Holy Matrimony

It is with profound awareness of the importance of Holy Matrimony that the Cathedral Church of Saint Luke has written these Guidelines for Marriage.

 

Marriage is a sacred relationship. For individual persons, it is a moment of profound richness and dignity. For the community, it is an institution that serves as one of the basic bonds which holds our society together. For the Church, it is a sacramental event whereby God is worshipped and grace is bestowed by Him upon the couple.

 

In presenting these guidelines, the Cathedral seeks to strengthen the stability of marriage within our society and to show engaged couples that the Church does indeed care for their welfare. Persons desiring to be married at the Cathedral must be, or be in the process of becoming active members. In the second place we demonstrate our concern for the couple by generously giving of our time to prepare the couple for marriage.

We wish you every blessing as you approach your marriage.

 

 

The Route to Marriage at the Cathedral Church of Saint Luke

 

Six Steps to Take Together

 

1^st Step Wedding Inquiry Session:  This is the first step for members and newcomers alike. The Wedding Inquiry takes place on the 4^th Sunday of each month at 9:00 a.m. upstairs in the staff offices. You need to make a reservation with Theo Gordon to attend this meeting (407-849-0680).

 

2^nd Step  Red Dots:  You will receive eight red adhesive stickers in your Wedding Packet from the Inquiry Session. Eight Sunday services is generally the minimum accepted number of attendances before we will set a wedding date. The stickers you have received are used to help us track your attendances. A sticker should be affixed to the Connection Card found in the Sunday Bulletin. So on Sunday you will need to retrieve the Connection Card from the bulletin, complete the information on the card, affix a red sticker to it, and then put your Card in the offering plate. It is expected you will consistently attend worship each Sunday, at least 3 Sundays a month.

 

3^rd Step  Clergy Meeting:  After the eight dotted cards have been received in our office, a meeting with a member of the clergy will be scheduled to explain the remainder of the pre-marriage preparation. At this meeting, a date for the marriage may be discussed. If either or both persons seeking marriage have been previously married, this also will be discussed.

 

If the couple is cohabiting, the couple will meet with 2 of the Cathedral’s clergy after four dots have been received. The purpose of this meeting is to explore ways of resolving this situation. 

 

4^th Step  Monthly Meeting with a Priest:  The couple will meet monthly with the priest who will preside at their wedding. The purpose of the monthly meeting is to assist the couple in further Christian spiritual development and for planning the ceremony.

 

5^th Step  Engaged Encounter:  The Engaged Encounter Weekend is devoted to engaged couples. Engaged Encounter is offered through both the Episcopal and Roman Catholic Diocese.

 

6^th Step  The Cathedral Discovery:  Couples coming into the Cathedral through the “dotting” method are expected to attend this introduction to the Cathedral and to Anglicanism before the wedding.