Marriage
"In his love for her, Issac found solace"
- Genesis 24:67
Congratulations on your upcoming nuptials!
We wish you joy as we together celebrate the power of God to take two
lives and make them one in His name and by His Spirit in the Sacrament of Marriage. Please complete the form below and "submit" to the parish. We will contact you to confirm the information. In order to secure the date, which must be approved by the pastor, a deposit of 50% of the fee is due upon confirmation.
After your reservation is received, you will be contacted to confirm receipt of the information and your date. Wedding paperwork will be done with a deacon and you may meet with our Pastor, Fr. Joseph Romanoski for additional preparation. A diocesan marriage program should also be completed. See the links below for more information on those.
Our Wedding Coordinator, JoAnn Cordell, will contact you to meet with her and the Director of Music, Joshua Colbert, closer to the wedding date to review the ceremony. JoAnn will also be present at the rehearsal and on the wedding day. For a copy of our parish Wedding Guidelines, click on the link below. All contact information is provided in the Guidelines. Please feel free to contact us with any other questions.
Guidelines
Decorations For The Wedding
Floral and candle arrangements should be appropriate for the worship service. Below is a list of
guidelines to help in selecting appropriate decorations.
1. No decorations may be placed on the Altar Table.
2. No tacks, sticky florist’s clay, tape or anything else that is harmful to the surface of the wood may be used to secure decorations.
3. No decorations shall be placed so as to prevent the free movement of the wedding party or priest/deacon or so as to conflict with local fire codes.
4. Care should be taken to insure that wax does not get on the floor or furnishings. The decorators will be responsible for removing candle drippings.
5. The decorations should be in place an hour before the ceremony. Special arrangements for decorating must be made through the wedding coordinator.
6. Decorations must be removed promptly after the ceremony. The church is not responsible for decorations following the conclusion of the wedding.
7. The couple must apprise their decorators of these policies.
8. It is customary that the wedding flowers by the Tabernacle be left for the weekend services.
9. No rice or birdseed is to be used. Bubbles can be used outside only.
10. The Unity Candle is not permitted in this Diocese.
Pictures For The Wedding
Pictures are treasured possessions and provide lasting memories of your wedding; however, the taking
of pictures should not interfere with the celebration of the sacrament and the worship experience during
the ceremony. This wedding is, above all, a sacred moment. Listed below are guidelines designed to
facilitate capturing appropriate remembrances of the ceremony.
1. Flash photographs are permitted during the ceremony. Those taking pictures should remain in their places.
2. Time exposures and video cameras without lights can be used. The camera position and procedure should be cleared beforehand with the Celebrant.
3. The photographer will not block the aisle.
4. Ushers can greatly assist by discreetly reminding guests who arrive with cameras that flash photographs may be taken after the ceremony only.
5. If you want to include the officiant in any of the pictures, please let him know before the ceremony. It is requested that these pictures be taken first.
6. It is the couple’s responsibility to inform photographers of the policies above.
Music For The Wedding
In the Catholic ritual music plays an integral part in the liturgy. Normally the music director will
provide music. Under special circumstance an outside musician will be allowed to participate; however,
the music director must approve the musician and all music.
Wedding music in the church must be sacred music. Secular love songs are not permitted during the
service. Consider use of the church hymnal and the opportunity for congregational singing. The
wedding consultation form will be completed at the meeting with the music director.
Church Wedding Coordinator
A Wedding Coordinator from St. Michael will be appointed to assist you at your wedding. She will
attend and direct the rehearsal and the wedding. You are welcome to bring your own wedding planner;
however, they must work with our wedding coordinator.
Wedding Fees
The fee at St. Michael’s for a wedding is $750 for active parishioners (registered at least six [6] months
prior to scheduling the wedding and evidenced by envelope use) and $1,000 for others. Please note that
this amount is all-inclusive and covers the parish donation, the church organist/cantor, the wedding
coordinator(church only) and the officiant. No further payment is necessary except for an added hourly fee of $35 for
additional rehearsals with soloists or instrumentalists. In order for you to secure the date, a deposit of
50% of the fee is due when you reserve the date. Please mail or drop off the deposit to the church
office. The remaining balance is due one month before the wedding. Thank you for your kind
cooperation. Note that this fee does not cover any Pre-Cana, Engaged Encounter, or other fees
associated with preparation programs outside the parish.
Required Documents
Special Considerations
For Couples Already Civilly Married
If you are already married by a civil authority, your marriage will be considered a convalidation (blessed
by the Catholic Church). For these marriages, a simple ceremony with two witnesses is all that is
required and allowed. Of course, family and friends may attend, but it is not permitted to be a large,
elaborate ceremony with attendants (other than the witnesses). It is not celebrated within a Mass, but
rather vows are exchanged and rings are blessed along with prayers and a blessing for the couple. In the
Diocese of Charleston, a waiting period of one (1) year from the date of the civil marriage is required for
the convalidation to be approved.
For Couples Living Together
Although many couples in our current society live together before marriage, it remains an unacceptable
practice for a Christian. In addition, studies have shown that couples who live together before marriage
have much higher rates of divorce and a poorer quality of marital relationship than those who do not.
As a recent pastoral letter explains, the Church’s teaching on cohabitation is not an “arbitrary” rule.
Living together before marriage is a sin because it violates God’s commandments. Saint Paul lists this
sin – technically called “fornication” – among the sins that can keep a person from reaching heaven (see
1 Corinthians 6:9). Since you are freely choosing to be married in Christ, it is important to actually live
the commandments He gives us. The Church does not exist merely to provide beautiful ceremonies, but
to proclaim through her members the full, life-giving Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Your engagement is meant to be a time of grace and growth in preparing for your marriage. Couples
living together are strongly urged to separate and remain chaste. All Catholics should seek to be
reconciled with God and His Church by going to Confession and by going to Mass and Holy
Communion regularly. This situation can be corrected if the couple separates for at least six months and
provides proof of separation.
Living chastely during your remaining months of engagement will produce bountiful spiritual fruits,
helping both of you to grow in the virtues of generous love, sacrificial giving, self-restraint, and good
communication. These virtues are essential for a good, lasting marriage.
If a cohabiting couple chooses not to separate, the form of their wedding will be restricted. The
ceremony will be very simple. Such couples will not be permitted to invite a large gathering of guests.
Also, they may have only two witnesses – a best man and a maid of honor. The liturgy will be a
wedding outside of Mass. To do otherwise suggests to the world that the Catholic Church condones
cohabitation.
For Non-Parishioners(Destination Weddings)
All necessary paperwork including dispensation and/or permissions must be completed by the Catholic party’s home parish.
These documents must be submitted to St. Michael (through Diocese of Charleston, 901 Orange Grove Road,
Charleston, SC 29407) no later than one (1) month before the wedding date. Failure to do so could result in the wedding being cancelled at St. Michael.
Divorce and Annulment
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