Mass Weddings

[thistle]

In this case by mass I mean multiple weddings at the same time. I’m attending a Catholic wedding next week in church but the bride and groom are part of a group of people getting married at exactly the same time. I think 10 couples are getting married. I assume this is allowed but I just wondered if this is commonplace. I live in the Philippines.

 

[Joannm]

We had a few mass weddings at a parish nearby. They were all immigrants from Mexico or South America who, while civilly married, were unable to get married in the CHurch because of a lack of priests to marry them. So they all got married together at the church in one ceremony.

 

[mschrank]

This is a Catholic Nuptial Mass for 10 couples?

Or is it just a convalidation…?

In any case why on earth this sort of thing appeals to any is beyond my comprehension.

 

[Br.Rich_SFO]

In this case by mass I mean multiple weddings at the same time. I’m attending a Catholic wedding next week in church but the bride and groom are part of a group of people getting married at exactly the same time. I think 10 couples are getting married. I assume this is allowed but I just wondered if this is commonplace. I live in the Philippines.

Mass wedding is a bit misleading. Several couples may get married in the same place, on the same day, even within 15 minutes of each other. But technically never at the same time.

Each couple must express for the person who ias the witness of the Church their vows individually where he (usually the priest or deacon) can clearly hear them. One mass “I DO” would call into question the validity of the Sacrament in my opinion.

 

[puzzleannie]

In this case by mass I mean multiple weddings at the same time. I’m attending a Catholic wedding next week in church but the bride and groom are part of a group of people getting married at exactly the same time. I think 10 couples are getting married. I assume this is allowed but I just wondered if this is commonplace. I live in the Philippines.

I have no idea of customs elsewhere, but here some parishes have ceremonies on or before Holy Saturday where marriages of several couples are convalidated, preparatory to members of these unions being baptized and/or confirmed and making first communion.

 

[thistle]

Mass wedding is a bit misleading. Several couples may get married in the same place, on the same day, even within 15 minutes of each other. But technically never at the same time.

Each couple must express for the person who ias the witness of the Church their vows individually where he (usually the priest or deacon) can clearly hear them. One mass “I DO” would call into question the validity of the Sacrament in my opinion.

What you say makes more sense. It is on Feb 28 so I’ll come back and let everyone know what actually takes place.

 

[porthos11]

This is a Catholic Nuptial Mass for 10 couples?

Or is it just a convalidation…?

In any case why on earth this sort of thing appeals to any is beyond my comprehension.

Thank God for such events. At least these poor people who have been living in a sinful state now have the opportunity to really make their vows in the Sacrament of Matrimony.

 

[thistle]

I would just like to report on the multiple weddings at the church I told you about.
First, they hold these once a month and it is for the benefit of the poor who are not in a position to pay for a single wedding.

As for the day I attended it was more complicated than the movie Four weddings and a funeral.

Initially 23 couples were to be married but 12 couples dropped out.
Of the 11 couples who were there to get married many of the 22 individuals had not been to Confession, 6 had never been baptised and none of the 22 had been confirmed. As you might imagine then it was a long afternoon. The priest heard the confessions, then there was a baptism ceremony, after which a confirmation ceremony took place.
Then we finally got to the weddings.
Each person had a name tag so that the priest for example would walk along saying do you John take…, do you Jim take… do you Bill take… and once he had asked all the men he did the same procedure for the women. Eventually all were married and no that was not the end of it.
After the weddings the baptisms of babies took place of two of the couples who were just married.
A really interesting afternoon.

 

[puzzleannie]

yes that sounds more like what happens in parts of Mexico and Central America, and what used to be done here in the old days on the ranchitos when the circuit riding Oblate priests visited. It is usually an all day affair, beginning with confessions early in the morning, light meal like tortillas and beans, marriages of those who have been living together or civilly married, then Mass, baptisms and confirmations, and communion for all. There are also lots of infants and children for baptism, and lots of first communions. Sometimes infants are confirmed as well at the time of baptism. Convivencia & fiesta follows. I attended similar events in No. Mich. for migrant workers at our mission church up there.

I have heard barbacoa was the traditional feast food for these occasions here. They may be pulling my leg.