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Catholic Wedding Ceremony

St. Paul in his letter to the Ephesians, says that the union of husband and wife is meant to reflect the union of Christ and His Church (Eph. 5: 21-33)

Many priests describe Catholic marriage as a "covenant" where a man and a woman make a lifetime commitment to each other, consecrated and made holy by God.

Marriage is also one of the seven Sacraments in the Catholic religion. The other 6 being:
Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist, Penance, Anointing of the Sick and Holy Orders. A sacrament is an outward sign instituted by Christ to give grace. With all the other sacraments, it is the priest that performs the action by which the "grace' is given; for example, during baptism it is the priest who pours the water over the person's head and it is the priest who gives his blessing.

During the marriage ceremony, however, the priest is only an official witness of the Church and it is the man and woman who confer the sacrament on each other through their exchange of vows.

Order of the Catholic ceremony

• The processional
• Invocation
• Bible readings ( there are usually 2 readings)
• The Homily given by the Priest
• The Vows
• The ring exchange
• The lighting of the Unity Candle
• The Eucharistic prayer (or preparation for Communion). Within this ritual is the Sign of Peace, where everyone wishes each other Peace.
• Communion – communion is given to the bride and groom first, followed by the Bridal Party, and then to the guests
• The Lord's Prayer
• The Nuptial Blessing
• The signing of the Marriage Certificate
• The Pronouncement. This is when the Priest pronounces the couple as "husband and wife "
• The Benediction # The Recessional

* Disclaimer: Order may vary according to officiant and dependant on the parish.