Marriage

Kingston Catholic Deanery

Sacrament Leader:

The Parish Priest

Contact Telephone Number:

The Parish Office

E-mail:

The Parish Office

Those entering marraige:

Engagement – as soon as a couple become engaged, they should inform their parish priest whose encouragement and co-operation are of vital importance.

Notification of marriage – at least 6 months’ notice of a marriage is normally required.

Preparation Talks – every couple intending on getting married must attend a marriage preparation course.   Please see below.

Marriage Rite – engaged couples are encouraged to help with the preparation of their wedding by choosing the music, readings and the variable parts of the ceremony and of the Mass.   None of this should be left to the last minute, and guidance will be given by the priest who will administer the Sacrament.

When the course takes place:

A course is provided by The Archdiocese, although there are alternatives which you may utilise – please speak to the priest if you need guidance as to the suitability of your preferred course.   In order to be married in OLI, or anywhere else in the diocese, it is essential that you have completed a Marriage Course, and received a certificate of attendance (issued in line with the Diocesan guidelines).

Where do we meet?

Various locations within the diocese

The course:

The course provides catechesis on the Sacrament of Matrimony leading the couples towards the understanding that in Christian marriage, their loving committed and faithful relationship with each other will be an outward, visible sign of Christ’s love for His Church. The programme also explores how their day to day human love is so very important to the Church as a vocation or calling, and of great value to the wider world. The couples are given practical ways to keep their relationship fresh and vibrant, building on their present loving commitment as engaged people. Since a time of preparation is generally required by diocese in the UK and abroad, a certificate of attendance is provided, which is part of the required documentation.

What the Church teaches:

Marriage in the Bible. Marriage is the part of God’s plan for the human race, as revealed in the Bible.

‘It is not good for man to be alone. I will make him a helper suitable for him’ … ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.’ (Genesis 1, 27-28)

‘Be fruitful and increase in number…’ (Genesis 1, 27-28)

The teaching of Jesus on marriage is that it can not be dissolved: ‘What God has joined together, let no one separate.’ (Matthew 19, 4-6; Mark 10, 6-8)

Marriage and Canon Law. In sacramental marriage a husband and wife are united in one unbreakable bond.

There are two goals of a sacramental marriage:

• • • The good of the spouses
    • The procreation and education of the children

(Canon #1055)

The essential qualities of marriage are unity and indissolubility (Canon #1056)

‘Matrimonial consent is an act of the will, by which a man and woman, with irrevocable covenant, give and accept each other equally, in order to bring into existence a marriage’ (Canon #1057)

The Sacrament of Marriage. Marriage is an intimate partnership between a man and a woman. The foundation of marriage is a covenant (contract) which can not be altered or cancelled, and to which both partners agree. In so doing, they form a relationship of life and love.

The partners commit themselves to the creation of life which will hold a special and equal place in their relationship, and they promise to nurture and sustain that life. For their good, and the good of their children, and for the good of society in general, this sacred bond no longer depends on human decisions alone, ‘for God Himself is the author of marriage’ (Gaudium et Spes #48)

The Catholic Church teaches that Christian marriage is a Sacrament, a visible sign that God’s love is truly present in their relationship.

The Theology of Marriage. Before marriage, a Christian will have encountered Christ in Baptism and, normally, also in Confirmation and the Eucharist.

The Christian man or woman receives both the capacity and the mission to live out their sacrament of marriage in a concrete way in their love for one another and in the service of their children and their neighbour.

Marriage means being consecrated to a life of love similar to that of Christ himself.

The Second Vatican Council refers to the family as ‘the domestic church’ (Lumen Gentium #11)