In the last few weeks, we talk about symbolic ceremonies( What is a symbolic ceremony), and civil ceremonies (Civil Ceremony in Italy).
This week we are going to talk about religious ceremonies so you will have a complete idea of how an Italian wedding planner can assist you during the entire process that sometimes includes a long bureaucracy. Religious weddings are the most traditional way to get married and in Italy, you can celebrate the rite according to your traditions and religion.
Let’s see the most popular religious ceremonies.
In Italy, you can celebrate the catholic wedding in some of the most ancients and beautiful churches in the world. The wedding will be celebrated during a mass, usually, the ceremony last about 45 minutes to 1 hour and the celebrant must be a priest, there is a scheduled to respect, Introductory rites are followed by the Liturgy of the Word, in which the couple’s selection is read, blessing and exchange of rings. There is also the possibility to celebrate the Rite of Marriage without the mass, this can be the perfect option if one of the spouses is Protestant.
A wedding planner in Italy will surely help you with the religious paperwork, checking that the documentation produced is correct before your arrival in Italy. Also, the most important help is communication with the priest: the Catholic Church is still very conservative so it is always better to have a person knowing the priest and who can meet him. They usually give priorities for the couple that are part of the parish and, since they are not accustomed to the communication via email, Skype, etc, they are always very happy to meet the couples in person or a person in reference for them.
Unfortunately if one of the spouses got a divorce they can not get married with a religious ceremony at the church, the only exception is if they had an annulment recognized by the Church.
The couple can decide to get married with a civil ceremony prior the Catholic rite or they can decide to follow a bureaucracy process to get their Catholic wedding legally recognized, as professionals Italian wedding planners we can assist you if you decide to get a civil ceremony first and as well as if you will decide to legalize the religious marriage after the actual rite. Documentation necessary for Catholic weddings:
– Pre-marriage preparation certificate of attendance
– Confirmation certificates Baptism certificates
– Mixed marriage application (in case one spouse is not Catholic)
– Certificate of legal marriage (if the couple had a civil ceremony prior to their religious one)
– Pre-nuptial investigation with a Nulla Osta given by their Bishop and the permission to get married outside given by their parish.
The religious documents are valid for 6 months from the moment they are issued by the country of origin of the couple.
A Protestant wedding will be performed by a Minister or Pastors and guests are usually active part of the ceremony with readings, hymns and they will respond to the wedding vows exchanged by the bride and groom. The religious blessing can take place in a protestant church, in a chapel, and, sometimes, also in some gardens, villas, and another kind of private venues that we can easily find in some cities of Italy such as Venice, Florence, Rome, or areas such as Tuscany, Lakes, Apulia and so much more. The couple can decide to personalize their ceremony and to introduce some special rituals. If the couple has been married with a legally binding ceremony before their Protestant wedding in Italy, they must produce their civil certificate given in their country of origin.
The Jewish ceremony in Italy will be celebrated by a Rabbi and it is possible in some historical and wonderful Orthodox synagogues, please consider that all synagogues in our beautiful country are Orthodox. In Italy, the most important synagogues are located in the heritage cities such as Venice, Rome, and Florence but sometimes is possible to celebrate a reform Jewish wedding in some private venues such as castles, villas and so much more but you need to be accompanied by your Rabbi that will also perform the wedding rite. In order to get married in Italy with the orthodox official ceremony, the couple needs the approval of a Rabbi that sometimes can ask to talk directly with the spouses. Once the Rabbi allows the couple to celebrate the wedding in Italy, spouses have to produce the following document.
– a certificate given by an Orthodox Rabbi that declare that the spouses are Jewish and that they are free to marry;
– a certificate give by their Rabbi that must contain the Jewish name of Rabbi, Jewish name of the couple, Jewish name of both parents;
– birth certificate of the bride and groom;
– certificate of the civil wedding (in Florence the Rabbi can perform also the civil ceremony);
– legal and religious dissolution of a prior marriage (in case of one or both spouses are divorced).
Italy will be the perfect background for your wedding whatever your religion is. We are expert Italian wedding planners and for this reason, we will assist you with the documentation and the paperwork whatever your religion is and we will also be more than glad to assist you with every other service such as a wedding photographer, flowers, music, wedding reception and so much more. Our aim is to plan the wedding of your dreams but always respecting and keeping an eye on cultures and traditions.
Don’t hesitate to contact us to get more info about ceremonies in Italy and our wedding packages!
Photo credits: Selene Pozzer, Gianni di Natale, The knot
