Document TitleNo Communion During Wedding Ceremony

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Question from on 04-17-2007:
I apologize if this sounds like a ignorant question (I'm new to this). If a couple is being married in a Catholic Church and does not take communion during the ceremony, does this make the marriage invalid (constituting a lack of form)?
Answer by Rev. Mark J. Gantley, JCL on 04-17-2007:
No, there is no requirement that a person even celebrate marriage within Mass. A couple that are both Catholic may choose not to have a Mass because most of those attending the wedding are not Catholic, in order to be sensitive to the fact that the majority of the guests would not be able to receive Holy Communion.
And mixed marriages (marriages between a Catholic and a baptized non-Cahtolic) are ordinarily not celebrated within Mass, and disparity of cult marriages (marriages between a Catholic and a non-baptized person) are never celebrated within Mass.
The requirement of canonical form merely requires that a priest or deacon (with proper authority) to receive consent and two additional witnesses be present at the marriage ceremony. This requirement binds all Catholics, even when marrying a non-Catholic. "

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