Wedding Guidelines

St. Anthony of Padua

Wedding Policies and Guidelines

Revised 2018

For a printable copy of the Wedding Guidelines, click here.

Wedding Mass or Wedding Service

A Wedding Mass is the preferred service for a wedding provided that both the bride and groom are Catholic and are active in their faith lives. The couple must be attending Mass on Sundays and Holy Days and be in good standing with the Church.

A Wedding Service is the service option that is available to a couple when either the bride or the groom is non-Catholic or both Catholic parties are not active participants in the life of the Church. This service contains the Liturgy of the Word (scripture readings) with the Rite of Marriage. The Eucharist is not celebrated. A deacon will be assigned for a Wedding Service.

The type of service which you will be having will be discussed with our Pastor at your initial meeting.

Who may be the Celebrant at your wedding?

Normally the Pastor of St. Anthony Parish or a designated deacon is the celebrant for all weddings celebrated in our parish. However, you may wish to bring in another celebrant with whom you may have a personal relationship and are familiar with him from another parish.

Any priest that is in good standing with the Catholic Church may preside at your wedding. If he is a priest of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati or has faculties from our Archbishop, he just needs to call Fr. Greg Konerman and ask his permission. If the priest is coming from another diocese, the priest must submit to Fr. Greg Konerman a Letter of Suitability from his respective Chancery Office stating that he is in good standing with the Catholic Church and his bishop. The celebrant must have a valid license from the State of Ohio to witness marriages. Some states reciprocate with licensing, but it is up to your guest celebrant to determine if he is in compliance with the laws of the State of Ohio.

Deacons are welcome too. Deacons are permitted to witness marriages in the Catholic Church. The same rules apply to them that apply to priests. Please see the paragraph above. Deacons may preside at a Wedding Service. Deacons are welcome to assist at a Wedding Mass by preaching the homily (if he has preaching faculties granted by the Archbishop) and/or receiving the marriage vows on behalf of the Church.

If you choose to bring your own celebrant, then it would be expected of him to complete all the necessary paperwork with our parish office as well as ensure that all the marriage preparation has been completed. This must be discussed with your intended celebrant as well as our Pastor to ensure that all proper paperwork and preparation has been completed.

Fees

Parishioners $650

Non-Parishioners $1000_

Note: Extra musicians, choir, rehearsals with extra musicians, etc. will be negotiated when you speak with the music director. If you wish to bring your own music director/musician for your wedding, you must discuss this with our music director and obtain permission. We have certain guidelines in place in order to maintain the integrity of the music for your service. If you are allowed to bring your own music director/musician for your service, you will still have a meeting with our music director to approve the music choices. There will be a fee of $75 for this meeting.

A non-refundable deposit of $300 is necessary to reserve and confirm your wedding date and time. The remainder of your fee is due to the parish office four weeks prior to your wedding.

Wedding Preparation

All couples must complete the FOCCUS Instrument. This is a communication tool used to help couples define their strengths and weaknesses in many aspects of their faith lives together. These items will be discussed with a FOCCUS couple. These couples are parishioners who are well versed in marriage preparation and issues that you will be facing together as a married couple. All people who have taken this instrument and have worked with these couples have found it to be a worthwhile experience.

Baptismal certificates for both parties, whether Catholic or Protestant must be obtained. For a Catholic, contact the church where your baptism took place. If the church no longer exists, contact the local diocese Chancery office. A baptismal certificate must be dated no more than 6 months before the date of the wedding. If no baptismal certificate is available for a baptized non- Catholic, a signed statement by someone who was present at the baptism – stating the date, name of the church and place of the baptism. If either the bride or groom has not been baptized, your priest or deacon will have to get special dispensation for the marriage from the Archbishop.

Furthermore, according to the guidelines established by the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, your preparation must also contain your participation in either the Pre-Cana Workshop or an Engaged Encounter Weekend. Please contact the Family Life Office of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati. The website is http://www/catholiccincinnati.org/familylife. Either of these must be completed several months in advance of your wedding.

Marriage preparation meetings with our Pastor or your celebrant must take place. It is at these meetings that many aspects of married life as well as the sacramental life of the Church are discussed. The Pastor or your celebrant will outline these requirements at your initial meeting with him. Couples normally meet with our Pastor about 4 – 6 times prior to the wedding.

You must obtain a Marriage License from the county in which you live. Please check with your local governmental offices to see where you obtain the necessary paperwork. This usually must be obtained no more than 60 days prior to the wedding. This license and paperwork must be provided to your celebrant prior to the wedding. Failure to obtain your marriage license and have it to the celebrant on or before the day of the wedding will result in delaying your marriage to another day. We cannot proceed with the wedding without it.

Have you received the Sacrament of Confirmation?

Many times during the course of marriage preparation we find that one if not both of the parties has not received the Sacraments of Initiation. The Sacraments of Initiation are Baptism, Eucharist, and Confirmation. This does not prohibit you from marrying in the Catholic Church but it does give you an opportunity to receive these sacraments and be fully initiated into your faith life. Please discuss this with Sharon Christy, Director of Evangelization, or with Fr. Greg Konerman.

