Marriage Preparation Saint Angela Merici Church 20970 Lorain Rd Fairview Park, Ohio 44126 440-333-2133 Wedding Planner #25 Please Return to Parish Center Office Table of Contents Page 1 The Sacrament of Marriage Page 2 Initial Considerations Necessary Church Documents Page 3 Impediments and Dispensations Necessary Civil Documents Scheduling the Time and Date Page 4 The Wedding Rites for Celebrating Marriage Page 5 Visiting Priest Page 6 Member of the Parish Banns Wedding Rehearsal Page 7 Of Other Things Pictures and Videos Servers Page 8 Wedding Booklets Flowers Aisle Runner Wedding Candles Deliveries to the Church Page 9 Guidelines for Planning Wedding Music Odds & Ends Page 10 Prayer Fees Page 11 Programs Page 12-13 Congratulations as you prepare for the Sacrament of Marriage The following information is offered to help you plan for your wedding. It contains the guidelines of the Roman Catholic Church and the regulations of the Diocese of Cleveland. It also addresses the legal requirements of the State of Ohio. The Sacrament of Marriage In the beginning God said, “It is not good that the man should live alone; I will make him a helpmate.” (Gen. 2:18) The sacrament of marriage is a call from Jesus Christ inviting a man and a woman to be joined to one another and to God in a special relationship. It is an act of trust in God which affirms that through joy and pain, success and failure, the spontaneous attraction of man to woman and woman to man is transformed into true charity, into a charity which takes on the value of eternity. The sacrament shows how marital love, as strong as death, cannot be extinguished because it comes from God. Understood in this way, the sacrament of marriage becomes an extension of all the other sacra- ments of Catholic life: it calls for a practical response to our baptismal vocation in a particularly important life choice; it is a call to put into a physical, emotional and spiritual form the commun- ion with God and with neighbor which is brought about mysteriously in the fullness of the Eucha- rist. It feeds on the gift of the Spirit and lays claim to wisdom and grace. There is even a need to stress its relationship to the sacrament of penance, to the degree that the family, the place not only of encounter, but also of confrontation, conflict and failure, is at the same time that of reconcilia- tion and forgiveness to which a specific sacrament of the church invites us. So the sacrament of marriage stands at the crossroads of Catholic life in its totality. 1 Initial Considerations The Diocese of Cleveland requires a period of at least six months in which to prepare for your marriage. This is to allow ample time for you and the priest, deacon or pastoral minister to meet and together assess your practical and spiritual readiness to receive the sacrament of matrimony. To assist in this evaluation you will be asked to answer some questions and share your thoughts about such topics as: the sanctity of marriage, mutual obligations of husband and wife, and duties of parents toward children. Specifically, you will take part in the Cleveland Diocese Evaluation for Marriage or FOCCUS. This is used to evaluate areas of religion and life, marriage readiness, children and parenthood, sexuality and conjugal morality, extended family and in-laws, interests and activities, and issues dealing with finances. FOCCUS takes about an hour to complete and will be scheduled as a separate appointment. Upon completion, FOCCUS is sent to the diocese for evaluation. There is a $15.00 fee for this (please refer to page 13). When the evaluation is returned, you will have the opportunity to talk about the results and to ask any questions or discuss any concerns you may have with the priest, deacon ,or pastoral minister. Please note that the information contained in FOCCUS is strictly confidential and is destroyed after your wedding. Because of the seriousness of the marital commitment, it is required that you, as a couple, attend one of the programs listed under ‘Programs’ on page 12 as another opportunity to grow closer to each other and strengthen your faith. Other Considerations– Necessary Church Documents If you have been previously married, you must submit either a Declaration of Nullity in the case of divorce or a Death Certificate if your former spouse is deceased. It is very important that you inform the priest or deacon of any marital bond that may have previously existed before you begin the present preparation process —no wedding date may be set if former marriage ques- tions need to be resolved. You will also need baptismal information. If you are a Roman Catholic an original baptismal certificate can be obtained from the parish where you were baptized. This certificate must be dated within the six month period of your marriage preparation. If you are a Christian of another denomination, you must provide proof of your baptism in that church. You may obtain an original or copy of the baptismal certificate or you may provide a letter from the church of your baptism. 2 You will also be asked to provide a certificate of attendance from any of the pre-marriage programs listed on page 12. Impediments and Dispensations Because the spiritual welfare of the faithful is of utmost importance to the Church, some assurance must be given that, as a couple, every opportunity will be taken advantage of to promote and practice the teaching of the Catholic Church regarding married life and children. When a Catholic marries a person not of the Catholic faith, the Catholic party will be asked to sign a pre-nuptial promise stating that these areas of married life have been discussed and are understood by both parties. This agreement or dispensation will then be forwarded to the bishop of the diocese for approval. There is a $5.00 fee for this (please refer to page 11). As a further safeguard to the sanctity of your marriage you, again as a couple, will be asked to sign the following statement as your witness to the desire and freedom to marry : “We, in the presence of one another, individually declare our freedom to marry and our freedom from any known impediments between us. We hold marriage to be a life-long and faithful union and process