When a couple makes the decision to marry, they are making a lifetime commitment to each other. When that couple commits themselves to marriage in the Catholic Church, they are also making a sacramental commitment. The promises they make to each other are also made before God and the people of God. The Catholic Church then takes special care in the process of preparing the couple for this commitment. A part of this process includes the presentation and/or preparation of a few specific documents.
Each baptized person must provide the St. Marcelline Catholic Church with a current certified copy of his or her baptismal certificate. “Current” means that the date the copy of the baptismal certificate is prepared cannot be prior to six months time before your wedding date. “Certified” means that the copy must be stamped with the official church seal. Six months prior to your wedding date, please contact the church where you were baptized and request that they send a current certified copy of your baptismal certificate to St. Marcelline Catholic Church. It may not be a photocopy of the baptismal certificate that you may have at home. Non-baptized persons may still be married to baptized Catholics with proper permission. Your presider prepares these permissions.
If you were confirmed, please, at six months prior to your wedding date, provide a photocopy of the confirmation certificate you have at home. Or you may contact the church where you were confirmed and ask them to send a copy to St. Marcelline Catholic Church. Confirmation is not a requirement of marriage. If you are not confirmed, we do recommend that you contact the R.C.I.A. Ministry at your home parish.
The Prenuptial Questionnaire is a document that must be prepared prior to your wedding date by the celebrant (Priest or Deacon) witnessing your marriage. The Prenuptial Questionnaire relies, in part, on the information provided on the Baptismal and Confirmation Certificates, and the Witness Affidavits discussed earlier. Therefore these documents must be available in the time frame indicated earlier for the Priest or Deacon’s use. Due to busy schedules, you are strongly encouraged to set up a meeting date with your celebrant, as soon as they are assigned, for the purpose of completing the Prenuptial Questionnaire. We suggest that this meeting be held two months prior to your wedding date and after completion of your FOCCUS review with your Sponsor Couple, and that enough time be allotted for all parties to become aquatinted with each other. If you do not know the celebrant assigned to your wedding, please contact the parish office or our Marriage Preparation Coordinator.
These documents discussed in this section are normally very easy to obtain and/or complete. If you do have problems please contact the parish office. It is your responsibility to secure or complete these documents. If you were baptized and/or confirmed at St. Marcelline we will supply these records for you. Each one, where applicable, are essential therefore your marriage cannot take place without them. It is recommended that you not delay in your efforts to complete these requirements.