He managed to make a priest believe he was mistaken about 2 marriages, his other children didn't count, but he has had a complete conversion and will now live a life according to the rules of the Catholic Church.
Mind I do think he should have been questioned by a nun (like the one in Derry Girls) she would have seen through him.

well no, not in case of infant baptism, unless that individual later confirms their allegiance, including by choosing the further rite of confirmation.
i know what you mean. but obviously an infant cannot ascribe to anything.

In most marriages in a catholic church, even today, one partner will have been brought up a catholic and they will be marrying in the church their parents attend. Whether the bride or groom are practicing catholics at the time of the marriage is a seperate issue.

With the Johnsons, neither seems to have had a catholic upbringing in any form nor parents who practiced their religion either. One at least claimed enough attachmnt to another denomination to have been accepted for confirmation within that denomination. Beyond baptism neither they or their parents seem to have shown any interest in being catholics and nor have their children.

I think which denomination a parent chooses to have their child baptised within is generally taken to be a signal of the denomination the parent/s, and therefore the child ascribe to.

Monica, although i follow the logic of your reasoning, if your penultimate paragraph become the rule, i think there would be v few marriages in catholic church.

also, just to be a bit pedantic, although it is a fundamental point, no one is baptised a catholic.
a person is baptised a christian, which may take place in a catholic church.

Well, I am a catholic and I think it sends a wrong message.

In the past when catholicism ran deep in catholic families and there was antagonism between all christian denominations, then a catholic marrying other than in the church was deeply shocking, and seen as a public rejection of the church, so coming back and having a marriage in the church, ignoring anything previous, marked a return to the catholic 'family' someone returning to regular mass, taking part in church proceedings

Nowadays it is very different, especially in the case of Boris and wife, Boris was baptised a catholic because his mother was, but that is as far as his catholicism goes, he did not grow up in a catholic family, he did not go to catholic schools, he was confirmed into the CoE, he has never been a practising catholic, and he has 2 previous wives and documented lovers.

His wife was baptised a catholic, as was their son, but I know little of whether she was brought up a catholic or sees herself as a practising catholic.

Perhaps I cynical, possibly heretical, but I cannot but wonder whether the two of them resurrected their catholic heritage and had their son baptised because by doing that Carrie Symnds could have the big white wedding and walk up the aisle in style because, I suspect Boris was disqualified in some way from marrying in a CoE church.

Personally, in this modern day and age I think the catholic church should require proof of their return to the faith they were baptised in before they are married in a catholic church, for example going to Mass every Sunday for a year not living together, and remaining celibate until the marriage.

Current catholic procedure needs revising.

Sorry, that was tongue in cheek

Kali2

What are the implications for the children from previous mariages and/or relationships? From the pov of inheritance, and more.

Apparently Boris is impoverished so I don't know if there would be any inheritance to worry about but would they be liable to pay for his care home?

May I sincerely thank all those who are discussing this, whether they agree or not. All polite discussion is valuable.

Just shutting any debate is so negative and narrow minded.