# Tell me about Catholic wedding ceremonies, please. **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 21, 2009, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-catholic-wedding-ceremonies-please/514620 "2009-10-21T16:11:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2009, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-catholic-wedding-ceremonies-please/514620/41 "2009-10-22T04:57:03Z")
> [@HeyHomie](#): > > Apropos of nothing (other than the fact that this thread references Catholicism), what is the sacramental wine like? Soft and tannic like a **good** Pinot Noir? Sweet and juicy like a **good** Sangria? Emphasis mine. I can see _one_ major problem in your assumptions. ---
**Author:** ![joebuck20](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/74df32/32.png) [@joebuck20](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joebuck20)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2009, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-catholic-wedding-ceremonies-please/514620/42 "2009-10-22T05:04:13Z")
When my wife and I got married, we chose to do without the full mass, since she isn’t Catholic. We just had the ceremony where the priest said a few words, we exchanged vows and they played some music. I remember it taking about a half-hour. ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2009, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-catholic-wedding-ceremonies-please/514620/43 "2009-10-22T12:58:36Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > …but the priest can use any wine. Well… any wine from grapes. Rice wine or plum wine, for example, would not be permissible. The Code of Canon Law, Can. 924 ß3, provides: “The wine must be natural, made from grapes of the vine, and not corrupt.” In [Redemptionis Sacramentum](http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/ccdds/documents/rc_con_ccdds_doc_20040423_redemptionis-sacramentum_en.html), the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacrament expands on this guidance: > [@](#): > > The wine that is used in the most sacred celebration of the Eucharistic Sacrifice must be natural, from the fruit of the grape, pure and incorrupt, not mixed with other substances. During the celebration itself, a small quantity of water is to be mixed with it. Great care should be taken so that the wine intended for the celebration of the Eucharist is well conserved and has not soured. It is altogether forbidden to use wine of doubtful authenticity or provenance, for the Church requires certainty regarding the conditions necessary for the validity of the sacraments. Nor are other drinks of any kind to be admitted for any reason, as they do not constitute valid matter. ---
**Author:** ![Jormungandr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a6a055/32.png) [@Jormungandr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jormungandr)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2009, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-catholic-wedding-ceremonies-please/514620/44 "2009-10-22T13:09:15Z")
Aside from wine, the only allowable liquid is mustum, which is barely fermented grape juice. > **[Must](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mustum)** > > Must (from the Latin vinum mustum, "young wine") is freshly crushed fruit juice (usually grape juice) that contains the skins, seeds, and stems of the fruit. The solid portion of the must is called pomace and typically makes up 7–23% of the total weight of the must. Making must is the first step in winemaking. Because of its high glucose content, typically between 10 and 15%, must is also used as a sweetener in a variety of cuisines. Unlike commercially sold grape juice, which is filtered and p... ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2009, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-catholic-wedding-ceremonies-please/514620/45 "2009-10-22T13:29:14Z")
It should be noted that the fineness of the qualifications on the wine extend to the bread that the Host is made of, as well. It MUST be wheat bread, as recent to-dos with gluten intolerant Catholics have shown. Things like rice bread (which is gluten-free) and even gluten-free wheat bread can’t be substituted (unless a new ruling was made since the last I’ve heard of the matter). ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2009, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-catholic-wedding-ceremonies-please/514620/46 "2009-10-22T14:32:42Z")
> [@jayjay](#): > > It should be noted that the fineness of the qualifications on the wine extend to the bread that the Host is made of, as well. It MUST be wheat bread, as recent to-dos with gluten intolerant Catholics have shown. Things like rice bread (which is gluten-free) and even gluten-free wheat bread can’t be substituted (unless a new ruling was made since the last I’ve heard of the matter). [Correct.](http://www.adoremus.org/CDF_Lowgluten-mustum2003.html) > [@](#): > > Hosts that are completely gluten-free are invalid matter for the celebration of the Eucharist. Low-gluten hosts (partially gluten-free) are valid matter, provided they contain a sufficient amount of gluten to obtain the confection of bread without the addition of foreign materials and without the use of procedures that would alter the nature of bread. ---
