It is generally known that Catholic marriage has deep roots in the Italian tradition. San Pietro and the Vatican are situated in Rome, the capital of Italy. This is the reason why in Italy there are probably the most handsome Catholic churches in the world. From the 10th century onwards, the most important artists decorated cupolas, chapels and naves with small jewels of architecture and majestic cathedrals.
Sometimes marriages take place during the weekend in the majority of these churches. Each church has its own vademecum. For this reason, it is important to contact the minister in order to avoid the risk of not getting married. In addition, most of the weddings take place during summer periodfrom May to September. This is the reason why it is better to fix the day of the event in advance, just to be sure the day you prefer is not already booked.
Procedures for the Catholic marriage
Procedures for a Catholic ritual require the religious publications to be published 8 days (including two Sundays). After two weeks, the minister gives the certificate necessary to proceed with civil procedures. The marriage celebrated in a church is named “conventional”, as the Italian State recognizes its legal validity.
Choosing the church for the marriage
It is very difficult to suggest a church rather than another one.
The choice is very hard. There are very little churches located in fairy-tale places, such as the “Cappella di Vitaleta” in val d’Orcia or “Chiesa di Santa Maria del Soccorso” in Ischia. There are churches astonishing such as the “Mausoleo di Santa Costanza” in Rome and the “Duomo of Orvieto” which have spectacular interiors. There are churches located on amazing headlands, such as the “Chiesa della SS. Annunziata” in Vico Equense, the “Penisola Sorrentina” or the “Santuario della Madonna del Sasso” in Boleto. These places above are some of the most famous, you have only to decide.
Rules, principles and manners for the Catholic ceremony
A Catholic marriage requires an adequate and respectful behaviour of the religious place . Once you get a choice, you should ask the minister for the rules and habits to be respected and about eventual constraints. For example, it would be better to ask in time if it is allowed to decorate the church with flowers or to throw the rice at the end of the ceremony.
The best way to do it is to establish, from the beginning, a good relationship with the minister who will celebrate your marriage. He will answer your questions as if it is allowed to take pictures during the ritual and where the video makers are allowed to stand. If you opt for a ceremony with songs and music let the minister know your choice. Involve the minister and ask him for suggestions: to arrange some special moments, such as the reading of the faithful prayers during the liturgy of the word or if you prefer a particular song during the function or even an different entrance from the traditional one.
Don’t forget to agree decorations: which kind of decoration is allowed and when it is possible to access to the church to set-up. A respectful behaviour of the religious place has to be followed by you and your guests. Women must have their shoulder covered and the dresses must not be too short.
The function
The celebration of your Catholic marriage is an emotional moment that will make your wedding day something very special. Let’s see in details the steps of the function.
The entrance of the bride
The entrance of the bride is one of the most long-waited moments. You can choose to arrive while the guests and the groom are still out of the church; you can choose (a fairy-tale option) to arrive while everybody is waiting for you inside the church, in order to walk down the aisle with your dad, your brother or both your parents and reach your groom to the altar. It is a very emotional moment.
The ritual: the ceremony
The marriage ritual is quite different compared to a normal mass. First of all, the marriage ritual takes place between the liturgy of the word and the Eucharistic one.
the liturgy of the word consists of four moments: the first reading, the responsorial psalm, the second reading and the gospel extract. In some cases, , the second reading can be skipped,
Sometimes, the minister gives you the opportunity to read some different readings, regarding love and marriage (for example, some extract of the “Cantico dei Cantici”, the hymn to love or the charity of Saint Paul , etc…).
After the liturgy of the word, the minister moves to the marriage ritual. During this ritual, there is the exchange of the vows and of the wedding rings. This all end with the declaration of the union of the bride and the groom. During the Communion ritual, the bride and the groom will receive the holy brad together with witnesses, parents and all those presents.
The exit of the bride and the groom
The mass lasts 40-50 minutes and it ends up with the blessing of the bride, the groom and the guests. When the priest says “the mass has ended, go in peace” the celebration is over and everybody goes out and welcoming the newlyweds,
After signing the register with the witnesses and taking some photos, the bride and the groom are ready to go out of the church and be flooded with rice or roses’ petals.
Church Decoration
There are several rules to follow in order to respect the needs of worship but also the habits of the minister so we always take time to visit the Church and verify the feasibility of our projects taking into account these two variables.
We like to enhance the entrance of the Church with floral compositions, vases and particular objects that reflect the mood that the guests will discover even at the reception.
The central nave as well as the high altar must welcome guests and the couple but the choice of flowers and decorations will be studied taking into consideration the size and style of the church, prevalence of colors both inside and outside, presence of frescoes and position of the entry itself.