Being Married at
Holy Innocents
Congratulations on your decision to be married! We at Holy Innocents want to do everything we can to make your wedding service a truly joyful celebration, and even more importantly to help you prepare for your marriage - your union as husband and wife for the rest of your lives.
Marriage is given:
that husband and wife may support and help each other, living faithfully together in need and plenty, sorrow and joy;
that with delight and tenderness they may know each other in love and, through the joy of their bodily union, may strengthen the union of their hearts and lives;
that they may be blessed in having children and in caring for them and bringing them up in accordance with God’s deign.
The Bible affirms that marriage is a gift of God in creation. It is a means of his grace, in which man and woman become one flesh. Our Lord Jesus Christ was himself a guest at a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and it is our earnest prayer that he will bless your marriage with his presence, and that strengthened and guided by him you may fulfill his purpose of love for the whole of your life together.
This Page is intended to anticipate some of the initial questions most commonly asked about marriage at Holy Innocents.
Do I Have to be an Anglican? To be married in the Anglican Church, at least one of the partners must be a Christian and a member of the Anglican Church, this is a requirement so that we may have Pastoral responsibility for a couple prior to and after their Marriage.
What if one of us is divorced? Divorced people may be remarried in the Anglican Church of Canada, but approval must be received from the Diocesan Matrimonial Commission before the wedding may proceed. This process (which usually takes up to three months) is intended to help you in your relationship together and to ensure that your new marriage will be secure and lasting. We recommend that if one or both of you are divorced that you complete this process as a first step in preparing for the Marriage.
When should I contact the Church? The minimum required noticed according to Canon (Church) Law is sixty days. However, in this Diocese all couples are expected to participate in a Marriage Preparation Course, and (in this deanery held three times a year). We therefore recommend that the first contact about a wedding be the Church, before any other plans are made. There may be other weddings scheduled for the day you want, and this needs to be looked at before any other plans and reservations are made.
The Marriage Preparation Course within this Diocese is designed to help you explore the following areas:
Questions? The clergy are here to help make you special day meaningful, and would only be too willing to talk with you about the wedding service, and the marriage itself. Please call and make an appointment to talk about your marriage.
Fees? There are several fees which are set out but the Vestry of this Parish and the
Deanery of Avalon West.
They are:
Organist $75.00, and Sexton $35.00. If you wish to make a donation to the church we suggest that at least $100.00. We ask that these fees be paid at the time of the Rehearsal for your wedding.
Any further Questions please contact the Parish Priest at:
Holy Innocents Anglican Church
297 Paradise Road,
PO BOX 3228
Paradise, Newfoundland
A1L 3W4
Phone: (709) 782-3071 (Office)
E-Mail: Parish Priest