Marriage at Christ Church:
All you need to know
During Fr Neil’s sabbatical, enquiries should be directed to Fr Charlie.
What is marriage?
Marriage is the solemnization (official recognition) of a loving relationship, and a sign that this relationship is blessed by God.What happens at a wedding?
The details of any service will differ from church to church — and even between services in the same church — but the couple will always declare that they are eligible to marry each other, and will promise to love and stay faithful to each other for the rest of their lives. They are blessed by the priest and the marriage is formally completed with the words “Those whom God has joined together let no one put asunder”.Practical details of arranging the service are noted below.
Why bother with marriage?
The Church teaches that marriage is the right environment for a loving relationship, and the upbringing of children. It allows the couple to make a public statement of their commitment to each other, and is a potent symbol of their bodily union.Whom do we contact to arrange the wedding?
The Curate, Father Charlie Goring, is in charge of organising the service. You can contact him on 01323 749653, or by email. If he is unavailable, please leave your name and number on the answerphone so he can call you back.Who can be married at Christ Church?
Church law states that at least one of the couple has to be living within the Parish of Christ Church or the Parish of S Philip’s, or be on the electoral roll of either of those parishes. If you are not sure whether you live within the parishes Fr Charlie can advise you on this matter, or you can use the Church of England’s Parish Finder to find out. If you find you don’t live within the parishes, there are still ways to get married at Christ Church and Fr Charlie will be happy to help you find the right one for you. There are also rules about people who are related to one another: please ask for advice.What next?
You will have an initial meeting with Fr Charlie to discuss the date and time of the marriage, and a further meeting will be arranged to talk about marriage and all that it entails, again with Fr Charlie. You'll need to fill in an Application for Banns, and a PDF is available for you to print off and fill in.The service itself:
You will need to choose at least one reading. It is best if you nominate a relative or friend to read this. If you are not sure of a reading Fr Charlie will be happy to help you choose one.You will normally need to choose three hymns and/or songs, and the organist will be happy to help you in your choice. The organist’s advice can also be sought about any bridal marches at the beginning and the end of the service. Instead of the organ, or in addition to it, Christ Church can also offer a live music group for more modern music and a recorder consort for smaller services. The choir is normally available for Saturday services, and many members may be available if your wedding is to be on another day, but weekday availability may be limited.
The service will normally last between 25 and 35 minutes. It is politely asked that the bride be no more than 5 minutes late to the church.
Photography and video recordings are allowed on the understanding that during the marriage service it is to be unobtrusive — stepladders and floodlights are unlikely to be allowed in the church. The photographer and the person taking the video will need to speak to Fr Charlie before the service begins to discuss what is possible. Although the fee includes a licence for video recording in church, this may affect copyright and in this case you may be asked to pay additional copyright royalties on your chosen reading(s), hymns/songs and other music and words.
We have some examples of Orders of Service available in PDF format.
Simpler leaflets are available at lower cost. Stock graphics are generally used, although we may be able to match single-colour images of your choice.
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We can provide personalised, professionally-designed Orders of Service for you, and can usually match other stationery if you can give us a sample. Prices are negotiable provided we can cover our costs. If you take advantage of this, we will take care of copyright permissions — we are able to reproduce many items without additional fees. Some items are subject to a fee, which we would negotiate on your behalf. If you choose to provide your own Orders of Service, you must discuss it with the Vicar to ensure they are right. You would also be responsible for all copyright permissions and fees (including for video), although we would be happy to advise you on this so you can stay within the law.
After the service:
The church will be open after the service if you would like to take any photographs in the church itself. Your guests should not use confetti inside the church grounds unless it is biodegradable. You may wish to consider the use of blown bubbles instead of confetti.What about the rehearsal?
This should be arranged with Fr Charlie, and will normally be on the Wednesday or Thursday before the marriage. Please bring your best man and other principal guests, so you can all familiarise yourselves with the service.What if a partner has been married before?
As Church of England law stands at the moment, we are unable to carry out a full marriage service for those who have been married before and whose spouse is still alive. However Fr Charlie can conduct a blessing after a civil marriage has taken place.How much does it cost?
The service at Christ Church is provided for an all-in fee (apart from any costs which are specific to your wedding, like service booklets and copyright fees, or flowers we provide for you). For £542.50 you get:- the service itself*
- the marriage certificate
- the publication of Banns beforehand
- choir
- organist
- bells
- a churchwarden or senior sidesman to assist any stewards you want to provide
- permission to record or video the service
* If a blessing is required after a civil marriage the fee is reduced to £403, still including choir, organist, bells, our senior steward and recording permission. The marriage certificate and the equivalent of Banns are provided by the Register Office in their own fees.
If we find that we cannot provide a part of the package (for example if the bells are undergoing maintenance and cannot be rung) then we will refund part of the all-in fee. You may choose not to take advantage of the complete package, but the fee will remain the same.
The above costs are valid at the time this page was produced (July 2007), but statutory fees change during the year. Please enquire about the exact level of current fees. Revised fees will apply for weddings due to take place in 2008 and beyond, although the amount may not be known until the January or April before the ceremony.
What do we do if we have to cancel the wedding?
We recognise that sometimes unfortunate things happen. Please inform Fr Charlie as soon as possible. We can’t accept notification from anyone but one of the partners and it must be in writing, and regrettably you will forfeit your deposit. If you have to cancel within a fortnight of the date of the service we expect fees to be paid to those who have arranged their diary to be there for you — our senior sidesman, bell-ringers, choir and organist. These fees amount to an additional £200. If we’ve provided service sheets or flowers or other services like copyright permissions we would also need to cover any costs we have incurred. You may be able to make a claim for all these costs on your wedding insurance.Other points of information
James Thomas, Organist & Choir Director: 01435 865753 music@xpeastbourne.orgMrs Meg Munson, for flowers in the church: 01323 487229
Mrs Marion Hollands, Sussex County Association of Change Ringers, for arranging the ringing of bells: 01323 764868 bells@xpeastbourne.org
The main Church of England website has more information.
The Application for Banns is available from the Diocese of Chichester.
If you have any query that is not covered here, or you would like clarification of anything, then please contact Fr Charlie.
