INVESTIGATION. – Preliminary inquiry to be conducted before the celebration of Marriage and before the conferral of Orders, to ascertain the existence of the requisite conditions under the law and the absence of impediments or irregularities. This is an administrative procedure, distinct from a judicial one; it does not culminate in a sentence, but rather in a clearance to proceed or a prohibition.
I. PRELIMINARY TO MARRIAGE
More common in daily practice is the inquiry that precedes Marriage, also called the “marriage process.”This investigation, prescribed by the Code of Canon Law (can. 1019 and 1020), is necessary to prevent the sacrament of Marriage from being exposed to nullity or profanation. It must establish whether the two contracting parties have been validly baptized, whether they enjoy freedom of status, and more generally whether anything opposes the valid and licit celebration of Marriage; otherwise, the Marriage cannot take place.
When the spouses belong to the same parish, it is the parish priest who is competent to conduct the inquiry; if, however, they belong to different parishes, the competent and preferentially responsible parish priest is that of the bride. This does not prevent the parish priest of the groom from conducting inquiries to verify the groom’s freedom of status and transmitting the results to the other parish priest.
Legal proof of both Baptism and freedom of status is obtained through documents, interrogations, and the banns.
The documents to be examined include the parish registers, the baptismal certificates of the contracting parties, the marriage certificate of their parents, and, where necessary, a death certificate if one of them is a widower, or a decree of nullity or a dispensation of a ratified unconsummated marriage if the previous marriage of one of them had been declared null or dispensed.
The contracting parties are first to be interrogated, followed by witnesses for each of them—relatives or acquaintances deemed reliable by the parish priest—who can attest with certainty to the information requested. There must be at least two witnesses for each spouse, making four in total; however, two witnesses may suffice if they can testify for both parties. A special form is used for this interrogation, which may be modified or supplemented according to circumstances.
From these investigations (documents and interrogations), any impediment—especially a public one—should emerge if it truly exists; if there are just causes, a dispensation must be sought in advance.
To further ensure freedom of status, the banns of the intended Marriage are prescribed. These may be made either by means of a notice affixed to the door of the parish church or orally, i.e., read by the parish priest during a public service. The notices must remain posted for at least eight days, including at least two feast days of precept; the oral banns must be read on three consecutive Sundays or feast days. However, in cases of urgency or particular circumstances, partial or total dispensation from this rule may be granted, provided that freedom of status is otherwise sufficiently proven. The banns have legal validity for six months. The faithful who are aware of an impediment in a particular Marriage are obliged, even apart from the banns, to report it to the parish priest or Ordinary, unless they are dispensed from this obligation.
For the premarital inquiry to achieve the effect intended by the law, it must also address the will of the contracting parties, since the validity of the sacrament depends on the free manifestation of consent. To this end, in the interrogation, the spouses—as well as the witnesses—must declare whether they are giving their consent freely or whether this consent is vitiated or conditional. There are indeed intentions or conditions that render a Marriage null, either because they remove the freedom of the act or because they undermine the so-called essential goods of Marriage: the good of offspring, the good of fidelity (unity), and the good of the sacrament (indissolubility). When such cases arise, if the parish priest does not obtain the retraction of such intentions or conditions, he must refuse to assist at the Marriage, which would be either null or at least illicit.
Thus, the outcome of the inquiry determines whether the parish priest may proceed with the celebration of the Marriage or must refer the matter to the Ordinary for any necessary dispensation or clearance. Cases requiring recourse to the Ordinary include those specified by the Code of Canon Law or by special instructions, as well as when a required document is missing or there is doubt regarding the Baptism or freedom of status of one of the contracting parties. Doubt regarding Baptism may be resolved by administering the sacrament conditionally, or, if refused, by a dispensation from the doubtful disparity of cult. To verify freedom of status, banns must also be published in other places where the party may have contracted another bond, or, in the case of a previous Marriage, inquiries must be made regarding the death of the spouse. Often, as an additional safeguard, the spouses are asked to take the so-called supplementary oath, which is prescribed only when the evidence is not entirely certain. In articulo mortis, for the celebration of Marriage, it suffices for the parties to swear that they are baptized and in a state of freedom, provided nothing to the contrary emerges.
In places where religious Marriage has civil effects by concordat, additional documents prescribed by civil law must be appended to the marriage process. Once the Marriage has been celebrated, the entire dossier containing the inquiry is preserved in the archive of the parish where it was drawn up or in another place designated by diocesan regulations.
II. PRELIMINARY TO THE CONFERRAL OF THE SACRAMENT OF HOLY ORDERS
The nobility and divine powers conferred by the sacrament of Orders upon a man require that the subject be worthy, suitable, and capable of fulfilling his mission in the world in a dignified and fruitful manner. The Church takes this concern seriously and seeks to obtain advance assurance of these qualities.From the outset, it is forbidden to admit young men to seminaries who are clearly lacking in vocation. Likewise, it must be determined in advance whether the subject is impeded by so-called irregularities (v.) or merely restrained by a simple impediment (v.).
Although candidates for the priesthood are definitively incorporated into the clergy only with the reception of the subdiaconate, the inquiry in view of future ordination is initiated with care from the time of first tonsure.
The principal object of this inquiry is the subject’s vocation to the priestly dignity in the broadest sense of the term: all elements that may clearly demonstrate this vocation must be considered, not merely the call of a superior, even the bishop. Therefore, a so-called scrutiny is prescribed, from which must emerge the candidate’s conscious willingness to assume the burdens of the priesthood, his aptitudes, his piety, his zeal, his love of study, and the absence of defects that might prejudice his priestly ministry. These signs must be positively and securely present in the subject and can already be observed during the course of his studies.
Quando the time appointed for the reception of the tonsure draws near, the prescriptions regarding scrutiny must be observed, unless certain information or findings reveal the unworthiness of the person, in which case he is immediately dismissed. At least two months beforehand, the candidate must submit a written application to the rector of the seminary, who forwards it to the bishop of the candidate, attaching the certificates of Baptism and Confirmation. The bishop then returns the request to the rector, instructing him to investigate and report on the candidate’s conduct, suitability, and qualities, following a form prescribed by the Sacred Congregation of the Sacraments. The bishop also seeks information from the candidate’s parish priest and from others who can testify to his conduct, piety, free will in seeking ordination, morals, and other signs of vocation, as well as his reputation and public esteem. The bishop must also consult the seminary’s disciplinary commission. Furthermore, the bishop himself—or, if prevented, his delegate—must personally examine the candidate to ascertain his freedom in receiving Holy Orders and his willingness to assume the obligations; for this purpose, the relevant passages from the Roman Pontifical will be read to him. Only if the examination is favorable will the bishop decide to admit him.
This investigation must also be taken into account when conferring minor orders. However, it must be repeated, expanded, updated, and verified when considering promotion to the subdiaconate. For this order, in addition to the information already required for the first tonsure, the candidate must provide evidence of his conduct following the tonsure, and he must respond and sign a declaration affirming his freedom and awareness in receiving ordination with its attendant obligations.
For the conferral of the diaconate, it is sufficient to refer to the preceding investigations, unless new circumstances or doubts have arisen regarding the candidate’s vocation or suitability for fulfilling the obligations. The same applies to admission to the priesthood. If doubts arise subsequently,