September 22, 1909
In her column in the Chicago Daily Tribune, the Marquise de Fontenoy reports that Princess George of Greece -- the former Princess Marie Bonaparte -- has become a member of the Greek Orthodox Church. The Marquise finds it "astonishing" that the Princess, who was born and raised Roman Catholic, had not taken this step before as she had not obtained a dispensation from the Roman Catholic church when she married Prince George. The Roman Catholic Church has not recognized her marriage, and she has not been able to receive the Sacraments.
A dispensation is only granted "on the most solemn undertaking on the part of the applicant" that he or she must agree to raise the children born of the marriage as Roman Catholics. Prince George, however, could not agree to this as the Greek constitution requires the princes and princesses to be raised in the Orthodox faith.
Prince George might have forfeited his children's succession rights if he had allowed them to be baptized in the Roman Church.
The Vatican has remained strict "on the matter of mixed marriages" among Europe's reigning royal houses, since the marriage of the Crown Prince and Crown Princess of Roumania.
Pope Leo XIII granted a dispensation to the couple because they would raise their children in the Catholic faith.
Crown Prince Ferdinand, as a member of the Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen family, is Roman Catholic. Crown Princess Marie is a member of the Church of England. Although he agreed to the church's requirement for marital dispensation, Ferdinand allowed his children to be baptized according to the rites of the Orthodox church, which is the primary religion in Roumania.
The former Princess Sophie of Prussia, a Lutheran, joined the Orthodox church after her marriage to Crown Prince Constantine. Sophie's sister-in-law, Alice, who is married to Prince Andrew of Greece, has retained her Lutheran faith, although her daughters are being reared in the Greek Orthodox church.
Hmm..this one is amusing,,wasnt Marie an atheist?
ReplyDeleteMarie was not an atheist. She considered herself an Anglican - but had very "modern" views about religion.
ReplyDeleteWhy should Marie Bonaparte consider herself an Anglican? She was born Roman Catholic and married an Orthodox Prince.
ReplyDeleteHer biographer, Celia Bertin, who had access to some of Marie's papers describes her as 'a lifelong atheist.'
Your comments make sense if you were referring to Marie of Romania who although hugely attracted by the Baha I faith retained her formal connection to the Anglican Church into which she was born.