General Considerations

• Sacramental marriage unites a man and a woman and brings together two families in a powerful witness to Christian faith within a Christian community.
• Because of these important factors, we strongly encourage prospective spouses to receive the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony at the parish where they intend to live and to be a family.
• Your desire to be married at St. Peter’s must include a holistic commitment to the parish, through regular attendance at Mass and support of the life of the parish community.
  • Neither you nor we want to reduce your important day to a venue choice or a mere backdrop for your wedding.

Finding a Date:

• A period of time from six months to a year is required to prepare prospective spouses for a sacramental marriage.
• Church requirements do not permit us to confirm a marriage date prior to completing canonical procedures, including paperwork.
  • The paperwork in itself can require a month or more.
  • A date for your wedding can, and will, only be established in the parish calendar after this canonical paperwork is complete.

Freedom to Marry:

• The capacity to enter the married state requires the freedom to give a complete and unconditional “yes” to another person.
• Personal maturity and discipline are prerequisite to making such a radical commitment.
• Psychological troubles and/or addictive behaviors must be addressed in assessing the freedom to marry.
• The ability to give yourself totally in marriage presupposes that every effort is made to grow in personal chastity and to maintain prudent boundaries in your relationship with each other.
• Freedom from other binding life commitments is also required.
• If there are any previous attempts at marriage in your history, these must be brought forward and examined carefully before taking any further steps.
• It is all too common in society today for couples to live together before marriage. This arrangement, commonly known as cohabitation, can obscure the capacity to discern marriage in freedom and eliminates many opportunities to grow in the virtues necessary to live the total self-gift required in marriage.
  • If you find yourself in the arrangement of cohabitation, it is essential that you remove yourself from it as soon as possible.
     

Documents Required for Marriage

The following documents need to be obtained and/or filled out in order to fulfill initial canonical requirements:

• Baptismal Certificates:
  • If you were baptized in another location, documentation must be recently issued from the place of your baptism, not more than six months old.
• Confirmation Certificates:
  • If you were baptized in another location, documentation must be recently issued from the place of your baptism, not more than six months old.
• ​Witness Affidavits:
  • Two witnesses are required for each potential spouse. Usually, these are parents or close family members who know you well. Witnesses arrange a time to meet face-to-face with a priest to give their testimony.
• Prenuptial Investigations:
  • These will be filled out during one of the visits with the pastor to arrange the wedding.
• ​Canonical Questionnaire:
  • Each potential spouse is interviewed individually by the priest.

After completing the above steps, it may be possible for a wedding date to be booked in the parish calendar. Fees for the Parish (see below) should be submitted at the time of this booking.

Couples who have completed these preliminary requirements will begin the process of marriage formation. This process includes:

• Pre-Cana classes, as required by the Archdiocese of Chicago
  • We recommend the One in Christ Marriage Class at oneinchristmarriage.com
• Regular meetings with the pastor (3-5 meetings)

By the time of your wedding rehearsal, you must present a Civil Marriage license. This license, from Lake County in Illinois, must be obtained not more than 60 days nor less than 24 hours before the wedding. Please visit the Lake County Clerk's website HERE to learn about the requirements and process for obtaining your Marriage License.
 

Requirements for a Wedding at St. Peter's

• Normally the parish does not conduct weddings during the Advent or Lenten Seasons
  • 4 weeks before Christmas
  • 6 weeks before Easter
• Weddings are typically scheduled on available Saturdays, either late morning or early afternoon, and are not to be scheduled past 2:00 PM.
  • The parish does not conduct weddings on Sundays.
• It is important that on the day of the wedding that the ceremony begins on time.
  • The Mass will start at the scheduled start time regardless of whether someone is late.
• Please remember that you are receiving a Sacrament. Therefore, it is important that part of your preparation is to receive the Sacrament of Confession.
  • Please plan ahead to make a good confession prior to your wedding so that you may reap the full sacramental benefits of Holy Matrimony.

• St. Peter's considers quality sacred music to be an important part of every liturgy and expects the choice of music for weddings to reflect this principle.
• The parish choirs have a number of fine musicians and vocalists, whom we can recommend to you.
• If you wish to use outside musicians and vocalists, they must be approved by the pastor.
• Musical selections must be approved by the pastor as fitting for a Sacred occasion.
• No secular music or music from television, movies, etc. is permitted.

Wedding Attire:

• The attire chosen for your wedding should be modest and appropriate to the celebration of the sacrament of Holy Matrimony within our Church.
  • Careful attention should be given by brides when choosing their own bridal gown, as well as dresses for their bridal party.
• It should be noted that should a bride choose a dress that is strapless, with spaghetti straps, or in other ways does not fit the modesty appropriate for the Church, the bride must be covered with a wrap, shawl, etc. for the entire duration of the ceremony and time spent in the church building, including for all photos.

Wedding Rehearsal:

• The rehearsal is typically scheduled at 7:00 p.m. on the Friday before the wedding, although some situations do require other scheduling.
  • Should you be getting married on the Saturday following the 1st Friday of the month, your rehearsal will not be on Friday due to First Friday Adoration & Mass.
  • St. Peter's Sacramental Coordinator will work with you and the priest celebrating the marriage to choose a date.
• A priest will conduct the wedding rehearsal.
  • This is regardless of whether the couple is using a wedding planner or not.
• In addition to wearing appropriate attire for the celebration of Holy Matrimony, we expect all in attendance at the Rehearsal to also be dressed appropriately.
  • Attire for the wedding rehearsal should be “business casual”.
  • Shorts, athletic wear, tank tops, shirts with low necklines, skirts with high hemlines, etc. are not appropriate at any time.

Bridal Party:

• A maximum of five couples are permitted
  • The 5-couples are in addition to the bride & groom
• The same principles outlined in the Wedding Attire section above, also apply to bridesmaids.
  • Backless dresses, dresses with plunging necklines, high slits, and hemlines above the knee are forbidden.
• Please plan accordingly when selecting attire for your wedding party.

Photography:

• Videographers and photographers are not permitted on the communion rail steps, behind the communion rail in the sanctuary, or in the sacristies.  
• ​Prayers of the priests and brothers of the Canons Regular begin at 4:00 p.m. on Saturdays, therefore no photographs are permitted past this time.

Flowers & Decor:

• ​Arrangements for flowers and runners (if used) are the responsibility of the bride and groom.
• The florist should speak to the priest on the placement of flowers before making plans.
  • The parish can recommend florists who have experience at our church and are familiar with our spacing and requirements.
• No floral arrangements, candles with hurricane lamps, trellises, or canopies are allowed in the aisles or on the pews.  If decorations are to be placed on the pews, (e.g. bows) they are to be secured with rubber bands, string, ribbon, etc. 
• No tape of any kind, nor command strips, are to be used on the pews, walls, etc.
• No rice, confetti, noodles, birdseed, balloons, flower petals, etc. allowed outside of the church.

Fees:

• The cost for a wedding at St. Peter's is $500 for St. Peter's Parishioners.
  • A $100 down payment is required to hold the date.
  • The $400 balance is due two weeks before the date.
• Should you choose to use St. Peter's Organists or Choir Members, fees are determined by those folks individually.