What is the sacrament of matrimony?
Matrimony is the sacrament for which a man and a woman constitute a true and full community of life and conjugal love, ordained at their good and happiness, open to the procreative mission and the children’s education.
By receiving before the Church, the gift of this sacrament, the Christian spouses are asking God for His grace so that they can realise, maturely and joyfully, the intimate union of their persons and help each other in the acceptance and Christian education of their children.
How can you celebrate the sacrament of Matrimony?
There are two ways, equally valid, to celebrate a matrimony: to celebrate only the matrimony sacrament or to celebrate it inside the Eucharist. The particular chosen way will depend on the commitment of Christian life of the contractors.
What do I need to do to get married?
Once the decision to marry by the Church is done, the first thing is to book a day and a time for the sacrament celebration, that always takes place at the Crypt of the Sagrada Família. This booking must be done directly by the contractors at the Pastoral Office in person.
Usually, weddings are celebrated on Friday afternoons or on Saturday morning or afternoons, depending on the availability of the Crypt. If those who want to get married know a priest and so wish, he can be the one who presides over the marriage.
To receive all needed information and to know all the needed documentation to contract a Catholic marriage, you will need to go to the Pastoral Office.
It is convenient to start the preparation of the wedding file about six months prior to the wedding date, because the documentation that must be presented will need to be ready by then, and it is better to not have to hurry.
You will need to participate in some preparatory sessions to receive the sacrament. On Wednesdays, from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m., you will get detailed information of the possibilities that the parish offers in that sense.
To prepare appropriately, with the priest or deacon that will celebrate your wedding, this celebration.
What documentation do I need to submit?
For the wedding file preparation, you will need to submit the following documents:
- Baptism certificate of both contractors (if both of them are Catholic). If any of these certificates are from a different bishopric from the Barcelona archdiocese (or the Terrassa or Sant Feliu de Llobregat bishopric), then it has to certificated by that bishopric. If the matrimony is between a Catholic party and a non-Catholic party, in that case only the baptism certificate of the Catholic contracting party is required.
- ID or Passport Photocopy of the contractors
- Parents’ family record book photocopy or birth certificate from the civil register in which the marital status is recorded as unmarried. If a civil marriage was contracted before contracting the religious one, the civil marriage certificate will also be required.
- In the case of the marriage of a person who has obtained a marriage annulment, the final judgment of this annulment must also be presented.
- Certificate of participation in the preparation for matrimony sessions.
