As soon as you are ready to begin preparing for the sacrament of marriage, and before setting a date, call the parish office 619-233-3838 to schedule a meeting with your Marriage Formation Coordinator.

Note: The wedding date is not confirmed until the deposit and documents are received. Fee and deposit information is found below. Please DO NOT make any arrangements until the deposit is paid and the wedding date is confirmed.

Your Marriage Formation Coordinator will assign a priest for your wedding. Please schedule an appointment with him for an interview. Your priest will receive your documents. Document requirements are found below.

FOCCUS (Facilitate Open Caring Communication Understanding & Study) is meant to develop communication and conflict resolution skills before marriage. A REFOCCUS inventory is available to couples who have been civilly married for at least a few years. Your Marriage Formation Coordinator will provide directions for completing the questionnaire.

Witness to Love is the recommended diocesan process for guiding the couple-to-couple encounter.   The program is unique in that couples  choose a mentor couple who can support, encourage and pray for them throughout—and beyond— the marriage preparation process. 

This is a couple they both admire and see as a source of faith formation. The mentor couple will give them a concrete connection and integration into the parish. Through the sharing of the mentor couples’ own journey of love, the engaged couple inherits a lifeline of support in their commitment to Jesus and his church.

Celebrating Your Love (CYL) Diocesan Day

A one-day retreat held on Saturdays at locations throughout the Diocese. Explores Catholic teaching on marriage and provides an overview of practical and valuable skills for marriage. Click here for dates and registration. (COVID Update: CYL workshop through the rest of 2021 will take place online.)

Engaged Encounter Weekend

This inspirational weekend retreat provides engaged couples valuable space and time to explore in-depth the meaning  of marriage. Married teams, partnered with a priest, guide couples on a journey of preparation for their upcoming sacrament. Through personal sharing and Catholic theology, the weekend challenges couples. They explore essential topics such as: communication, understanding “love” as a decision, true intimacy, forgiveness, and living as a sacrament in order to build a strong marriage foundation. 

Recent civilly married couples (married less than 2-3 years) are encouraged to attend.  It will help you  explore the sacrament you  will become though a Catholic marriage. Click here for dates and registration. (COVID Update: Engaged Encounter is currently taking place virtually over Zoom.)

For Spanish, visit enoviossandiego.com

(COVID Update: Now that they are available online, the Celebrating Your Love Day and Engaged Encounter should be the first options for any couple preparing for marriage in San Diego.)

Each Catholic party needs a certificate of Baptism, issued within a six-month period prior to the wedding date. Call or write to the church of your Baptism, give them your name, the (approximate) date of your Baptism, the names of your father and the maiden name of your mother. If you are not Catholic please speak to the priest about this requirement.

Original or true copies are acceptable. If you don’t have the documents, follow the same process for the baptismal certificate.

The Bride and Groom will be interviewed separately by the priest regarding the freedom to marry and consulted about the understanding of the nature of marriage.

Each party must present to the priest two witnesses who can testify to each party’s freedom to marry. Parents or relatives are preferable, but close friends who have known the bride and/or groom for several years are also acceptable.

Couples are required to attend a Marriage Preparation course sponsored by the Diocese of San Diego. You may find information on Celebrating Your Love (CYL) Diocesan Day here or Engaged Encounter Weekend here.

In mixed-religion marriages, each party should strive to understand and respect the religion and obligations of the other. The Catholic must  promise to fulfill the responsibility to raise children Catholic to the best of  one's ability.

You can apply for a marriage license online and in-person at a Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk branch office. More information can be obtained here. You can secure a license online here. Please bring the Marriage License to the priest/deacon at least one week before the ceremony.

The church offering for registered parishioners is $750, with an initial deposit of $100 to reserve the date and time in our calendar.   The fee for non-parishioners is $875 with a deposit of $100. The donation to the priest/deacon is not included.  

You are considered a registered parishioner if you have been in our records for at least six months prior to your initial interview.  During that time, you should have been making donations regularly (e.g. weekly, monthly) or have been actively involved with at least one of our ministries.

The wedding date will not be confirmed until the deposit is received. The deposit is non-refundable. All fees should be paid at least one month before the wedding. Payment should be made to the receptionist in the parish office.

Weddings are scheduled on Saturdays at 12:00, 1:30 and 3:30. 75 minutes are allowed for the ceremony including time for photography.

Please be prompt. Delays may result in fewer pictures taken as we cannot inconvenience the service that follows.

Requests for weekdays are considered on a case-by-case basis. It will incur a $100 fee. No weddings are scheduled on Sundays or during Lent.

You may invite a priest or deacon to perform your marriage. Please get the permission of our pastor. Priests or deacons from outside the Diocese of San Diego should have a letter from their Bishop stating they are in good standing with their diocese.

The rehearsal is scheduled the Thursday or Friday before the Saturday scheduled wedding. Please make an appointment with our wedding coordinator. Our receptionist will give you the contact information.

The rehearsal lasts about an hour. Please be on time as there may be a rehearsal after yours.

All arrangements must be made directly with the musician. Please speak with the receptionist for contact information.

The bridal party needs to make its own arrangements with a florist. Be mindful that there can be three weddings in one day. Please remove your flowers and containers immediately after your service. Flowers may be left for the church if you wish. You may also make your own arrangements with the other wedding parties on your day to share the floral expenses. Scotch tape, tacks or staples can never to be used on the pews. Use rubber bands, ribbons or plastic clips supplied by your florist to attach the decorations. Flower petals are not to be strewn in the aisle.

The photographer must meet with the priest/deacon before the ceremony. Please tell your families and friends that they should not be involved with photography during the wedding as they are part of the religious celebration. Photos may not be taken from the sanctuary area. Professional photographs may be taken during the ceremony from the body of the church as long as this is not disruptive (for example, the photographers should not be crossing from one side of the church to the other). After the ceremony, please prioritize posed photographs inside the church, as we cannot delay the following wedding or service.

No rice, no birdseed, no confetti, no flower petals! The bridal party is responsible for ensuring that nothing is thrown which can be hazardous to those coming into or walking out of the Church. No candles are to be lit during the ceremony except the altar candles and, if applicable, the Unity Candle.