Church Decorations

All decorations must be tasteful and have the approval of the pastor. No furniture in the church may be moved. All decorations must be disposed of by family or friends of the bride and groom before the bridal party leaves. Not doing so will result in an additional $100 fee and we will not file your marriage license until the fee is paid.

Altar flowers are not permitted during the season of Lent (Ash Wednesday through Easter Vigil). Aisle runners are discouraged as they are very dangerous and a big liability to you and your guests. No flowers petals may be dropped. The length of our center aisle is 100 feet and we have 25 pews per side. The church will seat 600 people comfortably.

The Unity Candle and Flowers taken to the Mary Altar are not part of the Marriage Rite. Therefore, they will not be a part of the Wedding Mass or Service. If you have a devotion to the Blessed Virgin, we suggest that you end your wedding rehearsal with a prayer and a visit to the Mary chapel with your parents and wedding party gathered by your side. Likewise, a Unity Candle would make a lovely gesture with scripture to be incorporated at your reception as a prayer before the meal.

After the service, it is your responsibility to remove the flowers and decorations. Many people opt to donate the altar flowers to the parish for use that weekend for the Sunday liturgies.

Photography and Videographers

Weddings are special moments where you wish to capture these moments by taking pictures and videotaping your service. Most professional photographers and videographers are well-versed in their line of work. Please have them speak with the celebrant at your wedding prior to the service in order for your photographer to have good results.

Flash photography is not permitted during the service. You will need to advise your guests. Also, the photographer/videographer and guests are not permitted to enter the Sanctuary during the wedding to take pictures. They must remain off to the sides. They need to be very discreet in their work and not be a distraction to the celebrant, you or your guests.

All photography must be completed by 3:15 pm for a Saturday afternoon wedding. There is no exception. Photos may be taken prior to the wedding service as long as the photographer has obtained permission from the pastor.

Liturgical Ministers

For your wedding service you will need to provide various ministers to assist. Here is a list of them:

For a Wedding Service or Wedding Mass

Ushers/Greeters – as many as you would like

Lectors – at least one and you may have up to three. Lectors proclaim the Scriptures; therefore they must be baptized Christians.

Additional ones if you have a Wedding Mass

Gift Bearers (to bring forth the bread and the wine; 1 or 2 will suffice)

Servers – optional (1 – 3 would suffice)

Eucharistic Ministers (1 – 3 will suffice)

They must be actively involved in their parish as a Eucharistic Minister and Lector in order to minister at your wedding. If another priest is present and/or a deacon, they will automatically be Eucharistic Ministers.

Wedding Rehearsals

The date and time will be arranged by the celebrant in charge of your wedding. Usually the rehearsal occurs the evening prior to the wedding. Please plan an hour of your time for this rehearsal.

Time of the service and length of service

Weddings are permitted any time on Saturday up to 1:30 pm. No service may start after 1:30 pm due to the fact that the Sacrament of Reconciliation begins at 3:30 pm in the Church and our Saturday Vigil Mass is at 4:30 pm..

It is becoming more common to celebrate weddings on Friday evenings. Weddings may occur anytime on Fridays with the consent of your celebrant and the music director.

All weddings start on time so get to the Church on time! A Wedding Service typically entails 30 – 40 minutes while a Wedding Mass entails about 40 – 50 minutes.

No Alcohol!!!! No exception!

Alcohol is forbidden anywhere on the church grounds. This goes for the rehearsal as well as the wedding day. Your wedding will be immediately cancelled if alcohol is seen or smelled on anyone and the responsible party who violates this will be instructed to inform the guests. The wedding party must also refrain from any alcohol prior to the wedding service but it is also a necessity for the legality of your marriage. You and your witnesses must be of sound mind in order for you to have a valid and legal marriage. Please retain this booklet and related contact numbers for future reference and review it with family as necessary.

Names and contact information of our staff involved in your wedding preparation and service:

Rev. Greg Konerman (Pastor) 937-253-9132 x 104 gkonerman@stanthonydayton.org

Sue Jenkins (Administrative Assistant) 937-253-9132 sjenkins@stanthonydayton.org

Parish Office Hours 9am – 4pm Monday thru Friday

St. Anthony of Padua Wedding Contract

830 Bowen Street

Dayton, OH 45410

Name of Bride: _____________________________Bride’s Religion_______________

Bride’s Home Phone: _________________ Bride’s Cell Number______________

Bride’s Address: ________________________________________________________

Bride’s Email Address:____________________________________________________

Name of Groom: ____________________________Groom’s Religion_______________

Groom’s Home Phone: ________________ Groom’s Cell Number: ______________

Groom’s Address: ___________________________________________________________

Groom’s Email Address:_______________________________________________________

Wedding Date: _____________________ Time of Wedding: _________________

Celebrant (priest or deacon) for wedding: ____________________________________

Phone number/email address if not our pastor: ________________________________

Musician/Music Director for your wedding: ___________________________________

Phone number/email address if not the parish Music Director: ___________________

I have enclosed the $300 non-refundable fee to reserve the date ___Yes ___No

(Make payable to St. Anthony Parish)

*Remainder of the amount is due 4 weeks prior to the wedding

_________________________________________________________________________________ Bride’s Signature Date

_________________________________________________________________________________ Groom’s Signature Date

Contract and money received on: _________________ By: ___________________

Final fees due _______________

Bride and Groom Copy