Immaculate
Conception Parish
The Sacrament of Marriage
The Wedding Celebration
Since the celebration of marriage is an event for the whole church, and
especially for the parish community, the liturgical celebration will
express the faith of the Catholic Church and the local customs of the
parish.
The choice of prayers, readings, exchange of vows, blessing of rings,
nuptial blessing and the homily all express this same faith.
Any music chosen for the wedding should express the faith of the
church in the mystery that is being celebrated.
It should be appropriate for a liturgical celebration and is to
be chosen from the liturgical song books.
In order to make sure that your wedding is a beautiful celebration of
faith, the parish music director and cantor will be present.
If you wish to bring in additional
musicians or vocalists
you must consult with the parish music director, Mr. Roger Mansen
(617-448-6477). Even
with other musicians present, our music director will also be present.
You may also choose to employ the services of our
Contemporary Music Ensemble.
Roger can assist you with this or you may contact the director,
Mrs. Donna Kelley at 508-485-7735.
Scripture
You are encouraged to select the readings of the Scripture for your
service. This allows you to
have a personal involvement in the ritual.
The readings are provided for you to make the selection process
easier. Choose one Old
Testament reading and one New Testament reading.
The priest/deacon will usually choose the Gospel unless you have
a definite idea for a Gospel reading.
You do not have to have two readings before the Gospel; it is
possible to have only one, either from the Old Testament or the New
Testament. However, all
readings must be taken directly from the bible.
You may invite family members or friends, who are comfortable
with public speaking, to proclaim these readings.
Ask your readers to attend the
rehearsal
so that they may become comfortable with the progression of the ceremony
and with the sound system. A
Gospel reading is always required and will always be proclaimed by the
priest or deacon.
Wedding or Unity Candle
You may opt to use a unity candle for your ceremony.
You will need to purchase the candle and must bring it, and the
candle holder, with you to the rehearsal.
The church does not provide these items.
Oil candles are not permitted due to the risk of spillage.
Please designate a family member or friend to pick up your
candle immediately following the ceremony.
Preparation of the Altar with the bread and wine
If you plan on having a Nuptial Mass, you may invite two or three people
to bring up the gifts in preparation for Holy Communion.
These can be family, friends, godparents, etc… They should also
come to the rehearsal
so that they will be prepared for their role at the
Holy Communion
At a wedding within a Mass, called a Nuptial Mass, Holy Communion is
distributed just as at Sunday Mass.
Catholics attending the Mass, who are properly prepared for the
reception of communion approach the altar by way of the center aisle
after the bride and groom have received.
Catholics who are not prepared to receive communion and all
non-Catholics may also come forward at this time to receive a blessing.
They should indicate their desire to be blessed by crossing their
arms over their chests.
You are welcome to have photos taken during your wedding.
Photographers and/or videographers are asked to speak with the
wedding coordinator or the clergy prior to the ceremony.
You are free to purchase flowers for the church if you so desire.
At certain times of the year, the church is specially decorated
and no more flowers would be needed, i.e. Christmas and Easter.
If you do decide to purchase flowers, you are asked to leave the
flowers in the church following the ceremony.
We do not allow flowers to be strewn in the aisle as it
is difficult to clean up later and can pose a tripping hazard on the
tile flooring. Flower
petals, confetti, rice or bird seed may not be thrown either inside or
outside of the church.
Because weekends in the church are so very busy, we are asking everyone
to leave the church just as they found it so that the space can be ready
for the next baptism, wedding, or parish
The use of a white runner is not required for your ceremony.
If you choose to use one, we suggest that you rent a cloth
runner. Plastic and paper
runners tear very quickly and become a tripping hazard.
Next: Offerings
