Church Wedding

meagan2113

Just wondering if anyone has any good suggestions for a Catholic Church they would recommend? My fiance and I are both Catholic and members of two different churches. We would both like to get married in the church but are having a difficult time deciding. We are told there are classes we need to take and realize these classes are very important but are also expensive. We are also considering an outside ceremony site any suggestions for an outside ceremony location would be helpful as well!

klwilcox

We are getting married at St. Frances Cabrini at 10th and William in Omaha.  It is a beautiful old church and in a great location just south of the Old Market.  I would caution, however, that you might run into problems trying to find a church that will marry you when you are not a member of their parish.  Our priest told us that typically, churches in the Omaha Diocese want couples to be active members for at least a year before they marry them.  I don't know how hard and fast this rule is; just something to consider.  Good luck, and I hope this helps!

JenaW19

I am also Catholic but am from around here and am actually going to get married in the church I grew up in that I am still a member of. I still attend mass in Omaha and the church we were planning on getting married in was St. Elizabeth Ann Seton on 114th and Fort. It's very nice and Fr. Dvorack is wonderful! If you are looking at getting married at one of the notoriously beautiful (i.e. older architecturally speaking) churches in Omaha, you definitely want to check to see how long you have to be a member before you can marry there. I know St. Cecilia's Cathedral and St. Margaret Mary is a required 2 year membership before they will marry you. Klwilcox is pretty much right on the money though in terms of becoming a member and individual church's rules regarding the sacrament. I would definitely find a church that you both like and see what their policy is. The majority only require one of you to be a member so that is helpful as well. Good luck and I hope you find the perfect location!


Oh and one more thing! (sorry this is soo lengthy!) After talking to a family friend that is a priest and doing our ceremony, I found out that you can not get married outdoors if you are Catholic. I guess the Diocese of Omaha does not allow it. If you decide to get married outside and have someone else do the ceremony you will not be able to participate in mass in a Catholic church because you did not follow through with your sacrament of marriage as the Church requires. I did not know half of this so I am very glad he told me. Hopefully it doesnt ruin any of your plans!

meagan2113

Thank you very much that is helpful! I knew that priests do not perform outside ceremonies but did not know that you can no longer participate in mass! Thank you for your help

rmenjivar

My fiance and I are Catholic and are getting married in the church. He's from Lincoln and I am actually from a small town in rural nebraska, and we are getting married in a church in Lincoln where neither of  us are members. I'm not sure if its different in the diocese of Omaha, but we were able to book the church for our wedding date for a non-member fee (it's more like a donation). However, since we are non-members, the priest from that particular church wouldn't be able to marry us, but a family friend who is a priest will marry us and he will also be giving us our marriage preparation classes. I think your best bet will be to talk to either of your priests. I think it's costumary to get married in the bride's church, but either yours or his will be okay. One always hears rumors about how limited you are by getting married in the church and how its all just such a drag, but really, things couldn't be further from the truth. Most priests will try the best to help you out and will be happy to do what they can!
As far as the marriage prep classes go, I don't think you pay for those. But you can ask a priest or just call any church rectory and they'll be able to give you that info. In the diocese of Lincoln we have to attend an "engage encounter" for a weekend, and I think there is an equivalent for the diocese of omaha too http://www.archomaha.org/pastoral/flo/marriageprep.html has all the information and costs.  My brother got married 2 years ago and he and his wife said they were glad they had taken the classes and gone to the retreat- it makes you think of things that maybe you had not thought of discussing with your fiance before- so its all about improving communication and exploring common ground a bit more.
When you compare the costs of the church to something like, say, the cost of your flowers... it really doesn't even compare! The church costs are minimal when you see the big picture. And receiving that sacrament is the most important part!
Good luck, and don't give up! Having that blessing is all worth it  
P.S sorry this is so long :-/