Weddings

You need to advise the Parish Office as soon as possible, (no less than 6 months in advance if possible), that you wish to have your wedding ceremony in the Parish. This will confirm the following information:

• the date of the wedding,
• the time of the wedding,
• the church in which the wedding is to take place, andthe priest who will officiate at the wedding.Please note: It is the responsibility of the engaged couple to secure the booking with the church before making any commitments with caterers, reception venues etc.

All weddings are St Joseph’s Church, Tweed Heads

Please Note: In accordance with Church laws and Diocesan regulations, it is not permitted for a Catholic priest to officiate at weddings in any other location in this parish other than the parish churches listed above.

Yes you can, providing the following points are observed and carried out. If you live outside St Joseph’s Parish, it is the responsibility of the engaged couple to complete the necessary paperwork and Pre-Marriage preparation with the Parish Priest of the parish in which the Catholic party (the bride and/or groom) resides.

e.g. If a couple lived in Lewisham (in Sydney) and wish to be married in St Joseph’s Parish Tweed Heads, they would approach the Parish Priest at St Thomas Becket Parish, Lewisham to complete the necessary paperwork and preparation there. The same requirement applies for couples living outside Australia

No! Catholic priests are only registered to officiate at weddings in accordance with the Rites of the Catholic Church. This means that the wedding ceremony must follow the formal and accepted liturgy (structure) of Catholic marriages using approved marriage vows, prayers, Scripture readings and appropriate church music. Resources are available to help you choose the appropriate approved texts and music in relation to planning your wedding ceremony.

Yes there are. They include:

Time

The normal day for a wedding to take place is a Saturday. Weddings need to commence no earlier than 11.00am and no later then 2.30pm. This ensures that it doesn’t clash with other parish gatherings or activities.

Day

Weddings may not take place on Good Friday and Holy Saturday. If, under exceptional circumstances, you wish for your wedding to take place on a day other than Saturday, you will need to negotiate with the officiating priest re his availability etc.

Yes there are. The Catholic Church, in conjunction with the Commonwealth Government of Australia, requires and strongly encourages all engaged couples to participate in an approved preparation course, prior to their wedding day. This course will help prepare the couple in many different ways in order to live out married life together as successfully and harmoniously as possible.

The Pre-Marriage courses may take one of the following forms:

• A parish based Pre-Marriage weekend program for engaged couples
• The Engaged Encounter weekend program
• The Facilitating Open Couple Communication, Understanding and Study (FOCCUS) program
• Private instruction/information sessions with a priest.St Joseph’s Parish offers the Pre-Marriage weekend for couples 3 times per year plus the FOCCUS program. The weekend program is run by a dedicated team comprised of the Parish Priest, religious and married couples from the parish, with assistance and input from all members of the team. Please check with the Parish Office about the dates for the next course.We strongly urge and encourage couples from the area to participate in the weekend. However, if you don’t live locally but are able to participate in the weekend in Tweed Heads, you would be most welcome to do so.

If you complete your Pre-Marriage preparation elsewhere, and in what ever form it takes, the Parish Priest at that parish will need to supply St Joseph’s Parish with written confirmation, stating that you both have completed the Pre-Marriage preparation course.

The following documents are required by the Church and/or the Commonwealth Government of Australia:

• A full birth certificate is required for both bride and groom.
• If either the bride or groom or both are Catholic, a recent copy of their baptism certificate, (nomore than 6 months old). You can apply to the Parish where you were baptised to obtain this certificate. If the bride or groom are not Catholic but have been baptised into another faith, any dated copy of their baptism certificate is required.
• If either the bride or groom is not a Catholic, permission to marry for the Catholic party will be sought from the Bishop of the Diocese where the Catholic party resides. This will be a simple formality.

The other important documents that need to be completed include:

Notice of Intended Marriage form

This is an Australian Government document which is to be completed no more than 18 months and no less than one month and one day prior to the date of the wedding. This document is normally completed by the officiating priest when he meets with the engaged couple, or by the parish priest of the ̃parish-of-residence’ of the Catholic party if the wedding is to take place outside that parish.

If you are from overseas (i.e. a non Australian citizen) or an Australian citizen who resides overseas, this document may be obtained, completed and witnessed at the Australian Embassy or Consulate in the country in which you reside.

Pre Nuptial Inquiry form

This is a Church document and is to be completed by the officiating priest, or by the Parish Priest of the ̃parish-of-residence’ of the Catholic party.

If you are from overseas, (i.e. a non Australian citizen), or an Australian citizen who resides overseas, this document may be completed by the Parish Priest of the parish where the Catholic party resides.

Basically, there are 2 liturgical (service) formats to choose from for your marriage Ceremony:

• a wedding service focusing on the Scriptures and the vows and prayers of marriage, or
• a Nuptial Mass, that is centred on the Eucharist and also focuses on the Scriptures and vows andprayers of marriage.In deciding which liturgy to choose, it may be helpful to keep in mind this simple yet important point in making that choice.

The marriage liturgy, which ever one is chosen, should reflect and parallel the level of faith, commitment, observance and understanding that the couple, especially the Catholic party, has in relation to God specifically and towards the Church community in general.

The priest will assist you in making this choice that both expresses your uniqueness as a couple as well as preserves the beauty and sacredness of the Church’s tradition.