St. Paul said: “Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the Church…. This is a great mystery, and I mean in reference to Christ and the Church” ( Eph 5:25, 32).
The marriage covenant, by which a man and a woman form with each other an intimate communion of life and love, has been founded and endowed with its own special laws by the Creator. By its very nature it is ordered to the good of the couple, as well as to the generation and education of children. Christ the Lord raised marriage between the baptized to the dignity of a sacrament.
The sacrament of Matrimony signifies the union of Christ and the Church. It gives spouses the grace to love each other with the love with which Christ has loved his Church; the grace of the sacrament thus perfects the human love of the spouses, strengthens their indissoluble unity, and sanctifies them on the way to eternal life (Catechism of the Catholic Church).
For a couple to be married at St Anne’s at least one of the parties should be a baptised Catholic who is either resident in the parish or has a parent who is resident. You are recommended to give about twelve months’ notice to the parish priest. Marriage enquiries from outside this parish of St Anne must also presented to your local parish priest-where you live.
Please Phone 01932 562375 and ask for an appointment to meet with the parish priest.
You may also e-mail chertsey@abdiocese.org.uk to introduce yourselves.
During your first meeting you will be given information about the parish and diocesan preparation programme.
For a couple to prepare for their marriage, their twelve months’ notice becomes the time where they explore their roots of faith and the nature and depth of their loving relationship. There is always an adult ‘laity-led’ programme or course, which the couple follows. The priest assists the couple through the elements of the local preparation programme.
Saint Anne’s parish has six couples currently who are preparing for marriage during the year ahead. Some couples wish to marry in this their local church: some couples wish to marry in the area or land of their cultural origins and we support their wishes and their planning.
We book our church well in advance for couples who apply and shape these arrangements around our parish timetable and other catechetical commitments. This means we are currently accepting new enquiries from engaged couples for the autumn and winter of 2026.