“The marriage covenant, by which a man and a woman form with each other an intimate communion of life and love, has been founded and endowed with its own special laws by the Creator. By its very nature it is ordered to the good of the couple, as well as to the generation and education of children. Christ the Lord raised marriage between the baptized to the dignity of a sacrament.”
--Catechism of the Catholic Church 1660
Congratulations! The St. John parish community rejoices with couples called to the Vocation of Marriage and Family.
The entire marriage process requires a minimum of seven months to a year. Part of this process, in accordance with Arlington Diocese policies, couples must begin marriage preparation this requires face to face meetings with a priest, and this process should start official preparation at least six months prior to a planned wedding date.
A minimum of three months of parish registration is required. Please contact our Business Manager, Kandace Leypoldt at [email protected] or 540.347.2922 to start the marriage preparation process. Guidelines will be provided when the Marriage Preparation is scheduled.
Parishioners: any Catholic not otherwise impeded by Divine law or Church law, who lives within the territorial boundaries of St. John the Evangelist, is a registered parishioner, may be married at St. John the Evangelist. Only one of the newly engaged needs to be a St. John's parishioner. A person who is registered to St. John's but does not actually live within the parish boundaries still needs the permission of the pastor of the parish, of that boundary, in which he/she resides to qualify as a registered parishioner to St. John’s. That pastor’s written permission needs to be submitted prior to any arrangements being made.
Children of St. John's parishioners: any Catholic, whose parents are actively participating members of St. John the Evangelist, may be married here if the pastor of the parish in which they reside will give his written permission prior to any wedding arrangements being made.
Parishioners Only: Contact Fr. Charles Smith to discuss the preparation process for a wedding to be held at another location.
Additional resources for marriage preparation from the USCCB
La preparación para Matrimonio incluye unas reuniones con un sacerdote y también participación en seis (6) charlas pre-matrimoniales.
Las charlas se ofrecen dos veces por año (normalmente en marzo y septiembre), son seis jueves consecutivos de 6:30 a 8:00 PM.
Contacte a la oficina (540-347-2922) para más información.
Photo courtesy of Craig Spiering Photography.