Baptisms & Funerals
Please contact the Vicar to arrange.
Weddings
Congratulations on your engagement. This is a very exciting time in your lives and we at Saint Peter’s are pleased that you are considering a church wedding. Before deciding, you should know how the church views marriage and what the requirements are. The Vicar would always be glad to meet you and talk with you about marriage. Please read the following wedding policy carefully, and to continue the discussion about being married at Saint Peter’s, please email the Vicar to schedule an appointment with him.
In Holy Matrimony you are asking God’s blessing upon your marriage. By being married in the church, you are also choosing to be part of a community of faith that will support and nurture you in your married life. To that end, we ask that all couples wishing to be married at St. Peter’s will become active members of the church. (This normally means regular weekly attendance.)
Qualifications
The permission of the parish Vicar is required for every wedding at St. Peter’s.
Persons being married in St. Peter’s Church must meet the requirements of the Canons of the Episcopal Church and the Laws of the State of New York.
The wedding ceremony will follow the service in the Book of Common Prayer of the Episcopal Church (1979). No other forms of ceremony may be used.
Canon Law of the Episcopal Church requires the couple wishing to be married to enter into pre-marital counseling with the Vicar performing the ceremony. (Should the couple live out of town, appropriate arrangements should be made, for example, they may have another Episcopal priest do the pre-marital counseling and write a letter of recommendation to the Vicar performing the ceremony. Alternatively, the sessions could be arranged over the internet, using Zoom.)
In the event either party has been previously married, the permission of the Bishop of New York is required. In such cases, a meeting with the Vicar and the bishop’s written permission are required before any wedding arrangements are made.
There are certain seasons of the church year that are inappropriate for a wedding. Lent (the period before Easter) and Advent (the time before Christmas) are periods of preparation and penance in the life of the Church, during which weddings are not normally performed.
Marriage License
It is the responsibility of the couple marrying to obtain a valid New York State Marriage License. Please read New York State Publication 4210 available online here and for download here. To obtain a license, please call the Town Clerk for the Town of Washington at (845) 677-3419 ext. 100. (For more information visit the Town of Washington’s website here.) The license may not be used until 24 hours after it has been obtained and is valid for 60 days from the date of filing. Please note: If the license has not been given to the Vicar, there can be no wedding. You should bring the license to the wedding rehearsal.
Music
Wedding music at St. Peter’s should be sacred in nature, meaning your selections should come from the vast collection of classical music which was written specifically for use in the church. Vocal music should draw its text from either the Bible or the Hymnal 1982.
You should contact our Minister of Music (Nancy Vanderlee) at least two months before your wedding date and arrange a meeting to discuss the music for your wedding. The Minister of Music and the Vicar will need to approve all music.
Flowers and Decorations
You are welcome to purchase your own floral arrangements from the florist of your choice. St. Peter’s Flower Guild can also arrange for flowers, for a fee.
Bulletins and Fees
The Vicar or Parish Administrator will show you the wedding bulletin template. The church will prepare copies of the bulletin for the congregation to follow the service.
The fees associated with the wedding will be handled through the Parish Administrator and not the Vicar. Please email the Parish Administrator to discuss this. The Parish Administrator will provide you with a list of our current fees.
We hope you will consider St. Peter’s as a suitable venue for your wedding. Please be in touch for a discussion about this. It is best to do so as far in advance as possible. This is not only to avoid disappointment if your date is not available, but also allows time for appropriate marriage preparation, and for the Vicar to get to know you.
Last updated: July 16, 2021.