Arranging your Wedding in the Parish of Ardagh and Moydow

Fr Vincent would like to welcome you to the Parish of Ardagh and Moydow to celebrate your happy wedding day.  Fr Vincent would like to wish you every good blessing, peace health and happiness in your future life together.

 

When you decide the date of your wedding please contact Fr Vincent about your marriage, and ascertain both he and the church are available on that date. No booking can be made until you have verified your freedom to marry, secured a priest and the church. The first section of the Pre-Nuptial form should be filled in at your initial meeting with the priest.  Your next priority is to notify the Marriage Registrar and book your pre marriage course with Accord.

 

Minimum three months notice must be given in person by appointment, to any Civil Register of Marriages.  In Longford, an appointment can be made:  Civil Registration Service, Health Centre, Dublin Road, Longford.  Tel No: 043 3332227, opening hours 9.30am to 12.30pm and 2pm to 4pm, Thursday and Friday only for marriages.

 

A list of registration offices around the country is available on www.gro.ie/registrars .  You will need Photo ID, name and address of the Priest you wish to solemnise the marriage, name and addresses of your witnesses, your PPS numbers.  You will be issued a Marriage Registration Form (MFR) (in green folder) which you must bring with you to the ceremony.

 

All those intending to be married in a Catholic Church must complete a Pre Marriage Course.  You can book this course locally with “Accord”, Family Centre, St Mel’s Road, Longford.  (0906 6475491) or online www.accord.ie  You should reserve a place on this Course well in advance.

 

When you have completed the Pre Marriage Course you should then go to a priest in the parish where you live to complete the Pre-Nuptial Enquiry Form.  To complete this form you will need the following documents:

 

1. A recent Certificate of Baptism (within 6 months of issue).
2. A Certificate of Confirmation.
3. A Letter of Freedom from each parish where you have lived for six months or more since when you were 16 years old, or a sworn affidavit or sworn testimony from a parent.
4. A Certificate of Attendance at a Pre-Marriage Course.
5. The fee to get married in the churches of Ardagh and Moydow is €300.00 payable to the Parish Priest.

 

The completed form will then be sent to the Church where the wedding is to take place.

 

If you would like to have a Papal Blessing, you will need to give two months notice to enable it to be processed in Rome.  The Liturgical Centre, Athlone will be able to assist you, or you can order one at www.stmartin.ie/applicationforpapalblessing

 

You should discuss (in plenty of time) your wedding ceremony and wedding booklet with the priest who is officiating at your wedding.

 

Your marriage is a sacrament and you are the ministers of the sacrament to each other.  You will want your wedding ceremony to symbolise the giving of yourselves to one another in love as husband and wife.  Your wedding ceremony should be an expression of your thanks to God who has shown his special care for you and brought you together and united you in love.

 

There is a wide choices of Readings suitable for the wedding ceremony and there is also a choice of Vows.  Only scripture texts should be used in the Liturgy of the Word.  You may wish to have a poem or another reflective text included in the ceremony and this would generally be included as a Communion Reflection.  There is an excellent source of material available at www.litmus.dublindiocese.ie

 

 

Music at the Wedding Ceremony

Music plays an integral part in our worship.  The Wedding Liturgy is enhanced enormously through the use of good musicians and good choice of Liturgical music.  Please discuss the music with the Celebrant of your ceremony.

 

 

Flowers in the Church

Again, it is to be borne in mind that the Wedding Liturgy takes place inside the Church, and that certain decorum is to be observed, to respect the House of God.  The focal points of the Church are the altar, tabernacle and ambo, and these should not be obscured or detracted from by over-ostentatious displays.  It is naturally preferable that flowers are not artificial, their natural beauty giving proper glory to God the Creator. The florist should consult with the priest beforehand, and should never deface the furnishings of the church by the use of sellotape, staples etc. Please discuss with Fr Vincent if candles are to be used in the church.

 

Contact:  Fr Vincent Connaughton   087 4070775,  ardaghmoydowparish@gmail.com