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Get Married at St. Elizabeth Seton Catholic Church

Wedding Guidelines

Congratulations! Your parish community rejoices with you as you plan your wedding. We will try to make your day as meaningful and beautiful as possible. Here is some church information that may answer most of your questions.

Requirements to Marry:

  • Marriage Preparation Forms
  • Baptismal Certificates
  • Letters of Freedom to Marry
  • Florida State License to Marry
  • Pre-Cana and Sacramental Classes
  • Premarital Inventory
  • Wedding date & time in parish Mass book.
  • Wedding Guidelines Packet and Together for Life distributed.

Rite of Marriage – three forms:

  • the Rite for Celebrating Marriage Outside the Mass
  • the Rite for Celebrating Marriage During the Mass
  • the Rite for Celebrating Marriage Between a Catholic and an Unbaptized Person

Please Review Parish Protocols

  • Readings
  • Music (refer to Music Director)
  • Photograph
  • Flowers & decorations

Mass selection form completely filled out and submitted at least one month before the wedding. All music approved by Music Director. Please contact Mr. Jon Niven at (239) 455-3900

Guidelines Acceptance form signed by Bride and Groom received and dated, accompanied by the fifty percent down payment.Congratulations! Your parish community rejoices with you as you plan your wedding. We will try to make your day as meaningful and beautiful as possible.

WEDDING GUIDELINES A  WEDDING GUIDELINES CHECKLIST
WEDDING MUSIC GUIDELINES  WEDDING MUSIC GUIDELINES B
WEDDING GUIDELINES FEE SCHEDULE

See all this information in Spanish here.

Witness to Love

“Your wedding day is one day, but your marriage lasts a lifetime.”

Witness to Love (WTL) is a virtues-based model of marriage renewal and preparation that integrates modern principles of psychology and the virtues to help couples facilitate and talk about their relationship. All built on the rock of True Love, “God”.

What makes WTL unique is that the engaged couple chooses their own mentor couple. This is a couple they both admire and see as a source of faith formation. This mentor couple gives them a connection and integration into the parish. Through the sharing of the mentor couple’s own marriage journey, the engaged couple inherits a “lifeline” of support in their commitment to Jesus and His Church.

The Sacrament of Marriage Preparation Steps

  1. Contact the Parish Office Manager.
  2. Complete Parish and Diocese required paperwork.
  3. Engaged couple meets with Clergy (Priest/Deacon) and completes Premarital Inventory Questionnaire (or Prepare-Enrich or FOCCUS). Schedule a second meeting to review results of the pre-marital questionnaire.
  4. Engaged couple choses a mentor couple to work with for the WTL program.
  5. Engaged couple attends a coaching session with the WTL Parish Marriage Prep Coordinator and Mentor Couple.
  6. Engaged couple and mentor couple have monthly meetings using WTL Workbooks and Videos. (Completing all six WTL Chapters)
  7. Engaged couple attends a Parish or Diocesan Couples Retreat (Mentor Couples invited to attend).
  8. At WTL Chapter 5 dinner and meeting at the Mentor Couple’s home, the Deacon is invited to provide the Theology discussion.
  9. Natural Family Planning (NFP) on-line course is recommended.
  10. Both Couples welcomed to the Parish and invited to small groups/Parish ministry opportunities.
  11. Wedding Day!
  12. Continued accompaniment by Mentor Couple and Parish Community with newly married couple.

Theology meeting with Priest/Deacon

  • Engaged Couple and Mentor Couple will meet with Priest/Deacon to discuss the Theology behind the Sacrament of Matrimony.
  • Purpose of this meeting is two-fold: 1) deepen the understanding of the Church’s theology of marriage for the engaged couple and 2) reawaken an appreciation for the Church’s understanding of marriage for the mentor couple.

Follow-Up Meetings

  • After the wedding, the now newly married couple and their mentor couple are urged to continue meeting at least once every two months at Sunday mass to continue their discussions of marriage and marital spirituality.
  • The engaged couple is encouraged to turn to their mentor couple whenever the need arises to address any struggles or disagreements they may have.
  • The relationship between the couples can continue indefinitely.

How Do I Obtain Materials?

Check with the Parish office to see if WTL materials are in stock. If they do not have materials on hand simply click on this link: “Couple’s Marriage Prep Bundle” and order a set of materials. Make sure to order them well before you schedule your first meeting with your Marriage Prep Coordinator to ensure that the materials arrive in time.

Marriage Prep Bundle

Couple’s Marriage Prep Set for Parishes

More information about the WTL program, please contact:

Carrie Harkey, DOV Family Life Coordinator, harkey@dioceseofvenice.org, or call 941-484-9543

Witness to Love, St. Martha’s Church – Diocese of Venice Coordinators Jim and Agnes Rutushni at JARutushni@stmartha.org ; or call them 941-960-5128

Información para responder la mayoría de sus preguntas.

Requisitos para casarse:

  • Formularios de preparación matrimonial
  • Certificados bautismales
  • Cartas de libertad para casarse
  • Licencia del estado de la Florida para casarse
  • Clases Pre Cana y Sacramentales
  • Inventario prematrimonial

Fecha y hora de la boda en el calendario de la parroquia.

Paquete de Pautas de Bodas y distribuir Together for Life.

Rito de matrimonio- tres formas:

  • El rito para celebrar el matrimonio fuera de la misa
  • El rito para celebrar el matrimonio durante la misa
  • El rito para celebrar el matrimonio entre un católico y una persona no bautizada

Revisar los protocolos parroquiales, especialmente en lo que respecta a:

  • Lecturas
  • Música (refiérase al Director de Música)
  • Fotografía
  • Flores y decoraciones

Formulario de selección de la Misa completamente llenado y enviado al menos un mes antes de la boda. Toda la música aprobada por el director de Música. Para esto por favor póngase en contacto con el Sr. Jon Nevin al (239) 455-3900

Formulario de Aceptación de Directrices firmado por la novia y el novio recibido y fechado, acompañado por el pago inicial del cincuenta por ciento.