[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"doc-seo-402376-105":3,"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":81,"doc-detail-402376-en":130},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"ok",{"site_id":7,"language":8,"slug":9,"title":10,"keywords":11,"description":12,"schema_data":13,"social_meta":74,"head_meta":76,"extra_data":78,"updated_unix":80},105,"en","marriage-preparation-in-the-church-catholic","Marriage Preparation in the Church - Catholic","","Marriage Preparation in the Church for Catholics explains marriage as a covenant before God rather than a civil contract, emphasizing lifelong commitment and the Church’s role in sacramental preparation. It cites Catholic Catechism paragraphs on the marriage covenant, the sacrament of Matrimony, and the importance of consent. It also outlines diocesan timeline expectations, initial parish interviews, readiness discernment, premarital inventory reflection, and practical preparation requirements such as Pre-Cana, Natural Family Planning, FOCCUS/Prepare and Enrich, parish presentations, online reflections, baptism certificate copies, and confession encouragement.",{"@graph":14,"@context":73},[15,34,56],{"@type":16,"itemListElement":17},"BreadcrumbList",[18,23,27,31],{"item":19,"name":20,"@type":21,"position":22},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",1,{"item":24,"name":25,"@type":21,"position":26},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/","Document",2,{"item":28,"name":29,"@type":21,"position":30},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/religion-spirituality/","Religion & Spirituality",3,{"item":32,"name":10,"@type":21,"position":33},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/marriage-preparation-in-the-church-catholic/402376/",4,{"url":32,"name":10,"@type":35,"image":36,"author":41,"headline":10,"publisher":44,"fileFormat":47,"inLanguage":8,"description":12,"dateModified":48,"datePublished":49,"encodingFormat":47,"isAccessibleForFree":50,"interactionStatistic":51},"DigitalDocument",{"url":37,"@type":38,"width":39,"height":40},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/marriage-preparation-in-the-church-catholic/402376.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":42,"@type":43},"Sarah ","Person",{"url":19,"name":45,"@type":46},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-10-13","2026-09-27",true,{"@type":52,"interactionType":53,"userInteractionCount":55},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":54},"ViewAction",7,{"@type":57,"mainEntity":58},"FAQPage",[59,65,69],{"name":60,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":62},"Why does the Church require marriage preparation for Catholics?","Question",{"text":63,"@type":64},"Because marriage is a serious sacrament and lifelong commitment, Catholics are asked to prepare through a diocesan-established program and prayerfully reflect on the sacrament.","Answer",{"name":66,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":67},"What is required for Catholics exchanging vows?",{"text":68,"@type":64},"Their exchange of vows must be witnessed by a priest or deacon and two other witnesses. A Catholic may request permission to marry a non-Catholic by seeking written dispensation from the bishop.",{"name":70,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":71},"What are the main preparation steps and requirements before the wedding?",{"text":72,"@type":64},"They include taking the Agape Catholic Ministries Pre-Cana course, completing Natural Family Planning (with the diocese’s minimum requirement), completing FOCCUS or Prepare and Enrich and meeting a mentor couple, attending three parish Catholic prep presentations, completing two reflections on formed.org, submitting baptism certificate copies six months prior, and being encouraged to receive confession within a couple weeks of the wedding.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":32,"og:type":75,"og:title":10,"og:site_name":45,"og:description":12},"article",{"robots":77,"canonical":32},"index,follow",{"doc_id":79,"site_id":7},402376,1790672674,{"code":4,"msg":82,"data":83},"success",[84,88,92,96,101,106,110,115,119,122,126],{"id":22,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":85,"show_sort_weight":86,"slug":87},"Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":26,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":89,"show_sort_weight":90,"slug":91},"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":33,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":93,"show_sort_weight":94,"slug":95},"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":97,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":98,"show_sort_weight":99,"slug":100},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":102,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":103,"show_sort_weight":104,"slug":105},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":55,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":107,"show_sort_weight":108,"slug":109},"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":111,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":112,"show_sort_weight":113,"slug":114},8,"Research & Report",30,"research-report",{"id":116,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":29,"show_sort_weight":117,"slug":118},9,20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":117,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":120,"show_sort_weight":117,"slug":121},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":123,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":124,"show_sort_weight":123,"slug":125},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":127,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":128,"show_sort_weight":97,"slug":129},19,"General","general",{"code":4,"msg":82,"data":131},{"doc_id":79,"user_id":132,"nickname":42,"user_avatar":133,"doc_module":4,"category_id":116,"category_name":29,"doc_title":10,"doc_description":12,"doc_content":134,"file_id":135,"file_url":136,"file_type":137,"file_size":138,"view_count":55,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":22,"is_downloadable":22,"audit_status":22,"page_count":30,"language":139,"language_code":8,"site_id":7,"html_lang":8,"table_of_contents":140,"faqs":141,"seo_title":142,"seo_description":12,"update_tm":143,"read_time":111},962085320529,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_9964176cb1d06d4a9deccf72a44ae3dc","Marriage