Weddings and Marriage Preparation

Marriage is a vocation to holiness.  From their first days as husband and wife through their golden years, married couples have the awesome task of witnessing to God’s faithful love to each other, their children, and society.  No couple does this perfectly, and everyone needs help when love feels strained and the going gets tough.  All marriages can grow in knowledge, faith, joy, and love.  Whether you are just starting out in marriage or have fifty years under your belt, the advice, real life stories, and Church teaching here can help strengthen and bless your marriage.

	For Your Marriage.org helps couples at all stages of life to understand and live God’s plan for happy, holy marriages by providing educational and spiritual resources.
	Retrouvaille is for couples with marital problems that want marriage help. There is always hope of reviving your relationship.
	BELOVED uncovers the mystery and the meaning of the sacrament of marriage, inviting all couples to experience firsthand the wonder, mystery, and joy behind that first “I do”... whether you said it last year or many years ago.

• Watch the video above before the first meeting: Introduction to Catholic Marriage Preparation
• Meet in person with Fr. Fye and/or a faciliator (usually, between 5-6 times over six months).
  • Watch the video (above) and prepare to be asked about it during the first meeting. 
• Take and discuss the results from the Big Five Personality Test.
• Watch and discuss the twelve episodes of Beloved by the Augustine Institute. 
• Attend a Three-to-get-Married retreat. 
• Receive a certification from Natural Family Planning instructor or online.  For information about Natural Family Planning, click here and here.  Below are quality options:

  • Paula Romanoski, RN, teaches the Marquette Model
    [email protected]

  • Heather and Graham Honeycutt, Sympto-Thermal Method
    615-308-7722, [email protected]

  • Mary Vozar, Creighton Model
    931-801-6897, [email protected]

  • Online Certification options:

    • Couple to Couple League

    • Learn NFP Online

    • SymptoPro 

    • Insight Fertility (Intro with at least 4 followups)

• The Liturgy:
  • St. Ann Church celebrates Roman Catholic weddings.  Legitimate religious or cultural customs will be considered.  Other "customizations" are subject to liturgical laws and the presiding cleric. 
  • If the couple are both Catholic, a Nuptial Mass is celebrated. If one is not Catholic, then a Wedding Rite is celebrated. 
  • An organist, cantor, and a menu of sacred music will be supplied by St. Ann Church if the wedding is on our normally scheduled times (Saturdays at 2pm or 7pm). Other wedding times may be possible, with the understanding that there will be no music other than simple chants. 
  • Your choice from Catholic Wedding Readings
• The People:
  • The ideal wedding party will have a maximum of 12 persons, including the Bride and Groom (5 groomsmen and 5 bridesmaids). 
  • No one under the age of 5 can phyically participate in the wedding liturgy. 
• The Cost:
  • Budgeting a Wedding
  • How much should a Wedding Cost?
  • Practicing Catholics who are registered parishioners and habitually attend Sunday Mass at Saint Ann (12+ months prior to the wedding date) may be married in the Church at no cost. Sacred Music and other services have associated costs. 
  • Couples coming from out of town, or who do not meet the above expectations, must pay $1,250 to the parish for the use of the Church space. This is to encourage couples to get married in their home parishes and to compensate the parish for its use by non-parishioners.