The Roman Catholic Church has a history of keeping thorough documents, even at points during civilization when the society did not; Sacramental records are sometimes considered legal documents.  

This is good news and bad news. The good news is that it is likely that we can contact a Catholic Church almost anywhere in the world and retrieve a record of Baptism or Marriage for you or one of your Catholic relatives. The bad news is that when preparing for a Sacrament in the Church, certain documentation is required to make sure all records match up. 

If you are a Catechumen – meaning you have never been baptized: 

Birth Certificate is required. 

If you are a Candidate – meaning you have been baptized in a valid Christian non-Catholic church in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit (also known as a Trinitarian Baptism) 

Baptism certificate is required 

If you are married in the Catholic Church: 

Catholic Marriage certificate is required 

If you are married elsewhere:  

Please see Dcn. Kevin to schedule an appointment with the pastor to discuss and schedule an appointment to have your marriage convalidated in the Church. 

If you were previously married and may need to start an annulment process in order to convalidate your marriage in the Church: 

Please speak to Dcn. Kevin as soon as possible to begin this process; your opportunity to receive Sacraments in the Catholic Church will be delayed with a marriage that is not considered a valid, sacramental one. 

For Everyone: 

Sponsor or Godparent is required– must be a practicing Catholic in good standing, cannot be one’s parent, nor one’s spouse/partner; see sponsor packet for their required documents. 

Confirmation Saint name is required – each of you are asked to think about/ learn about a saint that you are drawn to or can use as a role model. More will be explained about saint names in class. 

Please have your required documents turned in by: December before our Christmas break. We will make copies and return the originals to you. Be sure and let OCIA coordinator know if you are having problems procuring them.