The matrimonial covenant, by which a man and a woman establish between themselves a partnership of the whole of life, is by its nature ordered toward the good of the spouses and the procreation and education of offspring; this covenant between baptized persons has been raised by Christ the Lord to the dignity of a sacrament. [Catechism of the Catholic Church No. 1601]

Marriage is a sacrament. It is the permanent union of a man and a woman whose goal is the good and welfare of the other, including the salvation of their spouse’s soul.

Marriage has been around since God created Adam and Eve. God created men and women to be attracted to each other and to want to fall in love and to raise families. It is a very wonderful thing. We often call this a natural marriage. But when Jesus came, He elevated marriage to a sacrament and by making it a sacrament it becomes a great source of grace and strength. This is often called a sacramental marriage. In a sacramental marriage a man and woman are bound together with each other and with God. A sacramental marriage is permanent and cannot be broken. See Mt.19:1-9

Marriage is a vocation, like becoming a priest or nun. Not everyone is called to get married just as not everyone is called to be a priest. The first thing anyone should do before they consider getting married is to pray. Does God want you to get married? If God does want you to get married then you need to pray that He sends the person He wants you to marry. Once you have found someone you think you want to marry, pray for him or her and pray with each other. Once you want to get engaged to this person, come and see the priest at the parish who will help you discern whether this is the right person for you to marry and is the right time in your life for you to marry.

Any baptized Catholic man and woman over the age of eighteen who have been confirmed and belongs to Notre Dame parish can get married at the parish as long as they are free to marry.

Marriage is a sacrament and is a great source of grace to the husband and wife. If one or the other is not confirmed then they are not able to use those graces to the fullest possible extent. Confirmation is the completion of our baptisms and allows us to fully utilize the graces God gives us in our lives. Technically, a person who is not confirmed can still get married but they are putting their marriage at a disadvantage from the very beginning.

With permission from the bishop, a Catholic can marry a Protestant and still have a sacramental marriage as long as both parties are baptized. This is called a mixed marriage. Extra care must be taken in a Mixed Marriage. The divorce rate for mixed marriage is higher because there is an added stress on the marriage due to two different religions. Also the risk of the one or both persons in the marriage of loosing their faith is very high.

With special permission a Catholic can marry someone who is not Christian such as a Jew or a Muslim or someone who has never been baptized and doesn’t belong to any religion. But because one of the person is not baptized, the marriage will not be a sacramental marriage. Also the added stress on the marriage due to two very different religions results in a higher divorce rate and the risk of one or both persons loosing their faith is very high.

The Catholic Church used to strongly push for the conversion of the non-Catholic before they got married. While this is no longer the case, it is something that should seriously be considered, especially if the other person is not baptized and does not belong to or practice any religion. If both people are Catholic the marriage has a greater chance of success and it is easier on the children. Children should be raised Catholic unless there is a very good reason not too.

Marriage preparation in the Archdiocese of Denver lasts from 8 to 12 months. While this may seem like a long time at first, the high rate of divorce shows that most people do not understand what marriage is or what they are committing themselves too. A couple should talk to a priest before they set a wedding date and before they rent or reserve a hall for the reception, which often has to be done a year in advance anyway.

Marriage is a sacrament and as a sacrament it needs to be performed in the Church. Form is important but form can never outweigh substance. The substance is the sanctity of the Marriage. The form is the where, the when, the how many bride’s maids there are, what color the dresses are, etc. It is strongly recommended that you keep your wedding simple so that the Holiness and sacredness of your wedding vows do not get lost in all the hubbub of the pomp and pageantry.

Most people get married on a Saturday. Notre Dame offers three times you can get married on a Saturday, 10 AM, 1 PM, and 6 PM. Some people get married on Fridays and those times are more flexible. Marriages are not allowed during Lent.

Once a couple gets engaged, they are not partially married meaning that they can start living as husband and wife. Not only is this a serious sin it also does a great amount of harm to the future marriage. Many people think that by living together before they get married is a good way to ease into marriage, a step at a time. But studies have shown is that just the opposite happens. Couples who live together before marriage have a significantly higher divorce rate than couples that do not cohabitate. Premarital sex and extra marital sex cause a great amount of harm to marriage and are also deadly to the soul.