How to Word a Catholic Wedding Invitation

“How to Word a Catholic Wedding Invitation” was written by TCBC Vendor and Catholic wedding invitation designer Eileen from Noteworthy Expressions

Wording a Catholic wedding invitation helps set the tone of your day for your guests. For Catholic weddings, this is especially important. There are several small words that have big meaning for Catholic couple’s. If you have been stuck wondering the best way to formally word your Catholic Wedding Invitations you have come to the right place!

EVERY LINE – EXPLAINED

Line 1. The hosts: For this particular example, it is assumed the bride’s parents are still married and hosting the wedding. The most formal and traditional formatting for the names is “Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Walters”.   If the brides parents are hosting the wedding but are not married, the parents would be listed on two lines, usually with the mother’s name first.  If the bride and groom’s parents are both hosting the wedding, all names would be listed at the top of the invitation, usually with the parent’s of the bride listed first.  If the couple is hosting, the host line is omitted completely and wording is slightly rephrased to “The honor of your presence is requested at the Nuptial Mass uniting…..(your names)” 

Line 2. Request lines: In this line, we begin a formal invitation to the guests. “request the honor of your presence”  The word “honor” should only be used when the ceremony takes place in a house of worship, so it is the most appropriate wording for a Catholic wedding. Alternative spellings of “honour” are permitted, if desired. Note: If “honour” is used in this line, “favour” vs “favor” should be used on the reply card. 

Line 3. Request lines continued: In this line, clarification of the request is given. Example: “at the marriage of their daughter” would be appropriate for any wedding, including Catholic weddings omitting the Liturgy of the Eucharist. However, Catholic couples choosing the full mass, can provide more clarity by using the phrase “at the Nuptial Mass uniting their daughter”. This prepares guests for the length the ceremony and inclusion of communion. 

Line 4: Bride’s name. Traditionally, the bride’s first and middle name are sufficient. It is assumed she still shares the same last name as her parents. If two different last names are listed for her parents in the Host Line, it would then be appropriate to clarify the bride’s last name here. 

Line 5. Small word. Big meaning. In this line, the bride and groom’s names are joined together with one small word. Catholic invitations use the phrase “to” between the bride and groom names. Most civil and Christian ceremonies will also use the word “to”, while our Jewish friends commonly use the phrase “and” instead. 

Line 6: Groom’s name. The Groom’s full name (first, middle and last) should be included here.

Line 7. Optional listing of the Groom’s parents’ names. Formal wedding invitation etiquette does not include the groom’s parents on the invitation. They are honored and acknowledged in the ceremony program on the wedding day. However, a trend in recent years is acknowledging them on this line of the invitation. “son of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Smith.” Listing them on this line of the invitation, does not indicate they are an official host of the wedding (or they would be included at the top of the invitation with the bride’s parents), but it does introduce them to the guests. It is a nice addition to the invitation, but it is not an omission, if not included, as traditional etiquette rules do not require it.

Line 8. Optional additional Catholic verbiage “In the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony” While this line is optional, it helps convey to the guests the difference between a civil union and the sacred covenant of a Catholic marriage. 

Line 9, 10, 11. Date/time. On most formal invitations, the date and time are spelled out completely. Phrases like “in the afternoon” or “in the evening” are optional.

Line 12/13. Church name and city, state. The street address is traditionally not included on the invitation, and the city and state are sufficient. Zip codes are never included. However, if many of the guests are unfamiliar with the location, or if the city has several closely named churches, one should err on the side of including the street address. Ex: Indianapolis has both a St. Luke Methodist Church and a St. Luke Catholic Church nearby one another. Including the address for either St Luke would be suggested.

INVITATION EXAMPLES

Let’s look at this all together!

1. Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Walters

2. request the honor of your presence

3. at the Nuptial Mass uniting their daughter

4. Teresa Jane

5. to

6. Michael John Smith

7. son of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Smith

8. in the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony

9. Saturday, the eleventh of October

10. two thousand twenty-five

11. at half past two o’clock in the afternoon

12. St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church

13. Indianapolis, Indiana

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

– “Reception to follow” would NOT be included on the bottom of the main invitation card unless the reception is being held immediately after mass at the church. If the reception is being held at another location and time, another card should be included in the suite indicating so. 

– Attire information is most commonly included on other cards in the invitation suite, but can be included at the bottom of this card if it makes the most sense. Keep it short. “Black tie optional” or “Formal attire”. Any additional descriptions can be included on the wedding website. 

OPTIONAL ENCLOSURE CARDS

– Prayer/Novena cards – Many Catholic couples will invite their guests to pray a Novena leading up to their wedding day. Or include a special prayer for guests who are unable to attend the wedding in person. Some couples opt to omit these cards from the invitations of non-Catholic guests, but others take the opportunity to share their faith, leading up to the Sacrament. It provides non-practicing Catholics an opportunity to revitalize their faith through your ceremony, and a provides a glimpse into the Catholic religion for those of other faiths. 

Do you have further questions or would like someone to take the design and creation of your invititations off your hands? If so, Eileen is here to help! Please reach out to Eileen with all of your questions, inquires, and visit her TCBC profile below.