Catholic Weddings

Priest question/problem

Fi and I are getting married in the church I grew up in although most of the priests I was familiar with have since moved on to other parishes it's the church where I received all of my sacraments except Baptism and it meant a lot to me to be married there.  Well my problem so far is this, any time I have to get something done with the church it takes usually 4 phone calls and 2 to 3 months for the priest to get back to me, I know they are busy but I think that's a little ridiculous as we are a fairly small parish.  I got all my paperwork(the freedom to marry form, the Pre Cana registration form, the copies of Baptismal certificates etc) back to them about a month ago there was no place to put in which Pre Cana dates I wanted to do(my church does Pre Cana in fall, winter, and spring, we were advised to do it in either fall or winter to make sure if we had to miss a date that we would be able to make it up) and I was told by the secretary that the priest would call me to discuss it...Well it's been a month and I have called and my call has not been returned.   Keep in mind I've already paid for the Pre Cana and Fi and I really wanted to do the fall program but I have a feeling it will be booked up by the time the priest returns my call and I will be really REALLY annoyed if that is the case.   My biggest problem with all of this is it's making me really resentful of my church,  and frankly why do I want to have this man marry us when he can't even take 5 minutes to return my phone call.   this has been a problem from the start, I actually had to fill out two wedding intake forms(the second after not receiving any call or call back for 8 months!) and the only reason we actually even got in was I happened to call at a time he was there and not doing anything and I actually got to speak with him directly.  I almost feel like maybe the secretary just isn't forwarding my messages.  I'm so frustrated right now. sorry just wanted to vent, has anyone else had a problem like this?

Re: Priest question/problem

  • edited December 2011
    Do you live in the same town that the parish is?  If not, is there someone in town who can go to the church for you and talk to them in person?  As you said, it's possible he isn't even getting your messages, so I think going there in person might help.
  • mbcdefgmbcdefg member
    10000 Comments 5 Love Its Combo Breaker
    edited December 2011
    We registered for Pre-Cana online, and we're doing it at another parish. Is that an option for you? Go on your archdiocese's website and see.
    image
  • edited December 2011
    Yup, I have these problems all the time--both at the church I currently attend (they are doing a lot of the wedding prep and other stuff) and the church where we are getting married (where I grew up).  So I would be in trouble either way!It's crummy and I get resentful sometimes, too, but I try to keep it in perspective (and often fail).  Many priests are overworked, and many are just really bad at keeping on top of this stuff for some reason.Keep calling and making a pest of yourself.  There really is no other way that I know of, even though I get sick of doing it.  And I second (or third) the others--can you just sign up with your diocese?  Check the website.
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