Marriage

Congratulations on your decision to get married. It’s an exciting time with lots of wedding planning ahead! While you need only give three months notice of your intention to marry it is common practice for a couple to book the church a long time in advance. So it is important to contact the Parish Office to make sure that the church is available on the day you require.

The sacrament of Matrimony celebrates a couple’s commitment to share the whole of their life together and to show the love of God to each other, to their children and to others through their relationship. Christian marriage is the place where husband and wife, children, family and friends meet God.

In the Dublin Archdiocese, church weddings can take place on any day other than Sundays, major feast days and Holy Week

2023 Major Feast Days and Holy Days of Obligation

22nd February – Ash Wednesday
17th March – St. Patrick’s Day
6th, 7th, 8th April – Holy Week Triduum – Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday
15th August – Assumption of Mary
1st November – All Saints Day
8th December – Immaculate Conception
25th December – Christmas Day

A minimum of 3 months notice is required and we request that couples be aware of the State requirements prior to speaking to a Priest of the Parish to book. Pre-Nuptual enquiries are requested for all couples to be completed in their Parish of residence and an approved pre-marriage course must be attended. All Canon Law requirements must be followed with regard to age etc.

These links below will be helpful in providing all the information regarding religious and civil requirements;

https://www.accord.ie/services/marriage-preparation/faq

https://www.accord.ie/services/getting-married

https://www.gov.ie/en/service/ac59d3-get-married-in-ireland/

The following practical information may also be helpful

• Go to a priest in the parish of the bride at least THREE MONTHS before the date on which you plan to marry. The meetings of the couple with their priest are a key part of the preparation process. These meetings have taken on a new significance in recent times, because it can no longer be assumed that seeking a Church wedding is an expression of Christian faith on the part of one or both partners. These meetings are an opportunity for a couple to reflect on what Christian marriage asks of them.
• The couple are required to participate in a pre-marriage course, preferable one run by ACCORD.  ACCORD Dublin has launched a new website.  For Sacramental Marriage Preparation Courses in Dublin please visit www.accorddublin.ie. Since some courses are presently being run only online you can also book an online course hosted anywhere in the country through the national ACCORD site at www.accord.ie.
• The priest will also begin the process of filling out Pre-Nuptial Enquiry Forms and advise you about the various documents that you need to collect. You will need to get a Certificate of Baptism from the parish in which you were baptised and a Certificate of Confirmation from the parish in which you were confirmed. These documents should be issued no less than six months prior to the date of marriage.
• If you have lived somewhere else, other than your present parish, since you were sixteen, then you may need to get a Letter of Freedom from each parish in which you lived for more than six months to state that you did not get married while you lived there. An alternative is to get a close relative, witnessed by the priest,  to sign a ‘Statement of Freedom to Marry form’ stating that, to the best of their knowledge you have never been civilly or religiously married before. Any Parish Office or priest from the parish (or parishes) where you lived should be able to supply you with this document.
• The bishop’s permission is required for a Church marriage involving someone under 18. Christian marriage requires the capability for a mature commitment and therefore such permissions are only granted in exceptional circumstances.
• Freedom to marry: The rules governing freedom to marry in the Catholic church can be complicated. The best advice when one party has been married previously (either in a civil or religious ceremony) is not to make arrangements until the diocesan office has been consulted.
• Mixed Marriages: Special permissions are required for full church recognition of marriages between a Roman Catholic and a baptised non-RC or someone unbaptised. Applications are handled by the diocesan office once the priest of the catholic party has forwarded the standard paperwork.
• The marriage ceremony should normally take place in a church in the bride’s parish. If the couple have a good reason for getting married elsewhere, the bride should inform a priest in the parish where she is now living to give her the necessary Letter of Permission to get married outside the parish. Obviously, in this case, the couple will need to make arrangements for the use of the church in the parish where they intend to get married.
• Normally a priest from the bride’s parish officiates at the marriage ceremony, assuming that the ceremony takes place in the bride’s parish. If you wish to have some other priest (e.g. a relative or friend) officiate, inform the priest in the parish where the ceremony is to take place and he will give the necessary authorisation. In Civil Law, it is now a legal requirement for the solemniser (the priest who officiates at the marriage) to be on the ‘List of Solemnisers’ submitted by each local Bishop to the Registrar-General.
• Celebrants From Overseas: All diocesan priests in the Republic of Ireland are on the State’s ‘List of Solmnisers’. In order for a priest from oversees to be placed on this list in a temporary capacity, it is necessary for him to send his name, address and telephone number to the Diocesan Office.
• Ask the priest who is to officiate at your wedding to help you with the task of creating your marriage ceremony. There are a variety of prayers, blessings, readings, etc. Read through these together and choose the ones you prefer. Choose the person(s) who will read at Mass, person(s) to read the Prayers of the Faithful and the people to bring up the gifts at the Offertory. Rehearse the ceremony in church with the priest before the wedding day.
• To celebrate the sacrament of Marriage does not require the celebration of Eucharist (Mass). While it has been generally the custom, it may not always be appropriate for example in a “mixed” marriage or when a couple are not regularly practising. Some couples today find the celebration of Marriage without the Eucharist, to be more appropriate for them.