Petition for Ecclesiastical Divorce


Pastoral and Administrative Guidelines for Ecclesiastical Divorce

Archdiocese Guidelines for Ecclesiastical Divorce
The parish priest must exert every effort to reconcile the couple and avert a divorce.

However, if a reconciliation should not be reached, after a civil divorce has been obtained, the parish priest will transmit the petition of the party seeking the ecclesiastical divorce, together with the decree of the civil divorce, to the Spiritual Court of the Archdiocesan District or Metropolis.

The petition must include the names and surnames of the husband and wife, the wife's surname prior to marriage, their addresses, the name of the priest who performed the wedding, and the date and place of the wedding.

The petitioner must be a member of the parish through which he or she is petitioning for divorce.

Orthodox Christians of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese who have obtained a civil divorce but not an ecclesiastical divorce may not participate in any sacraments of the Church or serve on the Parish Council, Archdiocesan District Council, Metropolis Council or Archdiocesan Council until they have been granted a divorce by the Church.

Metropolis Guidelines for Ecclesiastical Divorce
The Chancellor directly addresses all matters concerning the Spiritual Tribunal and Ecclesiastical Divorces. The Metropolis Registry Office provides the following guidelines to assist Parish Priests in thesubmission of Petitions for Ecclesiastical Divorce: