Christ Church High Harrogate

Celebration of the sacrament of Marriage

Introdution : Banns & Licence : Services : Music : Service booklet : Rehearsal : Photography : Fees : Flowers

There are many reasons for choosing to marry in church.   It is often the bride and groom's opportunity to express their love for each other whilst asking for God's help at the same time, marrying in a public place with the support and witness of those who know and love them.
Church weddings are a 'one-stop event', fulfilling all the legal criteria whilst providing an uplifting ceremony to join hands , exchange rings and unite two lives.
By marrying in church, the couple are ensuring that the wedding day and marriage are blessed with everything good within a Christian understanding of marriage, asking for - and receiving - God's blessings - far more than just a wish of 'good luck'.  Here are a few pointers to help those considering the joy of marriage at Christ Church.
As a starter, here are two extracts from the marriage service:
The Scriptures teach us that marriage is a gift of God in creation and a means of his grace, a holy mystery in which man and woman become one flesh, and
It is God's purpose that as husband and wife give themselves to each other in love throughout their lives, they shall be united in that love as Christ is united in his Church.

Wedding Planning As with much of married life, a little planning often pays off!  Some churches may have several wedding services on your chosen day, so please get in contact with us as part of your first 'things to do'. The staff at Christ Church are delighted to help your in your Marriage preparation. Couples preparing for marriage are invited to attend one of the four Preparation Meetings held during the year on a Saturday mornings from 10 to 12noon. It's your opportunity to look more deeply at the meaning of Christian marriage and the format of the service.

Qualification for Marriage at Christ Church Check your links with this parish; you may wish to check the church is your nearest parish church - the parish boundaries are listed by post code within the Anglican Diocesan website.
The civil law requires that a church wedding shall take place in the parish church of the parish in which either one of the couple resides at the time of the marriage. If you establish a residential qualification and then change your address you must notify us immediately as it may affect your qualification for marriage at Christ Church .
Alternatively, a couple may be married at the parish church where one or both of them is a regular worshipper and on the Electoral Roll (membership roll) of that parish.

Marriage by Banns When you have established your qualification and booked the date of your wedding, which should be done well in advance of the date that you desire, you will need to ensure that the legal preliminaries are fulfilled. This normally includes the reading of BANNS in the parish where each of you lives. We will arrange with you to read the banns at Christ Church for the one who lives in our parish, but if one of you lives in another parish, 'away' Banns will need to be read in the parish where the other one lives. If you both live in Christ Church parish then only one set of Banns will need to be read.
Banns are read on three consecutive Sundays within three months of the marriage, and are valid only for three calendar months. At Christ Church we normally read the Banns at the beginning of the 10am Parish Eucharist - the dates will be arranged with you and written on the application form.
It is most important that if 'away' banns are to be read you must contact the parish concerned and arrange for them to be read during the three months before the wedding (we can supply contact details for this if necessary): after the third reading you must collect from that parish the banns certificate (and pay the appropriate fee) and deliver that certificate to the Parish Clerk at the Parish Centre as soon as possible (and certainly no later than two weeks before the wedding). Civil Law forbids the priest from conducting the wedding if the certificate for away banns has not been received - so failure to get the away banns read and certified will mean that the wedding cannot take place. Please help us to help you!

Marriage by licence An alternative, but somewhat more expensive, form of legal preliminary is marriage by Bishop's Licence. This may be necessary in certain more complicated circumstances and the clergy will be able to advise you about this and assist you in obtaining one. As with Banns this Licence is valid for three calendar months

What if one or both of us has been divorced? The Vicar will need to discuss the situation with you and decide on the appropriate way forward in each case.

One of the decisions you will need to take is whether to use the traditional Book of Common Prayer service or the more modern Alternative Service Book service. The main difference is in the style of the language and the order in which things happen - but both services are very beautiful. The clergy are happy to give advice about this.
Many prefer the traditional words, vows and style of the 1662 or 1928 Church of England services. Other modern and contemporary services provide the opportunity to ground all the essential ingredients of the ceremony - and much more - in the language of today.  The Church of England website has downloadable order of service files.  Take time to discuss the options with our parish clerk.

Music The majority of couples request music for their wedding; arrange with us to book the Organist - and the Choir if required - as soon as possible and to arrange the details of the music required. This should be done with the help of the clergy on any Tuesday evening. Normally the organist will have all the necessary music required, but if this is not the case we would request that a copy of the music be provided for his/her use. We can also put you in touch with the Organist if you wish to discuss your requirements with him personally.

Our choir are usually available to help lead the music at your wedding with both hymns and anthems. Our parish clerk and music director can advise on suitable music for a church service.  Allow time for rehearsals, obtaining any special music and copyright. Some music may be unsuitable for church - be ready to ask for alternatives. Christ Church sound system allows for the playback of some music on tape or CD.

