The Sacrament of Matrimony

In the Catholic Church, marriage is held in very high esteem. We believe that it is an unbreakable bond between two people, such as yourselves, established by Jesus Christ for you to have and bring up children and for you to live together in mutual love.
 

Marriage is a covenant by which a man and a woman establish between themselves a partnership of love which is life-long, exclusive and open to having children.  All Catholics who wish to marry are bound to get married before a Catholic priest or deacon and two witnesses. 

Any marriage of a Catholic which is contracted 'outside the Church' (for example, in a Registry Office, a non-Catholic church or a place specially licensed for civil marriages) is null and void, except in the rare case of permission having been given beforehand by the local Bishop.  Special permission has to be sought for a Catholic to marry a baptised non-Catholic or an un-baptised person.  This permission is sought by the Catholic priest or deacon responsible for the preparation.

A period of careful preparation is required, and couples must attend a Parish Marriage Preparation Programme or a Programme approved by the Church in another suitable place outside their home parish .  At least six months' notice is usually required in order to allow time for proper preparation to take place and for all the necessary documentation to be assembled.  In the case of a couple only one of whom is a Catholic, the parish priest of the Catholic party has to oversee the preparation.  If Catholics wish to marry outside their home parish, they must first approach the parish priest where they live.

 

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