wedding planning

[janbeau]

I am currently in RCIA classes and am looking forward to being married in the church. But being new to the Catholic faith I have a lot of questions about being married in the church and wedding planning in general. First, there is a local Catholic church that is beautiful… do I have to take the priest that is there or can I ask my priest to say the wedding mass there? Also, what are some of the little things I might not think of while planning my wedding in the church? What worked for you and what should I avoid? Help!

 

[SMHW]

You would normally get married in your own (or your future spouse’s) home parish. If this other church is not your home parish church it may still be possible but the rules are probably going to be dictated by the individual parishes.

Does your parish have a wedding coordinator? If so, you can probably ask this person and they will give you some initial answers to your questions about locations and other things to think about. If there is no wedding coodinator there may still be some one who handles such questions. Maybe you can ask around at RCIA for the name of someone who was married recently.

Once you learn some of the basics of what is permitted/encouraged/forbidden at your parish and/or the one with the nice church, then you can ask us here.

 

[aurora77]

Expect to wait six months between your initial meeting with the priest and the wedding date–you’ll have to complete the marriage prep course. Also, your parish may be different, but we were able to use our parish hall for the reception, at very low cost (it’s free to parishoners, but they ask for a donation). The only thing was, they asked that we not serve alcohol, not a problem as we were going the cake and punch route anyway.

Congratulations on your coming into the Church and your up coming wedding!!

 

[Fashina86]

You can bring a priest… but talk to the wedding coordinator. I have alter-served many weddings in my church and have served many differnt priests throughout the years. So I know that is possible.

 

[Red_Meg]

There are also rules to bear in mind regarding music. The music during the Mass itself (i.e. processional, psalm, offertory, communion, recessional) cannot be secular pop songs. Some parishes and dioceses go further and stipulate that even classical music (i.e. “Here Comes the Bride” from Wagner’s Lohengrin and the Mendelsohn Bridal March, often used as the recessional) are not acceptable either. That one you would need to check with the priest or wedding coordinator in the parish.

Also, bare shoulders are a no-no, for bride and bridemaid. A scarf, shawl or bolero to cover are all fine, obviously, and can come off at the reception.

One last thing to keep in mind-- we had a lot of non-Catholics at our wedding, as well of Catholics of varying degrees of practicing/non-practicing. When we printed up our booklet with the readings and hymns, we prominently included the “Guidelines for Receiving Communion” inside the front cover. We also asked the celebrant to be available to HEAR CONFESSIONS for thirty minutes prior to the wedding, and mentioned that in the program too…