Preparation in the Church Catholic  \nTeaching about marriage For Catholics  \nMarriage is not merely a civil contract but is a covenant between a man and a woman before God. A marriage is a lifelong commitment and a wedding is never a casual event. Because it is such a serious moment, the Church asks that those wishing to be married prepare themselves by taking part in a preparation program that is established by our Diocese. As you prepare for marriage, we ask you to prayerfully reflect on the nature of this sacrament.  \nBefore we look at some of the steps of that preparation process, consider some of the points made in the Catechism of the Catholic Church (references* are to paragraph number):  \n*1660 The marriage covenant, by which a man and a woman form with each other an intimate communion of life and love, has been founded and endowed with its own special laws by the Creator. By its very nature it is ordered to the good of the couple, as well as to the generation and education of children. Christ the Lord raised marriage between the baptized to the dignity of a sacrament.  \n1661 The sacrament of Matrimony signifies the union of Christ and the Church. It gives spouses the grace to love each other with the love with which Christ has loved his Church; the grace of the sacrament thus perfects the human love of the spouses, strengthens their indissoluble unity, and sanctifies them on the way to eternal life.  \n1662 Marriage is based on the consent of the contracting parties, that is, on their will to give themselves, each to the other, mutually and definitively, in order to live a covenant of faithful and fruitful love.  \nCatholics are obliged to marry in the Catholic Church, following the marriage rite of the Catholic Church. Their exchange of vows must be witnessed by either a priest or deacon and two other witnesses. A Catholic can receive permission to marry a non-Catholic, in this case the Catholic must seek a written dispensation from our Bishop.  \nPreparing for marriage  \nMost couples reserve a reception location as much as a year in advance. Before you do that, or contract a photographer, or think about invitations, or make any other agreements, please follow the process. Diocesan guidelines say you should do so at least 6-9 months before the time you'd like to get married. (Note: if either of the couple has been married in a civil ceremony they must file for an annulment, call the parish office for more information.) Our church calendar fills up quickly so a year in advance is suggested.  \nInitial interview  \nAt the St. Thomas the Apostle Parish website ([www.stthomasannarbor.org/marriage](www.stthomasannarbor.org/marriage)) you will find an application and reflection question worksheet. Complete these and submit them to the parish office, attention Maureen Galloway ([Stthomaswedding@sta2.org](Stthomaswedding@sta2.org)). When this paper work is submitted we can look at tentative dates. Canon law states that a wedding date cannot be confirmed until you have had the initial interview with a priest or deacon in which it is determined that you are free to marry. This is also an opportunity to explain the marriage preparation process.  \nMarriage readiness  \nAnother aspect of the discernment process looks at your readiness to marry. While there is no possible way to determine this definitively, there are clear indicators that can predict potential problems or even the eventual failure of the marriage. You'll be asked to complete a premarital inventory, which will give both of you an opportunity to reflect on your attitudes and your relationship. This isn't a test, but is an aid for you and the priest or deacon to use in highlighting important areas of discussion.  \nMarriage Preparation Requirements:  \n1. Take the Agape Catholic Ministries Pre-Cana Course on [catholicmarriageprep.com](catholicmarriageprep.com).  \n2. Natural Family Planning Class – there are many natural family planning methods. We highly encourage a","cbCaipn0eApmNjTu","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaipn0eApmNjTu","pdf",150324,"English","# Preparing for marriage\n## Key points from the Catechism\n## Diocesan timeline and eligibility\n## Initial interview\n## Marriage readiness and premarital inventory\n## Marriage Preparation Requirements","[{\"question\":\"Why does the Church require marriage preparation for Catholics?\",\"answer\":\"Because marriage is a serious sacrament and lifelong commitment, Catholics are asked to prepare through a diocesan-established program and prayerfully reflect on the sacrament.\"},{\"question\":\"What is required for Catholics exchanging vows?\",\"answer\":\"Their exchange of vows must be witnessed by a priest or deacon and two other witnesses. A Catholic may request permission to marry a non-Catholic by seeking written dispensation from the bishop.\"},{\"question\":\"What are the main preparation steps and requirements before the wedding?\",\"answer\":\"They include taking the Agape Catholic Ministries Pre-Cana course, completing Natural Family Planning (with the diocese’s minimum requirement), completing FOCCUS or Prepare and Enrich and meeting a mentor couple, attending three parish Catholic prep presentations, completing two reflections on formed.org, submitting baptism certificate copies six months prior, and being encouraged to receive confession within a couple weeks of the wedding.\"}]","Marriage Preparation in the Church - Catholic | PDF",1790529897]