Special
Marriage Preparation Pamphlet (pdf)
«From
this Day Forward»
The Church recognizes marriage as a sacrament, a sign of the special link to God’s intimate relationship with his people. In the Church, a man and woman’s decision to marry and to commit themselves freely to one another in a lifetime commitment is expressed in a liturgical celebration in which the spouses exchange their irrevocable consent to an indissoluble love. And so, the Church considers the spouses themselves to be the ministers of the sacrament of marriage.
Catholics recognize in the sacrament of marriage a covenant, a gift of unconditional love connected to God’s Covenant with all of humanity to whom he gives complete love. This covenant is created between two people who decide to form, in God’s image, a marriage which is at the heart and center of human community and is a commitment of service to others and to the children who may be born to them. In committing themselves in Christian Marriage, the couple accepts to grow in faith and to make this faith concrete in their daily lives. In living out this commitment, they become witnesses to the whole of society to whom they show that is it possible to maintain, through their daily joys and difficulties, a lifetime commitment to love. Procedure to be followed:
The couple requesting marriage within the Church, prepare by getting to know each other better and seeking to understand more deeply the commitment which they are about to undertake. So as to be helped on this journey, the couple approaches the parish where they plan to get married as soon as possible, and preferably before a date for the wedding has been set. The priest may then recommend that the couple take a Marriage Preparation Course.
The
Church celebrates the marriage when the following conditions have been met:At
least one of the partners must be a Catholic;
Neither one of the partners
is still bound by a valid marriage;
They are both capable of freely consenting
to the marriage;
Each one must be truly committed to the other (indissolubility);
They manifest a desire to persevere faithfully in their love by keeping it alive
and growing in a lifetime commitment, and of being open to children.
More information on the Sacrament of Marriage and on Marriage Preparation is available from The Department for Family Life at 925-4300, local 219 or local 343
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December 2nd, 2006