Church wedding in the US -- the Fastest way

[Kikay K 1]

Hi! My K1 visa has recently been approved, and I'm arriving in Chicago on Nov. 24. We'd like to get married asap (within 1-2 weeks) so we originally planned on getting a civil ceremony without guests, and just have a bigger celebration on our second wedding, which would be in the (Catholic) church. I have read on VJ and personally heard from some people that church weddings take a lot of time, especially that churches need to be booked at least 6 months before the wedding. Obviously, we do not have that option under the K1 visa.

BUT today, a fellow K1 holder emailed me that they got married in a military base chapel in Seattle on 10-10-10, and it only took them 2 weeks to prepare for everything! No guests, as well, but at least they were married by a priest. I'm kind of a religious nut and would also want to be married in a church rather than in a civil court, IF it's possible anyway. My friend and her husband aren't in the military. I asked her if we could do the same in Indiana or Illinois, but she said that she doesn't know, because they were given less restrictions and had a stress-free wedding preparation because they were married on 10-10-10, and the chapel had some sort of "promo offer" and they were open for 2 weeks near that date. They're so lucky! Plus, she said the requirements might really depend on the state AND the chapel/chaplain.

Does anyone have ideas on this military church wedding? Or does anyone have ideas on the possibility of having a QUICK catholic wedding other than in the military base chapel? No guests, no flashy clothes and music and decors... just us being wed by a priest. Please share.

Thanks in advance! VJ has always been my favorite site ever since I've become a member :-)

[thelastpetitioner 218]

you should google to see IF there are military bases and camps near your preferred area,get their number and contact them.i can tell you they dont do that in japan,its not easy to do for civils there.thats as big of a help i can be,sorry

PS: as far as i know,there are chapels all over the country for shotgun weddings ( also more religious versions of vegas like chapels ) you should look into them as well

Edited October 20, 2010 by ygr

[solteq 2]

I think you can do it fairly quickly with the church. You would have to talk to your parish priest to double check, but you can have the ceremony with no mass. I think though, that you and your betrothed would have to do the whole "Preparing for Canaan" pre-matrimony courses/seminars through the church. Since you're not in Chicago, I'd call the parish you're thinking of using and tell them your situation. Let us know what you find out!

[Saddle Bronc 124]

It's not always true that churches need to be booked six months before. CCC was NOT booked anywhere near that far in advance of our own 2006/04/15 wedding.

The OP may be able to get a combined ceremony outside of home-town (such as in South Bend or Indianapolis--I'm only pulling these out of a hat) church.

[Honey&Sweety 1]

Hi! My K1 visa has recently been approved, and I'm arriving in Chicago on Nov. 24. We'd like to get married asap (within 1-2 weeks) so we originally planned on getting a civil ceremony without guests, and just have a bigger celebration on our second wedding, which would be in the (Catholic) church. I have read on VJ and personally heard from some people that church weddings take a lot of time, especially that churches need to be booked at least 6 months before the wedding. Obviously, we do not have that option under the K1 visa.

BUT today, a fellow K1 holder emailed me that they got married in a military base chapel in Seattle on 10-10-10, and it only took them 2 weeks to prepare for everything! No guests, as well, but at least they were married by a priest. I'm kind of a religious nut and would also want to be married in a church rather than in a civil court, IF it's possible anyway. My friend and her husband aren't in the military. I asked her if we could do the same in Indiana or Illinois, but she said that she doesn't know, because they were given less restrictions and had a stress-free wedding preparation because they were married on 10-10-10, and the chapel had some sort of "promo offer" and they were open for 2 weeks near that date. They're so lucky! Plus, she said the requirements might really depend on the state AND the chapel/chaplain.

Does anyone have ideas on this military church wedding? Or does anyone have ideas on the possibility of having a QUICK catholic wedding other than in the military base chapel? No guests, no flashy clothes and music and decors... just us being wed by a priest. Please share.

Thanks in advance! VJ has always been my favorite site ever since I've become a member :-)

We got married in the Catholic church here in USA. I am K-1 too like u . When I arrived here my husband already consulted the parist priest 6 months before I arrived. It took us 1 1/2 months in our wedding preparation, that`s included our pre-cana and NFP seminar. We are so lucky and grateful to our parish priest, because until now that priest become our spiritual director as we journey in our married life. Each catholic church varies , it depends on the diocese. Maybe if you really want to get married in the Catholic church, your fiance can still try calling catholic churches in his area, who knows you might still be accepted . Anyway, good luck and welcome to United States!

