Non-Catholic Marriage Partners

My son is Catholic & his fiance is a devout Methodist. Can they be married in the Catholic Church?

Yes, they can be married but you need the permission of your pastor or the local bishop. If he is a parishioner of St. Luke, he should see Fr. Pat as soon as practical. Marriage between a Catholic and a validly baptized non-catholic is known as a "mixed marriage" It will require a written dispensation.

There are special portions of the Catholic marriage preparation program aimed at the issues that can arise with these mixed marriages. If they were to opt to marry in the Methodist Church, he would also need to obtain what is called a Dispensation of Canonical Form for the marriage to be considered valid by the Church.

The normal "form" for a Catholic wedding is in a Catholic Church witnessed by a deacon, priest or bishop. Any deviation from this would requires dispensation.