Faith and the Sacramentality of Marriage: A Canonical Perspective

Abstract

This article on “Faith and sacramentality of marriage” faces the issue of what is the juridical significance of a marriage celebrated according to the canonical form, by two baptized persons who have lost their faith, or have refused it or are absolutely far from even the slightest perception of what can be the design of God with respect to marriage or who do not know or even reject any transcendent dimension of the conjugal covenant. Given that the teaching of the Church stands on the principle of inseparability between contract and sacrament, the second current is here presented, that affirms that the lack of faith would not allow the realization of the sacramental dynamic, though both spouses are baptized. Then we analyze the doctrine concerning the principle of the intentio faciendi id quod facit Ecclesia Christi and its declination in the sacrament of marriage. The article continues with a short examination of the principle of the prevailing intention with respect to the possibility of understanding whether the exclusion of sacramentality has been able to affect the validity of marriage; the ignorance of the sacramental dignity as an error that may vitiate the consent is also studied.