**Author:** ![Shot\_From\_Guns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2009, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-catholic-wedding-ceremonies-please/514620/47 "2009-10-22T15:40:10Z")
> [@Tengu](#): > > I can see _one_ major problem in your assumptions. If you’re trying to say there’s no such thing as a good sangria, you, sir, are sorely mistaken. > [@Jormungandr](#): > > Aside from wine, the only allowable liquid is mustum, which is barely fermented grape juice. I was an altar server from, eh, probably sixth through eight grade, and I can tell you that one of the priests at my (very conservative) parish used grape juice (IIRC, something normal, like Welch’s), because he was an alcoholic. ---
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2009, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-catholic-wedding-ceremonies-please/514620/48 "2009-10-22T15:41:49Z")
I’ll be damned (so to speak). I thought that every bottle of wine at every Catholic church in the whole Catholic world used wine from the same winery - some monastery in Europe called “Christian Brothers” or something. Ignorance fought. ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2009, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-catholic-wedding-ceremonies-please/514620/49 "2009-10-22T15:46:59Z")
> [@Shot\_From\_Guns](#): > > I was an altar server from, eh, probably sixth through eight grade, and I can tell you that one of the priests at my (very conservative) parish used grape juice (IIRC, something normal, like Welch’s), because he was an alcoholic. Assuming Welch’s is fresh grape juice, that’s perfectly permissible. ---
**Author:** ![Sapo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ec9cab/32.png) [@Sapo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sapo)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2009, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-catholic-wedding-ceremonies-please/514620/50 "2009-10-22T16:56:53Z")
> [@HeyHomie](#): > > Apropos of nothing (other than the fact that this thread references Catholicism), what is the sacramental wine like? Soft and tannic like a good Pinot Noir? Sweet and juicy like a good Sangria? > > Enquiring (Protestant) minds want to know! 99% of the time it is horribly sweet and with a rather low alcohol level. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2009, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-catholic-wedding-ceremonies-please/514620/51 "2009-10-22T17:17:17Z")
> [@Cunctator](#): > > It’s customary here for the sitting/kneeling/standing instructions to be printed in the wedding booklet. Then the non-Catholics (and those Catholics who haven’t been to mass in such a long time that they’ve forgotten) can know what to do. I guess they assume that there aren’t any non-Catholics in Pittsburgh - I’ve never seen that in any of the weddings I’ve been to up there, and for that matter I’m often the only one not taking Communion. Way to make a girl feel welcome! ---
**Author:** ![Shot\_From\_Guns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2009, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-catholic-wedding-ceremonies-please/514620/52 "2009-10-22T17:23:14Z")
> [@Zsofia](#): > > I guess they assume that there aren’t any non-Catholics in Pittsburgh - I’ve never seen that in any of the weddings I’ve been to up there, and for that matter I’m often the only one not taking Communion. Way to make a girl feel welcome! Go back to your abortionists and your rock ‘n’ roll, heathen! ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2009, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-catholic-wedding-ceremonies-please/514620/53 "2009-10-22T17:31:46Z")
> [@Zsofia](#): > > I guess they assume that there aren’t any non-Catholics in Pittsburgh - I’ve never seen that in any of the weddings I’ve been to up there, and for that matter I’m often the only one not taking Communion. Way to make a girl feel welcome! There are a lot of Catholics here- you really notice it during Lent. But we non-Catholic Pittsburghers do exist. ---
**Author:** ![Estilicon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/848f3c/32.png) [@Estilicon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Estilicon)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2009, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-catholic-wedding-ceremonies-please/514620/54 "2009-10-22T21:29:09Z")
> [@Anne\_Neville](#): > > Non-Catholics generally aren’t expected to do stuff like kneeling. Just stand when everybody else does, and sit the rest of the time. You are supposed to stand up when everybody else knee. ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2009, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-catholic-wedding-ceremonies-please/514620/55 "2009-10-23T13:17:45Z")
