“The consent was vitiated. Why? Because a circumstance was hidden from the other party, a behavior that will later affect married life, community life, and love of the spouses. And in fact, this happened and the annulment was requested,” he said.
With the act of concealment, according to the priest, who holds a doctorate in canon law, “that total gift has been completely affected, the total gift of self, in one body.”
“Fidelity is directly affected, since there is not a total gift of self. Through platforms like OnlyFans, whose purpose is erotic or pornographic, the ‘one flesh’ bond is morally and sacramentally broken,” he pointed out.
Finally, Gaspar noted that the Church tribunal’s ruling came after an exhaustive study and investigation, which reached “the moral certainty that an essential property of married life, such as fidelity, was lacking.”
The annulment process
The process of declaring the nullity of a marriage is rigorous and well defined. “The first thing the husband, the wife, and then the priest or the spiritual director, or the ecclesiastical tribunal itself, have to do is make every effort for the marriage not to be null,” the priest said. If the marriage cannot be saved, the case is presented to the ecclesiastical court, where it is studied in detail.
In cases like the OnlyFans account, the husband or wife must provide proof that the hidden conduct existed before the marriage. For example, “it can be a screenshot of that page, which can be verified,” Gaspar said. Witnesses and statements are also part of the process.
With more than 15 years of experience in the Ecclesiastical Tribunal of Lima, Gaspar has seen various cases that have led to declarations of nullity.
“For example, on the issue of simulation of consent. The issue of homosexuality [that was hidden] from the other party. Or the issue of taking drugs. [One spouse] hid the drug habit from the other,” he said. These examples illustrate the variety of situations that can vitiate marital consent.
This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.
Diego Lopez Marina has a degree in Communication Sciences with a specialization in journalism from the University of San Martín de Porres (Peru). He began his professional career in 2015, as an editor for the Journalistic Archive area of the Diario El Comercio. In 2016 he began working as an writer for ACI Prensa and since 2018 he has been working as a web editor.
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