Weddings at Church of the Advent

In the Episcopal Church, marriage is understood as a binding covenant between two people which arises from the larger sacramental life of the church. For this reason, we do not offer wedding services to the general public and we don’t rent our space to outside groups for weddings. As we understand it, marriage is always linked to the larger commitment of Christian discipleship lived out in community with others.

This means that Church of the Advent hosts weddings for:

·      Active members of our congregation

·      Children of active members who are active in another Episcopal congregation

·      Active members of another Episcopal congregation who are seeking a facility for a wedding officiated by their own priest.

Episcopal Church canons require that:

·      At least one of the parties being married must be a baptized Christian.

·      The couple must complete marriage counseling with an Episcopal priest (counseling at Advent usually consists of 3-5 sessions in which stories are shared, church teaching on marriage is presented, relational issues are explored, and the service itself is planned). If the wedding couple are active members of another Episcopal congregation, they may choose to do this pre-marriage counseling at their home congregation (which should then send Advent a letter to confirm its completion).

·      If either party is divorced, clear permission must be granted by the Bishop of Southern Ohio (this can require a few months to obtain), and the wedding itself may not be performed any sooner than 12 months following the divorce decree.

The State of Ohio requires that:

·      A marriage license must be obtained at the Probate Court of Hamilton County. There’s no waiting period and the license is valid for 60 days.

Our practice at Advent is:

·      In keeping with longstanding tradition, no weddings are performed during the season of Lent (from Ash Wednesday to Easter Sunday).

·      No wedding will be scheduled until the couple has met at least once with the priest.

·      No wedding will be scheduled any sooner than 3 months after this initial meeting.

·      Our Minister of Music will coordinate with all music planning.

·      The marriage license must be delivered to the Advent office at least one week before the wedding date.

·      In the case of an interfaith wedding, we are happy to coordinate and co-officiate with a clergyperson of the other tradition.

Fees:

NOTE: The following fees are requested of those who can afford them. If you’re a member of the Advent community and these fees are beyond your means, please reach out to Rev. Dan and we’ll reduce them. Financial cost should never be an obstacle to marriage in our community.

·      Building usage for wedding ceremony: $250

·      Clergy: It’s appropriate for the couple, if they have the desire and the means, to offer a gift of $400 to the priest to be used at the Priest’s discretion in the work of ministry.

·      Minister for Music services (planning, performing, etc): $250; Additional Advent musicians (organist, violinist, pianist, etc.): $150 per musician. Outside musicians obtained by the wedding couple are permitted with clergy authorization (fees negotiated between the couple and the musicians).

·      Additional fees required for setup/cleanup, reception hosting, etc. Fees may be lowered for those with limited funds. Additional gifts to support the work of Church of the Advent are always welcome.

We hope this clarifies how weddings function at Church of the Advent. If you have any further questions, please reach out!