I love my church and diocese BUT...

can someone explain to me WHY we have to pay an additional $250 for Pre-Cana on top of the $360 we will be 'donating' to the church?

HELLO that is a total of $610 to my church and diocese? I told my father and he thought I was lieing! I understand we should pay something for Pre-Cana but $250?!?!? I was just shocked to see the figure on the paper when I received it yesterday.

Re: I love my church and diocese BUT...

I hear you we will be paying about 1200-1500 before we have to pay for the premarital counseling we have to go to. We are still not sure if he will have to spend an additional 250$ just to fly to NY for the Saturday class. They only offer the class 4 times a year (dec, march, may, sept) No matter when we do it - it will be when he is in school.
We also have to get our church flowers from the church altar guild it is a minimum of 100$ (but we hear this usually is MUCH more).

Re: I love my church and diocese BUT...

You think you have it bad-we have to pay the $250 PreCana fee on top of our $700 'donation'!!

Re: I love my church and diocese BUT...

I don't understand why they call it donation if its a set amount. They should just call it a fee.

Re: I love my church and diocese BUT...

I'm not sure how much my donation is going to be yet but my priest told me that since I live far from my home church that I can do the pre-cana at another church and then all that church would have to do is sign a form for me and my home church would accept that. See if your church will do that too rather than have to fly to New York. Just an idea.

Agreed though, I can't believe how much money it costs.

Re: I love my church and diocese BUT...

cw0904 - which pre-cana are you doing? If we wanted to do the Engaged Weekend Encounter (which FI was firmly against) that was an extra $250, but the normal pre-cana where we meet at a married couple's house is only costing us $20pp. Is there another Pre-Cana option you can choose which might be less $$???

Re: I love my church and diocese BUT...

We only paid $50 for the regular pre-cana at someones house too. Which one is the $250? That is ridicoulos

Re: I love my church and diocese BUT...

We talked to the church about doing it elsewhere but since I am in NY they insists we do it here. Now if I move to MI where he is now we can do it there. But since I am here now they want us to do it here.

Re: I love my church and diocese BUT...

WOW when i did precana it was free!!! other than the money we gave to the people whos house it was to help pay for coffee and donuts that was all we had to pay...

Re: I love my church and diocese BUT...

actually ours did call it a fee. It is $200.00 for music 'fee' 400.00 for Church 'fee' and $20.00 for altar servers. Cash 2 $10.0 bills please Talk about being pickey. pre cana is 75.00. This is all crazy my hurch is crazy I was on here recently complaining about all the rules they have! UGHH

Re: I love my church and diocese BUT...

We gave our church a $500 donation. I haven't called the organist yet Another church that we were looking at wanted to charge us $1200 just to perform the ceremony. We had to become members for 3 years (because we got engaged in 2002).

Re: I love my church and diocese BUT...

Do you also have to pay for music because that is a seperate expense also for us... All to be married in the eyes of god... Then don't forget the donation envelopes that they send to the house..

Re: I love my church and diocese BUT...

we're getting married in my church that i have grown up in. the church wants $500. I had to give a $100 deposit which is refundable on the day of my wedding pending everything runs smoothly and on time. If i am late (according to the church clock that means if i am 1 minute late) they keep that $100 dollars. If i am on time and things run smoothly the $100 is given back to us. but its just going to be returned back to the priest and alter boys. so technically whats the sense of saying we'll give you back your deposit. so i just tell everyone its $500 dollars. WAIT, I still have to pay $150 for the organist. The organist is not included. So I am now up to $650 for the church including the organist.

I dont even want to put flowers on the alter but my mom yelled at me so we're going to put 2 small things and a small thing by the blessed mother.

Pre cana I think is 125. i could be wrong but when i looked in the book of last year it said 125

Re: I love my church and diocese BUT...

all these stories are so disheartening. The church should really marry people for free it is their job for God's sake. I've had my own dealings with the RFC diocese and I can honestly tell you---it is all about money and it makes me so disappointed in them

Re: I love my church and diocese BUT...

Rob-Luvs-Me is that your church from when you baptized or FH's?? WOW I don't feel so bad now.
I am in the Diocese of Rockville Centre and my church is in Uniondale. I have been active in my diocese since I did my communion. I believe everyone in my diocese gets the same brochure. And there are only two prices $250 for the night meetings, a weekend meeting (9-4 sat & sun back to back) or if your interfaith (don't know if we fall in this category yet b/c FH is umm can't remember what he is but its a form of Christianity) and then for the weekend encounter its $350. Which doesn't make much sense you only pay an additional $100 for meals and a place to sleep in for 3 days and 2 nights??

Anyway, that word donation just bothers me. I don't see it as a donation and that is what my dad says. Its more of like a fee. Why not call it that? Then he proceeded to tell me why do we have to sit and listen to others tell us about married life, and having children and dealing with finances when we could do it with him and my mom and FH's parents and pay them! LOL He cracked me up!

Re: I love my church and diocese BUT...

Hmmm someone bought up a good point. Can we do Pre-Cana at another Catholic Diocese?
Have to track down my Priest. I have ALOT of questions for him. I will write this one down too.

Re: I love my church and diocese BUT...

We are paying $500 'donation' for ceremony and $50 pre -cana (which we just atrated) for 6 weeks at someones house.

Re: I love my church and diocese BUT...

We paid $125 as a couple for our pre-cana which is a one-shot deal all day on one Saturday in the Brooklyn Diocese. We are doing it at some dicoesan place in Douglaston. CW - we are getting married at Christ the King in the RVC Diocese but doing pre-cana in Queens. Our priest said that was fine - he didn't care where we did it, as long as did it.

Re: I love my church and diocese BUT...

we're paying only$25 for pre-caina and then $300 for the church. and also the $100 for the organist. i want her job!!!! $100 bucks for a half hour!!!!

Re: I love my church and diocese BUT...

Thanks Thrilled!! I will call my priest and ask for his advice. He is such a difficult person to get a hold of and doesn't call back. I will try the Deacon too.