St. Mary Parish has two churches: 1. St. Mary Church (5 Hillhouse Avenue) 2. St. Joseph Church (129 Edwards Street) Many couples reach out to us over a year or more in advance. Either can be booked for a wedding. Generally, Saturday weddings at St. Mary’s start either at 2 pm or 4:30 pm, while at St. Joseph’s can start anytime between 1:30 - 3 pm. More and more couples are inquiring about weekday weddings; we are happy to accommodate these if they fit within the regular parish schedule. Sunday weddings are not generally permitted in the Archdiocese of Hartford.

Congratulations on your engagement! PARISHIONERS OF ST. MARY PARISH If you are a regular and active parishioner of St. Mary Parish, contact the Parish Secretary at admin@stmarysnewhaven.org. 1. A deposit of $250 to hold your date. This deposit counts towards the total fee of $600. 2. A completely refundable deposit of $500 for punctuality. If you are on time for the rehearsal and the wedding, we will shred the check or return it to you without cashing it. GUESTS OF ST. MARY PARISH If you are not already a regular and active parishioner of St. Mary Parish, please include the following when looking to reserve a date and time. 1. A brief letter or email from your local priest confirming that he is going to prepare you for marriage and will come to New Haven to celebrate your Nuptial Mass. (Please note that due to the incredible interest in our churches as destination wedding locations, the priests of St. Mary's Parish are not able to perform the weddings of couples who are not already regular and active parishioners here or do their marriage preparation.) 2. A copy of the PMI (Pre-Matrimonial Investigation) that the priest will conduct with you during your first wedding preparation meeting. The PMI determines that you are free and eligible to be married in the Catholic Church. 3. A deposit of $250 to hold your date. This deposit counts towards the total fee of $1200. 4. A completely refundable deposit of $500 for punctuality. If you are on time for the rehearsal and the wedding, we will shred the check or return it to you without cashing it. Once we have all four of these, we can lock in your date!

The Archdiocese of Hartford requires that marriage preparation begin at least six months prior to the celebration of the sacrament. If you have not already done so, the most important thing you can do is to begin praying and attending church together as a couple, asking God to bless and help you as you prepare for marriage. Your priest will guide you through the program of marriage preparation at your first meeting. If you are not a parishioner of St. Mary Parish, you need to obtain a letter of permission from your pastor to be married at St. Mary’s or St. Joseph's. Priests from outside the Archdiocese of Hartford must have a Letter of Suitability sent to the Parish Office at least two months before your wedding date.

All are welcome in the House of God. If it is a Nuptial Mass where Holy Communion is to be distributed, only Catholics in good standing and who are properly prepared are able to receive Communion.

Yes, the Rite of Marriage may be celebrated within a Liturgy of the Word. The Rite of Marriage provides for both a Nuptial Mass, as well as a wedding ceremony outside of Mass. Generally, a marriage between a Catholic person and a non-Catholic person should be celebrated outside of Mass. However, the Eucharist is the primary sacrament. All other sacraments, including Marriage, find their source and meaning in the Eucharist. In this primary sacrament, it is the total self-donation of Jesus that nourishes and gives life to the Church. By virtue of their Baptism, the couple already shares in Christ’s marriage covenant with the Church. It is fitting, therefore, that the marriage celebration of a Catholic man and a Catholic woman be performed within a Nuptial Mass.

Regarding music, our directors of music meet with our couples about two months before their wedding to go over all their song choices. The fee for music includes the organist and a cantor and is worked out separately with them. It is usually around $400.

Only sacred music is acceptable for Catholic weddings because the role of music in the liturgy is to support the prayer of the community by lifting our minds and hearts to God. Music of a secular nature and origin that is important to the couple should be played at the reception or some other such opportunity. The music directors you work with will assist you in choosing appropriate music for the wedding.

At St. Mary’s, metered parking is available along Hillhouse Avenue, Grove Street, Temple Street, and Trumbull Street (all free on Sundays). There is a limited number of unmetered parking spots directly in front of the Church. For off-street parking, Yale Lot OC at 425 Temple Street is open for parking after 5 pm on weekdays and all day on the weekend. St. Joseph’s has its own parking lot next to the church with ample room. Some parking is also available on the street.

For those who are regular and active parishioners, the wedding fee is $600. For those who are not already regular and active parishioners at St. Mary Parish, the fee is $1200. In both cases, the $250 deposit counts towards the total fee. The parish is happy to offer active-duty military personnel a discounted rate. Please contact the Parish Office.

The aisle at St. Mary's is 72 feet from the last pew to the first step of the altar. It is 94 feet from the Vestibule door to the first step of the altar. The aisle at St. Joseph's is 60 feet from the last pew to the first step of the altar.