Dozen of couples celebrate the Sacrament of Marriage

Intermountain Catholic/Laura Vallejo

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SALT LAKE CITY - The Most Rev. John C. Wester, Bishop of Salt Lake City, celebrated a very special Mass at the Cathedral of the Madeleine Oct. 1, during which 25 couples celebrated the Sacrament of Marriage.

Many people from Latin America get married civilly, but postpone or forego the Church ceremony for various reasons, Bishop Wester said.

The communal wedding was "a first for me and a first for the diocese," he said. "It was a really happy day for our Church."

Of the 25 couples who celebrated the Sacrament of Marriage at the cathedral that day, six came out of the Hispanic Marriage encounter.

"We are very proud of them," said Raúl Mercado, one of the Hispanic Marriage Encounter coordinators. "Some of the couples have been very active in the encounter, which I think led them to make this very important decision."

Prior to the ceremony, the cathedral’s courtyard was full of brides and grooms who were accompanied by maids of honor, best men, relatives and friends. The couples were already married by civil law but the Holy Sacrament of Marriage was still missing.

"We see that the encounter helps the couples to realize the importance of this sacrament," Mercado said.

One by one the couples entered the Cathedral, while beautiful music filled the air. One by one, they said their vows and received the bishop’s blessing.

"It’s a blessing to see that couples who were not (married with the sacrament), thanks to their experiences in the encounter, decided to make their vows with Jesus," said Mercado.