Guidelines for the Celebration and Blessing of a Marriage in The Church of Saint Clement

In The Book of Common Prayer, the opening address of the Wedding Ceremony states that “marriage is not to be entered into unadvisedly or lightly, but reverently, deliberately, and in accordance with the purposes for which it was instituted by God.”  Marriage is a sacrament of the Church and ordained by God; therefore, the wedding ceremony is to be conducted with great dignity and in accordance with God’s Word and the rubrics of the Book of Common Prayer. 
http://justus.anglican.org/resources/bcp/bcp.htm

It is our hope that each couple will not only be adequately prepared for their life together, but they will also come to understand what it means to be married in a Christian Church and will be given the assurance that the Church will be there for them in the good times as well as the difficult times.

REQUIREMENTS

Pre-Marital Preparation 

As mentioned above, all couples are required to complete a preparation process that takes a minimum of four months; this process is provided through the Church. This includes, but is not limited to, counseling by the clergy and, if available,  interaction with a mentoring couple.  The mentoring couple, assigned by the clergy, will be members of Saint Clement and will meet with the engaged couple several times before the wedding.  The mentoring couple will administer an inventory of 150 questions covering basic areas of marriage.  They will also share their own experience of marriage with the couple.  Finally, to be married in the church, the couple is expected to abstain from sexual relations until they are married and to live in separate locations.

Remarriage Requirements 

If either the bride or the groom has been divorced, the wedding ceremony may not be performed until the couple has gone through counseling and until the Rector of Saint Clement has approved the marriage.

Church Requirements

In order to be married at The Church of Saint Clement, one of the following membership requirements must be met:

·        Either the bride or groom must be a member in good standing (regular attendance, giver of record, and member for at least six months). 

·        The parents of either or both the bride and the groom are members in good standing.      

In addition, if the bride and/or groom do not live in El Paso, and therefore do not attend The Church of Saint Clement, written confirmation from an Anglican Priest or other minister of a Christian church must be provided verifying the completion of a premarital counseling program and regular attendance at church.  For those living in El Paso, our premarital preparation program, which usually takes four months, must be completed.