Welcome, Engaged Couples!
To begin your preparations for a wedding at St. Joseph Parish, please call Toni at 631.669.0068, ext. 100: she will assign you to one of our Parish priests or deacons. The priest or deacon will call you to arrange a mutually-agreeable meeting time: he will interview you and update you about the documents you will be providing, as well as equip you with information about the schedules for Marriage Preparation seminars in which you will participate prior to your wedding celebration. For our greeting letter to you, please continue reading.

Dear Engaged Couples,
Congratulations on your engagement! The Parish of Saint Joseph rejoices with you in your decision to enter into married life. Your commitment to unite yourselves forever in love encourages us all, because Christian marriage is the constant context of Christian life for the majority of Catholic people. At its very foundation, the Church community is composed of faithful couples actively raising their children and supporting their Christian growth. And for those Catholics who marry persons raised in other religious traditions, it is the One True God who blesses all true love.

For Catholics, marriage is a sacred covenant blessed by God and designed to be a primary place where God’s love is seen and known, since your love is meant to be as self-giving as the love that Christ Jesus has for His People, the Church. And when two baptized persons say "I do" to each other, they are conferring the Sacrament of Matrimony on each other. That’s right: YOU are the ministers of your sacrament, as you make three solemn vows to each other in the presence of God, the faith community, and family and friends:
to take this step into marriage freely and with due reflection;
to live faithfully as husband and wife as long as you both shall live;
to be prepared to raise and educate your children as Catholic Christians.

We look forward to witnessing your exchange of vows and celebrating part of your wedding day with you. We also hope to help you make this special wedding liturgy, be it a Wedding Mass or a Wedding Ceremony, both memorable and prayerful. And beyond your wedding day, we hope to help you plan for your entire life together as husband and wife. Be assured that the entire Catholic community will be rejoicing with you, your families, and your friends.

Congratulations on your pending commitment to one another: we promise you our prayers for you and for God’s blessings in your marriage.

Father Charles Mangano