Saturday Night Weddings to be Permitted in the Diocese of Baton Rouge

Weddings will now be allowed to be celebrated on Saturday evenings in the Diocese of Baton Rouge, effective upon the decree’s publication in The Catholic Commentator. 

Bishop Michael G. Duca issued the decree Feb. 23, stating “pastors are now given the discretion in the Diocese of Baton Rouge to schedule weddings and convalidations on Saturday evenings, Sundays, or even on holy days of obligation, if necessary. Proper liturgical laws should be observed for any of these ritual celebrations.”

Bishop Duca noted in the decree that “previous legislation” in the diocese prohibited weddings and convalidations on certain days and times. He abrogated the diocesan law as found in the Pagella and Polices of the diocese that stated “weddings and convalidations are not permitted on Sundays or holy days of obligation…”

The diocese also issued a Liturgical guide for pastors regarding the new policy.  While this change gives the pastor the option to schedule wedding on Saturday evenings, the present scheduling of parish events/mass may still make this difficult in some parishes.  

Darryl Ducote, director of the Office of Marriage and Family Life for the diocese, said he was “very pleased” with the decree. He noted how he has frequently received calls from upset couples who wanted confirmation that the diocese would not allow Saturday evening or Sunday weddings.

He said the biggest complaint seemed to revolve around the fact that many couples hoped for an evening wedding and having Friday evening as the only option often created a hardship for guests coming from out of town.

He noted that as a result many couples chose to move their wedding celebrations in the Archdiocese of New Orleans, which does allow for Saturday evening celebrations.

“However, this decision had its own set of pitfalls since it removed the ceremony from the couple’s local parish and meant that the priests of the local parish, who had prepared the couple for marriage, would also have to travel to New Orleans if they wanted to officiate at the wedding of their own parishioners,” Ducote said. “At the same time, some priests are understandably reluctant to embrace this new policy since it interrupts the focus on the celebrations of the liturgical year and adds to the overall demands on the priest for the weekend. To respect these concerns, the bishop has wisely allowed pastors the discretion to decide if this policy is appropriate for their individual parish.”

“Pastorally speaking, these objections may be offset by the fact that these accommodations for expanded times for weddings could also have a positive effect on the life of the church in our diocese,” he added. “Giving couples more options for marriage in church provides parishes with more opportunities to renew or deepen the faith of these young parishioners.”

Ducote said that recent studies indicate that Catholic weddings have decreased by 60% since 1972. A poll conducted by CARA (Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate) found that less than 20% of adult Catholics attend Mass once a week.

The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, in their 2012 survey, found that the fastest growing denomination in the U.S. is made up of the “nones” that is, those who responded to the question about which religious denomination they belonged to answered, “none.”

“Some may argue that many young couples seek to be married in church simply because the church building provides a beautiful backdrop for their wedding ceremony,” Ducote said. “In other words, they are coming for the setting rather than because of their strong conviction of faith. At the same time, we have to acknowledge that the Holy Spirit has played a role in bringing them to us.”

Therefore, he said, the church has an opportunity to take advantage of the presence of these young couples to instill or deepen their faith. It is also an opportunity to not only prepare them for married life, but to prepare them for discipleship.

Ducote is optimistic that expanding the opportunities for weddings in a Catholic church could lead to expanded opportunities for evangelization.  Father Jamin David, Episcopal Vicar for Strategic Planning, also noted that the Bishop’s decision fits nicely into the overall plan to renew and revitalize dimensions of ecclesial life. He pointed out that the new legislation should not be considered cumbersome for clergy, but that priests and deacons approached by the faithful should use prudential judgement to determine their own personal availability for a wedding date or location based upon the reality and limitations of their own ministry.  “This decision will create much dialogue between the Church and young Catholics about more ways that we can exhibit flexibility and prove our desire to be a welcoming Church simply by making the sacraments more readily available” said Father David. 


Bishop's Decree Regarding Weddings

Liturgical Considerations for Weddings