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The
following information is provided for people interested in having their
wedding at St Mary’s Church, Toukley.
PREPARATION
You will need to firstly meet with one of the priests, to book times and
dates, and to make some preliminary arrangements. These arrangements
cannot be made over the phone.
Your
priest will give you details of a marriage preparation course for the
two of you to attend. This course is a live-in weekend away and is run
by married couples who will share with you the Church’s dream for your
marriage and challenge you to look deeply at your relationship, as you
move towards a married commitment.
When you complete this course, you will then see the priest two or three
times. During these meetings, there will be time to discuss your
reflections about your preparation course, sign some of the necessary
paperwork, and prepare the wedding ceremony. Making these appointments
will be your responsibility. All preparations need to be completed at
least one month prior to the wedding.
If you are not already regularly coming to Mass here or somewhere else,
now, during your engagement is the time to establish this as part of
your life. If you are serious about seeking God’s blessing in your
life, and you believe that it is important to be married in a church,
then it is also important to be worshipping God regularly.
THE
CEREMONY
The
wedding ceremony in the Catholic Church may be celebrated with or
without Mass, and usually goes for 35-45 minutes. You will be invited by
the priest to choose bible readings and prayers, and to organize members
of your family and friends to read these. We usually have a rehearsal
around a week before the wedding.
Weddings
are usually between 10.30am and 3pm on Saturdays.
WHO
CAN I MARRY?
The Catholic Church recognizes a valid marriage as a permanent,
life-long commitment. If
you have been married and divorced, it is necessary to go through a
process called annulment. This process assesses whether or not your
previous marriage was valid. If the annulment is granted you are free to
marry in the Church. Speak to your priest if you have been married
previously.
A Catholic can marry any person, Catholic, non-Catholic or non-Christian
in the Catholic Church. However, you will be required to promise that
you will continue to practice the faith and bring up your children as
Catholics. Please take this commitment seriously, and reflect on whether
this is already true in your life.
PAPERWORK
When you meet with the priest after your preparation course, you will
need to have some personal papers. You will each need either a birth
certificate or a passport as civil identification. A Catholic getting
married will need to obtain a recent baptism certificate (contact the
parish where you were baptised, and ask them to send you one). A person
baptised in another Christian church is asked to bring a copy of their
original baptism certificate.
FEES
St Mary’s Church is maintained through the generosity of it’s
parishioners. If you are not a regular churchgoer we ask you to give
$100 towards the cost of maintaining the church (cash or cheque to “St
Mary’s Parish”) and to make a donation towards to the fund which
supports retired priests (cash or cheque to “St Mary's Parish”). A
registry wedding costs at least $250, and we hope that we are offering
you a venue and a service which is far more valuable.
MUSIC
and FLOWERS
Church services are greatly enhanced by the use of music, even more so
when the congregation is invited to sing. Religious music and classical
music is the most appropriate for a wedding. Live music is always
preferable to recorded music, although we do have a CD player available.
You are welcome to use any musicians you wish, and we can offer you a
list of musicians if necessary.
You
may make your own arrangements with flowers, or, one of our parishioners
can purchase flowers and arrange them on your behalf.
We
look forward to celebrating with you!
Fr
Peter D'Souza msfs
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