We congratulate you as you join us through the Parish Website seeking guidance in preparing to celebrate the Sacrament of Marriage. Congratulations on your decision to celebrate Christian Marriage. It’s an exciting time for you with lots of wedding planning ahead!

We hope that the information below will help you prepare for a joyful and prayerful celebration. There are a number of steps which you must take to ensure that your marriage is valid in the eyes of the Church and the State. It is a good idea to be organised and to complete these steps in plenty of time before your Wedding Day. For more information on what the Church and the State require, you can go to  www.gettingmarried.ie
See also the Dublin Diocesan Liturgy Offices  information on planning your wedding. This web site is also a great resource when planning your wedding, providing a checklist for the ceremony and even a version of the wedding booklet which you can tailor to meet your requirements.

While you are required to give a four-month minimum notice of your intention to marry, it is common practice for a couple to book the church a long time in advance. So, it is important to contact the Parish Office to make sure that the church is available on the day and at the time you require.

You will also need to look at participating in Marriage Preparation Course which is a beautiful way for you as a couple to take a look at the gift of your own relationship. To book a Pre-Marriage Course contact. www.accord.ie or www.together.ie. Regarding any other courses please contact one of our priests, to check if they are recommended and accepted for preparation for the Sacrament of Marriage.

Many couples have found the APP ‘Irish Wedding Planner’ very helpful it can be downloaded for Android or ios smart phones

We hope the following will be helpful to you ….

• Contact St Pius X Parish office (01-4905284) or St Jude the Apostle Parish (01-4600127) to preliminary book the church for your wedding date and time and complete and return the Request to Celebrate Marriage Form [download here]
• Arrange for a parent or sibling to complete the ‘Freedom to Marry Form’ (download here) as instructed on the form.
• Arrange to meet the priest of the parish where you have lived for the last six months to prepare and complete the required pre-Nuptial Enquiry Forms.  The priest will advise you about the various documents that you need to collect to facilitate completion of the pre-nuptial papers. This must be done no less than 3 months before the celebration (but preferably much earlier). You will need to get Certificates of
  Baptism from the parish/s in which you were both baptised, and if Confirmation is not recorded on the baptism certificates you will need to also get Certificate/s of Confirmation from the parish in which you were confirmed. The Baptism certs should be re-issued within six months of the wedding.
• It is recommended that all couples preparing for marriage should attend a Pre-Marriage Course.  This can be booked online contact at
  www.accord.ie or www.together.ie and early booking is essential . We recommend doing the course at least 4 months before your wedding date.
• When the bride/groom are from the Pastoral area St Pius X Templeogue / St Jude’s Willington one of the priests/deacons of the parish will be delighted to officiate at the church ceremony. If you live outside the pastoral area couples are asked to bring their own priest to officiate at their wedding.
• If you wish to have some other priest to officiate (e.g. a relative or friend) please inform the priest in the parish where the ceremony is to take place, and he will give the necessary authorisation. In Irish Civil Law, it is now a legal requirement for the solemniser (the priest or Deacon who officiates at the marriage) to be on the ‘List of Solemnisers’ submitted by each local Bishop to the Registrar-General.
• Ask the priest who is to officiate at your wedding to help you with the task of creating your marriage ceremony and preparing your marriage booklet. There are a variety of prayers, blessings, readings, etc. Read through these together and choose the ones you prefer. Choose the person(s) who will read at Mass, person(s) to read the Prayer of the Faithful and the people to bring up the gifts at the Offertory. Rehearse the
  ceremony in church with the priest before the wedding day.
• The celebration of the Sacrament of Marriage can take place within Mass or as part of an appropriate Catholic Prayer Service of Scripture Readings, Prayers, Declaration of Consent, Hymns, Music and Blessing. We ask you to discuss the best Christian faith option for you with the celebrant.
• NB: As soon as your freedom to Marry in the Catholic Church has been confirmed to you once your returned ‘Freedom to Marry Forms’ have been processed, it is best to immediately contact the Civil Registrar regarding an appointment and to have your Marriage Registration Form (MRF) issued to you. We ask you to please present your MRF to the Parish for pre-view as soon as you receive it. This MRF form MUST also be presented on the wedding day, and once completed after the ceremony it will be returned to you so that you may take it to the Civil Registrar so that your marriage is registered with the State.
• NB: After the full and satisfactory completion of your Pre-Nuptial Papers AND the presentation to us and acceptance by us of your Civil Marriage Registration Form (MRF) may your booking be confirmed.