of choosing each other for the mutual sharing of our life and our love; it is a union which is open to children; it is a union which is modeled after and symbolizes God’s ever faithful love for God’s people. It is this partnership of life and love that we seek in marriage and to which we publicly give our consent.” The priest, deacon, or pastoral minister will go over this statement with you during one of your meetings to make certain that there are no doubts or reservations concerning the forthcoming marriage. Necessary Civil Documents Before the marriage can take place, a civil marriage license must be obtained from: Probate Court of Cuyahoga County, Marriage License Department Old Court House, 101 Lakeside Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio, 44113 Room 146 Phone: 216-443-8920 or 216-443-8947 Open: 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Monday - Friday Closed: Saturdays, Sundays & Legal Holidays website: www.cuyahogacounty.us/probate In the State of Ohio, the application for a marriage license may be made in the county of either applicant. If neither party is a resident of Ohio, the applications are to be made in the county in which the ceremony is to be performed (St Angela is in Cuyahoga County). Please check the Cuyahoga County Probate website as cited above for the necessary documents and current fees needed to file for a marriage license. 3 Parties are required to apply for the marriage license together, unless one, or both, are physi- cally unable to do so. If this is the case, then their physician is required to sign an affidavit stating the reason for the disability. Upon completion of the affidavit, it will be signed, acknowledged, and filed with the application for the marriage license. According to Ohio law, the license will not be issued within five (5) days of the application. However, for good cause, the Probate Judge may waive such a period if time, based on the reasons set forth in the application requesting such waiver of time. The license may be picked up by either of the parties upon expiration of the waiting period. Please note that the application for a marriage license is valid for thirty (30) days from the date of applying and the license is valid for sixty (60) days after it is issued. Please remember to bring the marriage license with you to the wedding rehearsal. Scheduling the Time and Date When you first call the parish to schedule the date and time for your wedding, that date and time will be tentative until completion of obtaining all necessary information and fulfilling all preparation requirements for marriage. The priest, deacon, or pastoral minister you are working with can help you determine this. The usual times for weddings at St. Angela are: 5:00 p.m. Friday; 11:30 a.m. Saturday; 2:00 p.m. Saturday No weddings are scheduled on Sundays, Holy Days, National Holidays or usually during Lent. No weddings may be celebrated outside the church building. This is in keeping with Church and diocesan guidelines. The Wedding The Roman Catholic Rite of Marriage is so rich in symbolism and grace that every effort should be made to use all of what is available according to one of three rites you are celebrating. Each rite is meant to impart the grace of the sacrament and to convey a solemn knowledge of the obligation of the married couple in addition to stressing the importance and dignity of the Sacrament of Marriage. The outlines of the three Rites are as follows: 4 Rite For Celebrating Marriage During Mass Entrance Rite Liturgy of the Word Rite of Marriage  Introduction  Questions  Consent  Blessing of Rings  Exchange of Rings  General Intercessions Liturgy of the Eucharist  Preparation of the Altar and Gifts  Lord’s Prayer  Nuptial Blessing  Sign of Peace  Communion  Prayer After Communion  Concluding Rite  Solemn Blessing  Dismissal Rite For Celebrating Marriage Outside Mass Entrance Rite Liturgy of the Word Rite of Marriage  Introduction  Questions  Consent  Blessing of Rings  Exchange of Rings  General Intercessions  Nuptial Blessing Conclusion of the Celebration  Lord’s Prayer and Blessing Rite For Celebrating Marriage Between a Catholic and an Unbaptized Person Rite of Welcome Blessing of Rings Liturgy of the Word Exchange of Rings Homily General Intercessions Rite of Marriage Nuptial Blessing Introduction Conclusion of the Celebration Questions Lord’s Prayer and Blessing Consent 5 The parish provides a booklet ( Together for Life) to help you choose readings, blessings and prayers that will make your wedding personal, yet, reflect the Gospel values to be lived out in your life together as a couple. The priest, deacon, or pastoral minister who is helping you with your marriage preparation can help you with this as well as answer any questions you may have about your choices. A meeting should be made at least two (2) weeks before the wedding to go over plans for the ceremony. Visiting Priest If any priest other than one from St. Angela is to be the celebrant at your wedding, please determine if he is to be responsible for all paperwork, instructions, and the rehearsal. If not, you may work with a priest from St. Angela to complete the required preparations. If you work exclusively with a visiting priest, inform him of the wedding policies here at St. Angela and have him contact one of our priests to work out any details. Any priest or deacon from out-of–State needs an Ohio Minister’s License and permission from the pastor of St. Angela to witness your wedding vows. Concelebrants are also welcome and need only to inform the main celebrant of his attendance. Member of the Parish At least one party of the couple should be a registered member of St. Angela Church for the wedding to take place here. If this is not the case, permission from the pastor of the parish that you are registered in is needed. This permission should be in written form and included in your marriage papers. Being away at school or being in a temporary job out of town does not change your status as a member of the parish. Banns Banns (i.e., announcement of the wedding) are customarily published in the bulletin of the parish where the wedding is to take place three weekends before the ceremony. 6