A Wedding Checklist
Ceremony
DocumentsMore reading in Wedding Guidelines.
Book the ChurchBooking early (at least 90 days ahead) the church where you wish to marry. If it is not in the bride's parish, she may need a note of assent from her parish priest. Usually the church can be booked through the parish secretary or the sacristan. It's best to make this contact in person, rather than by email of phone. Book your PriestAt least three months before the wedding arrange with a priest to celebrate your wedding and sign your Marriage Registration Form, as official Solemniser. He need not necessarily be from the parish of either the bride or the groom, but must be agreed by the administrator of the church where the wedding is to take place. To conform with civil regulations, your wedding priest must be on the Registrar's list of solemnisers. Readers & Singers Select your readers, musicians and singers well in advance of the wedding date. Choose as readers people of your own age-group, who would take the trouble to prepare the biblical readings and deliver them properly. Once you have chosen your preferred readings, send them to your readers in a clear, easily legible text. Baptismal CertificateThis is to be sought from the church of your baptism. Very often it is the parish secretary who will issue this cert for you. You may need to collect it in person; phone in advance, so that the cert can be prepared, from the parish records. The Baptismal Certificate to show your priest during your Prenuptial Enquiry should be of recent date (i.e. during the previous six months), so that it can also serve as documentary evidence of your freedom to marry, in the eyes of the church. After the wedding, notification of your marriage will be sent to the church of your baptism where it will be recorded alongside the the record of your baptism. Note: if there's doubt whether a copy of your Baptismal Certificate can be found (e.g. uncertainty about where your Baptism is recorded) you should notify your wedding church about this as early as possible, in case a provisional Baptism needs to be organised for you.
Confirmation CertificateGet this cert from the church where you received your Confirmation. Very often it is the parish secretary who will issue this cert for you. You may be required to collect it in person. Phone in advance, so that the cert can be prepared, from the parish records. Pre-nuptial Enquiry Form As part of the church's pastoral care for engaged couples, you need to do a Prenuptial Enquiry with one of your local priests. After the interview, he completes a Pre-nuptial Enquiry Form for you, which is an essential part of your wedding documents.
Letter of Freedom (or Affidavit)Documentary proof of your single status is required. The level of documentary proof required can vary from place to place. In extreme cases, you might need letters of freedom from every parish where you've lived for more than six months, since you turned eighteen. In the archdiocese of Dublin, this requirement may be fulfilled by means of a simple form of declaration, signed by a close relative and witnessed by a priest or deacon of the parish where you live. Another kind of documentary proof that is widely accepted is an Affidavit or sworn statement of one's legal freedom to marry. Pre-Marriage Course RequirementA certificate of attendance at an approved pre-marriage course is required in most dioceses as part of your preparation for a sacramental marriage. You can check with the priest providing your wedding documents whether your intended pre-marriage course has official acceptance. If a course does not consist of several sessions, it hardly meets the Irish bishops' guidelines (2010); but if in doubt ask your local priest. However, while an online pre-marriage course is not the usual norm, in exceptional circumstances ( like the present Coronavirus emergency, or service overseas in the army or an NGO) your priest might accept a home-study pre-marriage course as sufficient. It's best to check this before booking your course. Mixed Marriage PermitFor a Catholic to sacramentally marry either a non-Christian or a baptised person of another Christian hurch, a Mixed Marriage Permit (Dispensation) is needed, from the bishop of the Catholic party. This should be applied for early, through the parish of the Catholic party. Your priest will help you with this process, which should be fairly simple to arrange. Papal Blessing Some Catholic couples like to have an ornamental Papal Blessing Scroll to display in their new home. If you want one to be read out at your wedding, you should apply for it at least three months in advance of the wedding, along with a letter of recommendation from your parish priest. Wedding Mass Booklet This is not required, but many couples opt to produce a personalised Wedding Mass Booklet, with their details, their wedding vows and the biblical texts they have chosen as the context for the vows. If the couple’s families are from two different language areas, they may want to produce a Bilingual Wedding Booklet. Suitable texts are found in: Irish . . . . French . . . . German . . . . Italian . . . . Spanish . . . . Polish . . . . Portuguese. Your Wedding Music Alongside your readings from the Bible, the music you select for your wedding plays an important part in setting the context for your marriage vows. You should choose the songs and hymns in conjunction with your chosen singer(s), and incorporate the song titles within your wedding booklet. Ushers & Altar ServersIt is usual to appoint at least two Ushers for the wedding ceremony, to help show your guests to their places, distribute the wedding booklets and generally make themselves useful to the groom in having everything ready for the bride's arrival at the church.
Flowers; Carpet etc.These kinds of ornamentation are entirely at the couple's discretion, with the consent of whoever is in charge of the wedding church. You should tell the sacristan what arrangements you've made, to ensure that your florist and carpet-layer will have access to the church at the appropriate time, for delivery and removal of these ornaments. Civil RegistrationA couple intending to marry in Ireland must give notification in person to a registrar, at least 3 months before their marriage date. Notification can be given to the Registrar's office in any county. If there is no impediment to your marriage, they will issue you with a Marriage Registration Form (MRF) which gives you the civil permission to marry. Getting a marriage certificate
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