Mixed Denomination Marriages: Special permissions are required for full church recognition of marriages between a Roman Catholic and a baptised non-Catholic or someone who is not baptised. Applications are handled by the Diocesan Office once the priest of the catholic party has forwarded the required paperwork.

• NB: Freedom to Marry: The rules governing freedom to marry in the Catholic Church can be complicated. The best advice when one party has been married previously (either in a civil or religious ceremony) is to discuss it with your priest and not to make arrangements until the Diocesan Office has been consulted.

The above may seem detailed and complex. Please do not allow it to over-whelm you. The priest of the parish where you live, who will prepare your Pre-Nuptial Forms with you …. and the priest and parish-office of the Parish where the ceremony will take place will help and guide you.

Here is an outline step by step guidance to help you.
1. Contact St Pius X Parish (01-4900524) or St Jude the Apostle Parish (01-4600127) to preliminarily book the church for your date and time
2. Arrange for a parent or sibling to complete the ‘Freedom to Marry Form’ as instructed on the form.
3. Contact the parish you have lived in for the past 6 months to arrange for the preparation of your pre-nuptial Papers and to discuss all church requirements, and all civil legal requirements. Each please bring your baptism cert [re-issued withing the last 6 months] and also bring your confirmation certs to this meeting.
4. Contact an approved pre-marriage course provider (details above) and book the course.
5. Contact the Civil Marriage Registrar and arrange to meet them to prepare and receive your MRF Form (a civil requirement).
6. Prepare your Ceremony and Wedding Booklet with the help of the Priest / Deacon celebrant.

The Marriage Liturgy

For the Marriage Celebration itself: The preparation of a booklet to help the whole congregation to pray together is recommended. The Priest / Deacon celebrant will guide you through the preparation of the booklet.
When beginning to plan the Celebration you have a choice. To celebrate within the Mass or another Celebration outside the Mass. It is important to consider and be aware of your invited guests, the congregation. Only Roman Catholics may receive Holy Communion during Mass. Please consider and discuss this with your Priest/ Deacon Celebrant.
When selecting music for your wedding please choose music and hymns with sound Christian content which are appropriate to church and appropriate to the particular part of the celebration for which you choose them. All musicians and singers are required to respect the liturgy and to be guided by the priest/ deacon celebrant.

In relation to flowers, you should contact a florist to arrange this for you. Please note that the use of Confetti in the church or in the church grounds is prohibited and we would be obliged if you would inform your family and guests of this. Candles with a naked flame are not permitted under any circumstances in the congregational area of the church including the porches. Please ensure that aisles of the church are kept completely clear and that nothing obstructs access to the doors of the church. Please make arrangements for the church is left in a tidy and dignified manner after the celebration and that all your guests’ personal items are removed.

Papal Blessing
You may like to arrange for a Papal Blessing for your Marriage. The application is no longer handled by VERITAS but you can go on line to PAPAL CHARITIES. If you choose to seek a Papal Blessing please give plenty of notice and do note the costs. It is important to remember that a Papal Blessing is NOT a requirement.

Parish Offering
The requested offering to St Pius X Parish is €500 euro.
€ 250 euro is payable at the time of booking with the balance due 3 months before the wedding date. Please make cheques payable to St Pius X Parish.

Couples who are not resident in the Parish are required to make arrangements with a visiting priest to preside at the ceremony and to ensure that their priest is appropriately remunerated.

We hope that the information contained above is of help to you and that you enjoy your preparations to celebrate the Sacrament of Marriage.
May the Lord Bless you, and all those who will assist you in these months ahead.