What to Know About Church Weddings
- Getting married in a church requires the approval of the pastor or priest. The couple must meet with the pastor before setting a date and may even be required to take some classes or attend a marriage retreat before they can reserve a date. Typically, the bride or groom must be a member of the church and attend services regularly, although this requirement may be waived for destination weddings. If the bride or groom is not a member of that church or is not of that religion, the church may require that he or she convert or at least take some classes to know what the church expects of them.
- A church wedding's main focus is God, therefore the readings, prayers and music typically need to be centered around God and Jesus. Most churches require that you get approval for any music you plan to play at your wedding to make sure it is in keeping with the tone of a church wedding. If you're planning to walk down the aisle to a heavy metal song, a church wedding is not for you.
- Churches require all wedding parties to conduct a wedding rehearsal, which is typically held the night before the wedding. All members of the wedding party are expected to attend and conduct themselves properly. While it is not required for all members of your wedding party to belong to the church, they should behave appropriately during the rehearsal and during the wedding itself.
- Many churches still share conservative views about cohabitating before marriage, pregnancy out of wedlock and divorce. If you or your soon-to-be spouse has any of these issues, it may make it a bit more difficult to find a pastor willing to marry you, although it is not impossible. It is best to be honest from the beginning and divulge any information you think may be a concern. If a pastor finds out you lied to him about an issue, he may not allow you to marry in the church.
