![\"\"](\"https:\/\/runyourownwebsite.uk\/sorted\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/36\/2021\/03\/4.png\")
<\/p>\nBut am I the only person who finds Boris Johnson\u2019s third marriage to Carrie Symonds \u2013 blessed by the Catholic Church and concluded in secrecy at the weekend in the splendid settings of Westminster Abbey \u2013 to be a step too far?<\/p>\n
Bozza has been a groom on two previous occasions. The fact he has got married a third time (and his former spouses are among the land of the living) suggests he hasn\u2019t followed the vows he made on those previous occasions.<\/p>\n
That being the case, what is the Catholic Church \u2013 a body I generally hold in high regard \u2013 doing giving such a ceremony the green light and defending its actions by stating it doesn\u2019t recognise the two previous weddings?<\/p>\n
Such a stance makes a mockery out of the sanctity of a Church wedding.<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t get me wrong, if Bozza and Carrie wish to tie the knot, that is their prerogative. But there are Register Offices that will perform a civil ceremony, enabling their union to be legalised. Surely the Church does not have to be involved in the matter?<\/p>\n
I first came across this hypocrisy when a university friend of my wife\u2019s married a twice-wed journalist at the wonderful Worth Abbey in Sussex. Similar arguments were used to justify the arrangement (eventually winning the day) and a glorious white wedding ensued.<\/p>\n
A few years later, the same couple were divorced and our friend had found new love. Again, she wanted to cement things and planned a big, formal wedding \u2013 even though there was seemingly a sizeable obstacle in the way. But the Catholic Church didn\u2019t disappoint, claiming not to have known about the former husband\u2019s previous marriages when it originally sanctioned its approval. That out of the way, the path was clear for our friend to be remarried once again \u2013 at Worth Abbey \u2013 with all the trimmings of the quintessentially English occasion.<\/p>\n
And so a second white wedding occurred, and no mention of the father of our friend's two sons (a product of the first union) was made.<\/p>\n
Although I attended both weddings, the church\u2019s decision-making left me shaking my head. I was not judging my friend, nor her husbands. I was just dismayed that the world\u2019s largest Christian denomination could ride roughshod over everything the Bible teaches on the holiness of marriage.<\/p>\n
And today, I find myself feeling exactly the same emotions at the revelation Boris and Carrie have done the same thing.<\/p>\n
Being a simple lad from the north of England, I believe making certain decisions in life has a consequence. Or I was always taught it should do.<\/p>\n
And even though these days we are told by marketers and salespeople we can have anything we want the stark reality is we should only get one bite at some things \u2013 and a Church wedding is, in my humble opinion, one of them.<\/p>\n
Charles Spurgeon said many memorable things in his lifetime. One of them, in summary, stated unbelievers do not read the Bible to learn about Christ \u2013 they watch Christian men and women carefully and learn everything they need to know from them.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s all well and good when we are doing the right things. But what about when we are doing the wrong things, things that put us in conflict with our beliefs, what does that say about us and the faith we uphold as 'the only way'?<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Tony Yorke is Deputy Editor of Sorted<\/em> magazine.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I don\u2019t wish to pour cold water on the joy of anyone \u2013 particularly when they are celebrating their nuptials. But am I the only person who finds Boris Johnson\u2019s third marriage to Carrie Symonds \u2013 blessed by the Catholic Church and concluded in secrecy at the weekend in the splendid settings of Westminster Abbey […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":692,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17,1546],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8715","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-free-content","category-homepage"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/runyourownwebsite.uk\/sorted\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8715","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/runyourownwebsite.uk\/sorted\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/runyourownwebsite.uk\/sorted\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/runyourownwebsite.uk\/sorted\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/692"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/runyourownwebsite.uk\/sorted\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8715"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/runyourownwebsite.uk\/sorted\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8715\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8721,"href":"https:\/\/runyourownwebsite.uk\/sorted\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8715\/revisions\/8721"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/runyourownwebsite.uk\/sorted\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8715"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/runyourownwebsite.uk\/sorted\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8715"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/runyourownwebsite.uk\/sorted\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8715"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}