CLICK HERE to purchase or inquire at your parish.
Here we answer the big question - Why marry Catholic?
The best weddings for Catholics are true Catholic weddings - sacred, beautiful, timeless - celebrated both on earth and in heaven. Catholic weddings are for the bride and groom, but they are also for their families, friends and faith community. For Catholic couples, their wedding day marks the beginning of a lifelong journey of faith - faith in God, faith in each other, faith in their families, and faith in the Catholic community who will love and support them all the days of their lives. Catholic marriage is a covenant - a true sign of God's unconditional love for humanity, and a powerful symbol of Christ's love for his bride, the Church.
As Catholics we are all parts of one Body of Christ - we are all deeply interconnected so every Catholic marriage has great meaning for all of us. There is nothing more beautiful, memorable and meaningful than a true Catholic wedding.
Photo by Cory Weber
Here in the Diocese of Trenton, we understand the reality that many young adult Catholics, for a variety of reasons, will choose not to marry in the Catholic Church. Perhaps they want a simple wedding with a justice of the peace, a destination wedding at some exotic location, or a non-religious ceremony at the reception site with a family member or friend serving as the officiant. But what rings true for Catholics from generation to generation is that nothing compares to the truth, beauty and goodness of a marriage celebrated according to sacred Catholic rituals in the spiritual dwelling where the Catholic faithful gather, worship, and celebate the sacraments together.
There are countless reasons for Catholics to begin their marriage in the Catholic Church. Let's listen to our Shepherd and leader, Bishop David O'Connell, describe five key reasons to marry in the Catholic Church...
Watch more Encouraging Catholic Weddings episodes below.
Our Catholic parishes are filled with couples who've celebrated fifty years of marriage or more. When asked to share the secret to their success, these couples acknowledge that they had a great deal of love, support and help from their Catholic faith community every step of the way. Through daily prayer and gratitude for every blessing, they learned to appreciate each day and recognize the moments when God was acting in their lives. The vows they proclaimed became real in the joys and struggles they experienced - in good times and bad, in sickness and health, for richer for poorer - they know God will always be there for them until the end of their days.
In the words of Pope Francis, “Married love clearly reveals that the vocation of the human person is to love one other person forever and that the trials, sacrifices and crises in the life of the couple or the family are stages for growth in goodness, truth and beauty."
Perhaps one of the best ways to explain why a young couple today would choose to marry in the Catholic Church is to explain what Catholic marriage is, and what it is not...
Catholic marriage is based on self-giving, sacrificial love for the good of the spouses and their families - things that last a lifetime. It is not based solely on mutual attraction, positive feelings, and romantic love - things that can be temporary.
Catholic marriage is a partnership of the whole of life - each person gives the gift of their entire self to the other with nothing held back. It is not based on what each person can get out of it for themselves.
Catholic marriage is deeply connected to all members of the Catholic faith community throughout the world. It is for the good of others and for society. It has a mission to serve the world and make it a better place. It is not lived in isolation; it is not "us against the world doing our own thing."
Catholic marriage is a sacrament of becoming, that is, while the sacrament of Marriage officially begins with the proclamation of vows and the declaration of consent by the couple, Catholic couples become the sacrament by living each day in the embrace of God's love. Fueled by God's grace, they grow gradually in holines. The sacrament of Marriage is not a mere moment in time but is a life-long journey that ends at the gates of heaven.
For newly married Catholic couples, the best is always yet to come!
Read more about choosing Catholic marriage...