Petrine Privilege

Petrine Privilege, also known as the Privilege of Faith or a decree in favor of the faith, is a provision in the Canon Law of the Roman Catholic Church granting a previously married person the right to marry under certain specific circumstances. The implementation of this procedure is reserved to the Pope. In essence, the Petrine Privilege is an extension of the logic of the Pauline privilege to cases of marriage between baptised and non-baptised spouses.

More precisely, it involves the circumstance where marriage was contracted between a baptized Christian and a non-baptized person, and where, throughout the time when the parties lived together, the non-baptized party did not receive baptism. Such a marriage is considered not confirmed (non ratus) through sacramental union, and hence not fully indissoluble. (If the non-Christian party becomes a Christian after separation, the baptism of this party will automatically confirm the marriage sacramentally; however, if - due to separation - the marriage so confirmed is not consummated through direct, unimpeded intercourse, it may be dissolved on the basis of non-consummation (super ratus). Cf. Code of Canon Law, 1983 - c. 1142 and 1149, based on Gregory XIII's Populis et nationibus).