Welcome!
Congratulations on your engagement and upcoming wedding! The clergy and staff here at St. Joseph’s are here to guide you through the wedding preparation process and to help you prepare to begin this new phase in your life. Please do not hesitate to reach out to us with any questions about the following important information.
First Requirement: Take a moment to fill out our wedding intake form below or give our parish office a call at 201-261-0148. Afterward, a member of our staff or clergy will reach out to you to schedule a first meeting and reserve a wedding date.
Second Requirement: The priest or deacon will give you a marriage survey, in which you indicate whether you agree or disagree with or are unsure about various statements about marriage. The surveys, which are scored anonymously at the Archdiocesan Family Life Office, help identify issues that should be discussed in your private preparation with the priest or deacon.
Third Requirement: Couples must take the Archdiocesan programs for marriage preparation: God’s Plan for a Joy-Filled Marriage and Pre-Cana. For registration information, go to rcan.org/family-life and click on the “register for Pre-Cana classes” button. These programs should not be left to just a short time before the wedding.
Fourth Requirement: Continued meetings with the priest or deacon who will officiate at your wedding. Typically, there are three to four, but sometimes more are needed. They cover establishing your freedom to marry in the Catholic Church, a review of your marriage inventory, the meaning of Sacramental Marriage and the planning of ceremonial details for the wedding. Scheduling a date for a wedding rehearsal close to the wedding date is also required. Please work with the priest or deacon to schedule meeting times that work best. Attendance at these meetings are a required part of the marriage preparation process and should be taken seriously.
Other Information:
Catholics present a new copy of their Baptism certificate, that is, one issued during the six months before marriage. When a Catholic marries in the Church, the parish of Baptism is informed to make a marriage entry, and this is one way a Catholic’s freedom to marry is verified. If your certificate does not contain details of your Confirmation, get a Confirmation certificate from the parish where you were Confirmed. Though Confirmation isn’t strictly required for Marriage, Catholics are urged to receive it, if possible, before being married. Baptized non-Catholics present a copy of their baptismal certificate (theirs does not have to be newly issued).
Sometimes there are a few more steps to marriage preparation, as when a special permission has to be gained or when someone has been previously married. The priest or deacon will guide you in these cases, which are usually quite routine.
Important Parish Information
• For parishioners, there is a $500 fee for the use of the church and preparation sessions. The fee for non-parishioners is $650. This should be paid at or before the rehearsal. If you pay by check, make it out to “St. Joseph’s Church.”
• The fee for our music director/organist is $300. (If by check: “Monroe Quinn”). If you have any thoughts of using another musician for your wedding, Monroe, by contract, still must be paid his usual fee. This is a typical arrangement with churches, allowing them to have a musician ”on call”- and allowing the musician to earn a living. Any replacement musician must have recognizable qualifications and Monroe supervises any musical choices for the wedding program.
• The singer’s fee is $200. (If by check: to his or her name). Monroe uses several singers, all of them of superior quality.
• Part of Monroe Quinn’s role is to help you plan the musical program. He will offer to meet with you to do this. All music for the wedding must be religious. Monroe will make the decision about this, if there is any question. Pre-recorded music will not be permitted. Monroe can be reached at 201-320-1650 or at [email protected].
• You must have a New Jersey marriage license for your wedding to take place here. Apply for it at the municipality where either of you live, if you are both residents of New Jersey. If only one of you resides in New Jersey, apply in that town. If neither of you reside in New Jersey, apply at Oradell Borough Hall. You must both apply for the license in person, bringing with you a third person, who can verify your identity and assure the government that you are free to marry. After you apply, one of you has to go back to take possession of the license, which you can do only after 72 hours have passed. The license is valid for 30 days once granted. Bring the license with you to your rehearsal.
• Flowers, which are up to you to arrange for, may not be placed on top of the altar. Any decorations should be attached without damaging the pews. Wedding runners are not recommended, but if you wish to have one, make sure the tape used to hold it in place won’t mar the floor finish. Presenting flowers before Mary’s statue is allowed, but not required.
• Photography is also up to you to arrange. We ask photographers not to be on the carpeted area near the altar and not to interfere with the ceremony. Pictures may also be taken after the wedding is over, as long as we have enough time (30 minutes) to set up for our scheduled Masses.
BEGIN THE PROCESS