> [@Estilicon](#): > > You are supposed to stand up when everybody else knee. If you stand while the Catholics are kneeling, you’ll stick out like a sore thumb. If you sit, no one besides your pewmates will even know, and unless they’re complete jerks they’ll just chalk it up to you being non-Catholic. I’ve been to many Catholic weddings, and I’ve never seen anyone stand while the Catholics kneel. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2009, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-catholic-wedding-ceremonies-please/514620/56 "2009-10-23T13:23:55Z")
> [@Anne\_Neville](#): > > There are a lot of Catholics here- you really notice it during Lent. But we non-Catholic Pittsburghers do exist. Yeah, right. Now pull the other leg and tell me they let Jews in! ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2009, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-catholic-wedding-ceremonies-please/514620/57 "2009-10-23T16:30:42Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > As far as wedding ceremonies go, they’re on the longish side, but not anywhere near the length of other religions, like Hindu ceremonies, for instance, which typically are 1.5 to 2 hours, sometimes more. On the plus side, they usually serve ice cream or other snacks during a Hindu ceremony. And at a Hindu wedding, you’re under absolutely no obligation to sit quietly and watch. The religious ceremony itself is only for the people actually participating in it. Everyone else is free to chit-chat, walk around, have a snack, whatever. That’s what makes western-style weddings excruciating. It’s like being forced to sit silently through a badly scripted and boring performance. ---
**Author:** ![Sarahfeena](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sarahfeena/32/519_2.png) [@Sarahfeena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sarahfeena)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2009, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-catholic-wedding-ceremonies-please/514620/58 "2009-10-23T16:45:34Z")
> [@Polycarp](#): > > The **bandit** is correct, and this is one way to handle it without standing out like a sore thumb. FWIW, Orthodox are entitled to receive Catholic communion; it’s their own church stopping them. And many other churches believe in the Real Presence in communion, but are not welcome to receive Catholic communion. Isn’t the theology a little different, though, in how they define the “Real Presence?” The RCC is really specific about their definitions of various points of theology, and I think that the other denominations would agree that their definition isn’t the same? (My question marks here are meant to indicate that I’m not sure about this stuff…theology is not one of my strong suits.) Another example would be the RCC’s not recognizing LDS Baptism, because although the LDS does baptize “In the name of the Father, the Son, and they Holy Spirit,” their theology behind the Trinity doesn’t gibe with that of the RCC. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2009, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-catholic-wedding-ceremonies-please/514620/59 "2009-10-23T16:54:10Z")
> [@Bricker](#): > > Well… any wine from grapes. Rice wine or plum wine, for example, would not be permissible. The Code of Canon Law, Can. 924 ß3, provides: “The wine must be natural, made from grapes of the vine, and not corrupt.” In [Redemptionis Sacramentum](http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/ccdds/documents/rc_con_ccdds_doc_20040423_redemptionis-sacramentum_en.html), the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacrament expands on this guidance: Apologies, the Spanish _vino_ refers only to grapes and I always forget wine doesn’t. > [@muldoonthief](#): > > If you stand while the Catholics are kneeling, you’ll stick out like a sore thumb. If you sit, no one besides your pewmates will even know, and unless they’re complete jerks they’ll just chalk it up to you being non-Catholic. Or having a bad back, like my mother or one of my brother’s neighbors, who’s in her 20s and whose scoliosis has been called “a blueprint for a mountain road.” ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2009, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-catholic-wedding-ceremonies-please/514620/60 "2009-10-23T17:08:06Z")
> [@](#): > > Isn’t the theology a little different, though, in how they define the “Real Presence?” The RCC is really specific about their definitions of various points of theology, and I think that the other denominations would agree that their definition isn’t the same? (My question marks here are meant to indicate that I’m not sure about this stuff…theology is not one of my strong suits.) For most other Christian sects, you’re correct, and therefore most other Christian sects are not invited to share in Catholic Communion. The Orthodox, though, agree on that particular point of theology, and so are permitted (from the Roman Catholic point of view) to share in the Eucharist. Most Orthodox bishops, however, do not allow their members to participate in Roman Catholic Communion, for reasons of their own. There’s a greater level of local autonomy in the Orthodox churches, though, so some do allow it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-catholic-wedding-ceremonies-please/514620.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-catholic-wedding-ceremonies-please/514620.md?page=4)