[norrin 3]

Hi! My K1 visa has recently been approved, and I'm arriving in Chicago on Nov. 24. We'd like to get married asap (within 1-2 weeks) so we originally planned on getting a civil ceremony without guests, and just have a bigger celebration on our second wedding, which would be in the (Catholic) church. I have read on VJ and personally heard from some people that church weddings take a lot of time, especially that churches need to be booked at least 6 months before the wedding. Obviously, we do not have that option under the K1 visa.

BUT today, a fellow K1 holder emailed me that they got married in a military base chapel in Seattle on 10-10-10, and it only took them 2 weeks to prepare for everything! No guests, as well, but at least they were married by a priest. I'm kind of a religious nut and would also want to be married in a church rather than in a civil court, IF it's possible anyway. My friend and her husband aren't in the military. I asked her if we could do the same in Indiana or Illinois, but she said that she doesn't know, because they were given less restrictions and had a stress-free wedding preparation because they were married on 10-10-10, and the chapel had some sort of "promo offer" and they were open for 2 weeks near that date. They're so lucky! Plus, she said the requirements might really depend on the state AND the chapel/chaplain.

Does anyone have ideas on this military church wedding? Or does anyone have ideas on the possibility of having a QUICK catholic wedding other than in the military base chapel? No guests, no flashy clothes and music and decors... just us being wed by a priest. Please share.

Thanks in advance! VJ has always been my favorite site ever since I've become a member :-)

Ok I had the same problem, however we did our pre-cana long distance, she in Russia, me from here. We also got the pre-cana certificate and when she was in Moscow for the interview she even went to the Cathedral and got the stamp and a letter giving her permission to marry a non Eastern Catholic (ME). WHen she got here we had a problem with the Deacon. He wanted us to do the 9 months of pre-cana and handed us the book made for teens about marriage. Well I complained to the priest and since I know my religion I proceeded to question him about Vatican 2 and arguing my point but was ignored and referred back to the Deacon (which by the way was a sarcastic idiot. I decided to go over everyones head and called the Diocese Bishop in Charge of Priest and Deacon Affairs. He referred me back to the Parish priest. I then went to a different Parish and another priest and he told me he would marry us however he needed a letter from my priest acknowledging that I was leaving his Parish. Then I thought about it and thought I should be able to go where I want to go and not let these people win so I contacted(ready?) Archbishop in charge of Immigration and Family Affairs (can be found in any diocese). My contention was is this pre-cana we did not acceptable or is the Catholic Church not Universal? I also stated which may work for you that whether we liked it or not we had to get married before 90 days if not she would be sent back and "family unity" would not be acheived. You can also try to go on base and talk to A Catholic Priest and explain your situation. The other thing you can do is get married through the Church without having a Mass. Meaning you will have the ceremony but there will be no Eucharist, which is the whole purpose of getting married in Church but through Vatican2 you can get "remarried" at a later time once you go through pre-cana. By the way if you choose not to have a nuptial wedding (MASS) supposedly you will be "living in sin". Like living together. However as we know Vatican 2 GOD forgives. If you want to marry through the Church fight for it! Good Luck

[payxibka 10,045]

questions about how to get married is not K-1 visa procedure topic... moving thread

[Kikay K 1]

Thank you for all your wonderful insights! :-) I've shared these with my fiance, and he's excited to see if the church wedding will work for us, too, in December. Otherwise, we can just have the civil ceremony as originally planned. Whatever kind of wedding we'll have this year, we'd still definitely have a "real" Catholic church wedding in 2011 with our families and friends, especially since my family would still have to travel from the Philippines.

Thanks again! :-)

[fozzie 41]

Chapel O' Love, Las Vegas, NV

[Filipinawife0210 15]

I'm guessing that your friends were military dependents. As far as I know...through 21 years active duty...only active duty/retired/dependents of same can utilize the chapel for weddings. My first wedding was in the base chapel. Took all of 2 weeks, and $50 for the required wedding planner.

But as many have said, not all churches will be booked that far in advance. Just make some phonecalls, and see what's available.

Good luck and congrats!

[sea-monkey 13]

See if they will do it on a Tuesday during regular morning mass or after it.

[Mavisgrind 1]

If you have the money for the air fare:

Hawaii, like Nevada has no waiting period for marriage licenses. And they have quite a wedding industry. And unlike Las Vegas, a beach wedding is a lot more romantic than a cheap wedding chapel. If you check on line you can find everything for $95 (including a photographer) on up and they take care of everything. I'm not sure about Eastern Orthodox, but I know that there are a few Catholic churches and a number of non-denominational Christian clergy that will perform weddings with very little lead time. And you rarely have to worry about the weather.

Cheers!

[Kikay K 1]

Thanks, everyone! We have more options because of your input! :-)