Congratulations on your engagement. If you want to discuss marriage at St Michael’s, please contact the vicar, Alan Everett (or phone 020 7249 2627). If you want to have your banns read at St Michael’s to be married in another church, then please email him.
The following Questions & Answers may help, but he will be pleased to answer any other questions you may have.
Can anyone be married at St Michael’s?
Yes, providing at least one partner either
- lives in the parish, or
- is a regular worshipping member of the congregation, and on the church electoral roll.
How do we begin?
Once you have made contact, the vicar – or another priest who is to officiate at your marriage – will arrange to meet you.
At this first meeting, you will discuss your preferred date for the wedding, and whether the date is free in the church diary. Assuming a date can be agreed, the priest will take you through some issues, such as
- The type of service. Many marriages are simple services, lasting about 30 minutes. Alternatively, if you are communicant members of the church, the marriage could be in the context of the Eucharist. The priest will flag up further issues to think about. For instance, you can
- involve family and friends in the service, by singing or reading
- choose bible readings, or other readings
- choose hymns and other music items
- write your personal statement of commitment to one another
- include your own prayers.
- The fees. It is always best to know right at the beginning how much the service will cost. In addition to the cost of the marriage service, there are fees for the verger and organist, and in winter, for heating the church. The organist’s fee will be higher if the service is filmed or recorded. You will need to decide whether to arrange for extra flowers; if so, we can recommend a local florist. There may one or two extra costs for you to consider, depending on your requirements – but all this can be discussed at the first meeting.
- The service booklet. The priest will advise you on your options.
- The legal preliminiaries. Many couples are married after the reading of banns (three announcements in church of their intention to marry); however, sometimes banns are not possible. In which case, you must apply for either a Common License or a Special License. The priest will clarify the legal issues for you.
What happens then?
The priest will meet with you again, as often as necessary, to help you to prepare for your marriage. In the meantime, you will resolve practical issues together on an ongoing basis by phone or email. You will also be in touch with the organist to decide the hymns and other music items. A few days before the marriage, you and others involved in the service will meet with the priest for a practice.
From this day forward …
We will do all we can to make sure your marriage is a wonderful occasion. And of course, we also hope that you will want to continue your journey through life together as members of the church.