Marrying in Sacred Heart & St Teresa’s Church Coleshill

The following notes will be helpful as you prepare for your marriage.

In order for your marriage to take place in Sacred Heart & St Teresa’s, Coleshill, it is usual that the Catholic partner is resident within the parish. If this is not the case, then there should be substantial personal reasons (usually some sort of link with the parish, either through family or previous residency). Check this with the parish priest beforehand. Catholics who are outside the parish will need written permission from the parish priest in whose parish they reside.

Necessary Documents

Catholics will need to provide an up-to-date copy of their baptism certificate (no more than 6 months old) and evidence of Confirmation (though this should be recorded on the above baptism certificate). If you have lived longer than 6 months in any other parish apart from Sacred Heart & St Teresa’s, since the age of 16, then Letters of Freedom to Marry must be obtained from the relevant parish priests.

Non-Catholics who have been baptised (Christened) will need to provide evidence of that.

All couples getting married must contact the Civil Registrar for Marriages and obtain a ‘Certificate of Authority for Marriage’ (This is not the same as the Marriage Certificate issued after the civil registration of any marriage). This Certificate can be issued up to 12 months before the marriage and should be arranged as soon as possible.

A necessary condition for the issue of this Certificate is that the individual applying must have lived in the particular registration district for at least 7 days prior to giving notice at the register office. Each party must give notice in their own registration district (if both live in the same district, they can attend together to give notice). An appointment will need to be made, either by letter or phone, to see the the superintendent registrar. Documents such as passports, birth certificates, ID cards, etc will be needed as evidence of name and age. After giving notice, you will have to wait a minimum of 16 days before the marriage can take place.

What Preparation?

The Church cares about you. We want all marriages to work; for couples to stay in love and to be together all their married days. There is a requirement that all couples getting married in the Catholic Church take part in a marriage preparation course. Before your wedding day it is good to have these few hours away from daily pressures to think about your relationship and plan your future lives together.

The course comprises a series of group meetings with Sr Eileen, our parish catechist (involving other couples planning to get married), and individual meetings me, Fr Kevin. Details of the timing and dates of the group meetings will be given you in due course.

Wedding Fees

As you will appreciate, our church building is large and the maintenance costs high. It is only fair, therefore, that those using the church are asked to contribute towards those costs. There are also professional fees associated with the civil registration of the marriage. If couples have any difficulties with these fees, please speak to the parish priest.

Associated Church Fees

The following associated fees are applicable to wedding ceremonies celebrated at Sacred Heart & St Teresa’s Catholic Church, Coleshill:

o Civil Registration Fee £40

o Marriage Certificate Fee £10

o Fee for use of Church £400

Total: £450

All fees should be paid on or before the wedding rehearsal. Payments may be made by cash or cheque. Associated church fees should be made payable to: ‘Sacred Heart & St Teresa’s Parish, Coleshill’.

Additional Fees

o Organist To be negotiated

o Soloist (if available) To be negotiated

Both the above are a private arrangement between the couple and the organist/soloist. Cheques for their fees should be made payable directly to them and not to the parish. Organists may charge additional professional fees if the music played at the wedding service is recorded on video or other recording media. The parish does not provide an organist, but the following can be contacted: Margaret Herdman on 01675 463007 (mobile: 07719 589262) and Carl Hickman on 01922 277951 (mobile: 07948 099927).

Wedding Rehearsal

There will be a wedding rehearsal before the marriage. This allows the couple to feel comfortable
with the arrangements. Both the Bride and Groom, as well as the Best Man and Chief Bridesmaid/ Maid of Honour should be there, as well as the Father of the Bride (or whoever is escorting her up the aisle). In addition, it would be useful if other bridesmaids, pageboys, readers and ushers were also there.

Flowers

There may be flowers in the church on the day of your wedding that have been provided by parishioners for the general decoration of the church. However, they are likely to be few in number and not designed for your wedding ceremony.

Couples are of course free to arrange for florists or family to make arrangements that can be used in church. These floral arrangements will need to be assembled at the florists or at home and delivered to the church sometime before the wedding ceremony (please check that the church will be open).

Decorations may be used on the end of the church benches but these must not be fixed by pins, nails, adhesive tape or any fixing which may damage the benches. Usually such decorations are tied to the end of the benches.

Something to bear in mind is that Sacred Heart & St Teresa’s is a very large church, so floral arrangements need to be very large for them to have any visual impact. This can be very expensive, especially if you engage a professional florist.

Photographs & Video

The ceremony of Marriage is a religious service, so any photographs or video mustn’t take away form or interfere with the religious aspect of the occasion. Normally a professional photographer/video camera operator will be used to these expectations and confer with the celebrant of the wedding prior to the ceremony. Please advise your family and friends that they are not permitted to take photographs or video during the wedding ceremony.

Confetti & Rice

A question often raised (or sometimes not!) is whether confetti and/or rice may be thrown after the wedding ceremony? The answer is Yes! Provided it is done on the grass areas around the church, but not within the church itself or on the hard-surfaced areas around the church. I thank for your
co-operation in this matter.

I’m sure there will be many other questions, but these can be raised when you meet
up with me, Fr Kevin.