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Petition For Judgement |
Fill-in-the-blank form for requesting an ecclesiastic judgement.
We recommend petitioning our pastoral shepherd for marriage relationship help. Exegetical Commentary recommended by the President of the Pontifical Council of Legislative Texts Describes the role of Church in separation of spouses:
"Generally, intervention by an ecclesiastical authority is necessary, either by decree of the ordinary (administrative separation) or by judgement of a competent judge (judicial separation). The [(transcribers note) Church] legislator requires intervention by the ecclesiastical authority to objectively assess and determine the causes, the duration, and the effects of the separation. sourceAnnotations on Canon Law state:
"The procedure related to causes of separation is regulated in cc. 1692-1696. Barring anything lawfully provided by particular law, personal separation of baptized spouses can be decided by decree of the diocesan bishop (administrative channel) or by judgement by a judge (judicial channel). The administrative channel is pursued before the diocesan bishop, who will pronounce his decision by decree, in which he must decide whether the separation requested is according to law, and he must find regarding the education and support of the children (cf. c. 1154). This decree may be appealed, pursuant to cc. 1732-1739. The judicial channel must be pursued before the competent judge or tribunal, pursuant to the provisions of c. 1673, referred to in c. 1694, who will hear the cause according to the procedure of an oral or ordinary contentious process (cf. 1693 ¤ 1). source
"[(transcriber's note) The church legislator] gives separation a markedly pastoral treatment juridically,(3) exhorting spouses to forgive the behaviors that create the separation and, if possible, restore conjugal cohabitation. He avoids consideration of separation as a penalty against a spouse guilty of adultery or harming conjugal cohabitation, instead treating separation as an institution for the prevention of future evils for the innocent spouse and children." source
"Since divorce laws have proliferated in many countries, the need to request the diocesan bishop's authorization is a necessary precaution, which prevents the fostering of trials whose judgements [(Mary's Advocates' note) government civil court judgements] violate precepts of divine law, to the detriment of the spouses and with the risk of scandal to others." sourceThose with Catholic marriages do not approach the civil court without first following the canonical protections for families in our Separation of Spouses canons.
PETITION FOR JUDGEMENT OF
THE SEPARATION OF SPOUSES
TO THE TRIBUNAL OF THE
(ARCH)DIOCESE OF ____________________________________
Or
TO THE BISHOP OF THE
(ARCH)DIOCESE OF ____________________________________
I,
_____________________________________________, a baptized Catholic /
Protestant, with residence at
_________________________________________________________________________,
respectfully request the Tribunal
of the (Arch)Diocese of ____________________________________ to judge in accord
with Canon 1692 ¤1 the (un)lawfulness of the separation of my spouse,
_____________________________________________, a baptized Catholic / Protestant
with residence at
_________________________________________________________________________.
We contracted marriage on
_____________________ at _____________________________________. (A
separation occurred or was promised to occur on ___________________________.) (A petition for civil divorce or separation was submitted to court on
___________________________.)
This separation also affects the
following children born to this marriage (names and birthdates):
Therefore, as a secondary matter,
if the separation continues, I also ask that judgement be made to establish
guidelines for the sustenance and education of our children in accordance with
Canon 1154 (or to judge if the terms of the civil separation / divorce are in
accordance with Canon 1154).
The basic reasons why I believe
this separation is unlawful according to Canons 1152-1153 are:
The names of the witnesses I would like to testify, and why
they should be knowledgeable:
____________________ ____________________________________
Date Signature
of Petitioner
(Obviously the items in
parentheses should be added / removed as applicable to the particular case.)
[The Petition should be
limited to one page. On a separate
page, include the full contact information (address, phone, cell, email, etc.)
for each of the parties and all the witnesses named.)
Enclose Required Documents:
Recent Baptismal Certificates
of any Catholics
Marriage Certificate
Civil Marriage License
Civil Separation or Divorce Petition or
Decree (if applicable)
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Republishing welcome if cite original web-page