A service sheet with your names serves as more than just helping your guests and supporters to find their way through the ceremony; the booklets or sheets provide a reminder on a shelf to uphold the married couple in all ways as they start out on married life together.  Consider what your guests will need - some may know 'The Lord's Prayer' and 'The Grace' - but you may wish to include the words for those who rarely visit a church or struggle with poor memory. ( Lord's prayer words available on the prayer section of this website)
Copyright also impacts on the printing of words of songs and so on; ask our parish clerk for more info about our registration with CCLi.
Personalised service sheets are, of course, optional and a matter of personal choice as the church hymn book and service sheet are available for use. If personalised service sheets are to be printed you should organise this directly with the printer, or we can print them at Christ Church for you at a reasonable charge. The content of these service sheets should be checked with the priest taking the service before they go to print.
It would assist greatly with the smooth running of the service if these service sheets could be delivered to Christ Church Parish Office at least two days prior to the wedding.

Rehearsal A day or two before the wedding you will meet in the church with the Priest who is conducting your wedding, together with those of your relations and friends who will be involved in the ceremony. During this meeting (lasting about an hour) you will be taken through the service so that you will feel confident on the wedding day that all will go well. Arrange this rehearsal date when you book your wedding date with us.

Photography and video Whilst no additional charge is made for permission for an official photographer to take photographs in church during the service, should you arrange for a video to be made of the service then an additional fee is charged. No random photography or video recording is allowed during the service by anyone other than the designated official photographer and video operator, who should make themselves familiar with the church beforehand (preferably at the rehearsal), and who will be under the supervision of the Verger

We have an Induction loop on the ground floor of the church and also in the Parish Centre next door to help the hard of hearing to join in with the ceremony.  You may have to organise your own BSL or Makaton signer, although Harrogate Deaf Church may be a point of contact. The church and Parish Centre are accessible by wheeled transport; push chairs and wheelchairs are welcome (the access ramp to the church is through our parish centre main hall). The parish centre has disabled toilet facilities. Please let our verger know of any special requirements.

You may need to consider the implications of copyright law on the recording of the service - as well as the wise placing of camera operators.  It would be wise to ask early in your planning.  We may be able to help with an audio tape of the ceremony.  Again, copyright laws contain certain restrictions.

Fees The balance of fees must be paid in total at least two weeks before the wedding , otherwise it will not be possible for the wedding to take place. We accept cash or cheques made payable to 'Christ Church High Harrogate PCC' . The standard Church of England fees for services are available on the national website: www.cofe.anglican.org/lifeevents/fees/

Flowers in the church: Christ Church offers scope for innumerable flower arrangements. Except in the seasons of Lent and Advent flowers in the Sanctuary are usually arranged weekly by those on the Christ Church Flower Rota.
There is always a large vase of flowers beside the altar, which the church arrangers are happy to co-ordinate with your colours (if you let us know in good time) but if you wish to put extra floral decorations in the church for your wedding please note the following arrangements:-
We prefer a maximum of a pedestal at the front (there is only room for one); small decorations hooked onto the pew ends; a pedestal at the back of the church if you wish (near the entrance).
Please make sure that flowers are brought already arranged and ready for positioning, normally on the day before the wedding. It's worth noting that the church can be very busy so it is not possible to have extended access to it for the preparation of flowers. Please telephone the Parish Office, 530750 Monday – Friday, between 9am and 3pm five days before the wedding to arrange access and to check if an unexpected use of the church has occurred, e.g. funeral, which will cause any arrangements to altar.
If there is more than one wedding on the same day wanting flowers there are several options:-
a) Each wedding party arranges to bring their flowers in immediately before their service and remove them immediately afterwards.
b) Request details of the other wedding(s) from the Parish Clerk (see below) in order to get in touch to see if any joint arrangements can be made.
The church is always specially decorated for the festivals – Christmas, Easter and Harvest. If your wedding is booked near this your floral plans may be limited – you will be advised of this when booking.
IMPORTANT - It is your responsibility to arrange for the removal of all your decorations either immediately after the wedding, or at a later time by arrangement. Please ensure your florist is aware of all this information.

Lost property Do let our verger know the venue for your reception - it makes it easier to contact you to let you know lost items are safe in the church!

For more information, bookings and any queries, please contact the Parish Clerk at the Parish Office on Tuesdays between 7 and 8 pm, email: pc.christchurch @ btinternet . com (please exclude the spaces)

Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. (1 Corinthians 13, verses 4-7 - from 'Bible Gateway'; Bible translations old and new available on their website)