More choice for Church weddings

The Church of England Marriage Measure comes in to force today, allowing much more choice over which church a couple can marry in.  Before 1st October 2008, couples could only marry in a church that they attended regularly or if they lived within the parish, now however, if they can show that one or both has a “qualifying connection” to a certain church then they will be able to marry there.  The Church of England website lists the “qualifying connections” as follows.

A person has a Qualifying Connection with a parish if:

that person:

• was baptised in the parish. (This does not apply where the baptism formed part of a combined service of baptism or confirmation); or
• had his or her confirmation entered in a church register book of a church or chapel in the parish; or
• has at any time had his or her usual place of residence in the parish for at least 6 months; or
• has at any time habitually attended public worship in the parish for at least 6 months;

or a Parent of that person has at any time during that person’s lifetime:

• had his or her usual place of residence in the parish for at least 6 months; or
• habitually attended public worship in the parish for at least 6 months;

or a Parent or Grandparent of that person was married in the parish.

Source :http://www.cofe.anglican.org/info/socialpublic/marriagefamily/marriageanddivorce/marriagemeasure/

There have been arguments for and against this measure, the main reason against it being that it could cause ‘wedding tourism’ where couples are looking merely for a wedding venue and want to find the prettiest church to marry such as St Mary’s, Orchardleigh in Somerset which is pictured above.  But a special connection still needs to be shown, and those looking simply for a pretty or stunning venue for aesthetic reasons will find plenty of country houses for that purpose.  For those people who have moved away from their childhood home and want a church wedding because they want Gods blessing, then returning to marry in the parish where their parents live and worship can only be seen as a positive thing to do, to nurture the community spirit which has been declining steadily over many years.