May God bless you both on your upcoming marriage! 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.
Arrangements should be made at least 6 months in advance for parishioners who are registered and active members of the parish. Please call the parish for more information and set-up and the initial meeting.
The basic requirements are as follows:
Set-up a preliminary meeting with Fr. Palatucci. You may contact him at the parish number or email him at scbsje@gmail.com. At this meeting, you will discuss the day, time of your marriage and all other important information necessary to proceed further.
Start gathering all your sacramental records, i.e. Baptismal, First Holy Communion, and Confirmation certificates. The baptismal certificate should be the most recent copy and not the one you received at baptism. You will need to call the parish where you were baptized, request it from them, and then mailed to the parish addressed to the priest who will be handling your marriage.
If you have a previous marriage you must tell Fr. Palatucci this immediately to determine your next plan of action.
If you are living in and registered at another parish you are required to contact the pastor of that parish first before proceeding to get married here. In most cases, he will handle all the requirements for marriage unless he requests St. John to do so.
If you are living in another state the same as number 4 above applies here, plus you will need to submit your records and information to the chancery office of that diocese. Once you do that, they will mail it to the chancery office in the Archdiocese of New York. After reviewing and making a record of these files, they will be sent here.
If you have a guest priest or deacon to do the marriage he must be in good standing with his diocese or religious order and provide proof of such. Once he does that he will need to ask for delegation in writing on parish letterhead and imprinted with the parish seal on the letter.
The fee for marriage is $200.00
For more information, please contact Fr. Palatucci at your earliest convenience.