Finding a church for a ceremony space?

This depends on the church so I would just reach out to any you have in mind.

There is no "general policy" You will have to contact the churches near your venue and see what they say. You will have more luck if you stick with your denomination, but even then some churches will say no.

The Unitarian Church tends to be more flexible.

So this is a church by church decision. I belong to a church in MA and our reception venue is in NH. Most churches close to our reception venue said no, that we need to belong and be active in their church community. I did find 2 churches that were fine and welcomed us into their church for our ceremony. There is deifnilty a price difference, though, members only have to pay $150, whereas our fees are $700.

I would look at the church website. My ceremony will be held at a church that isn't my home church. They had a member and a non member rate. If you see a church you like call the office and ask if they allow outsiders to come

This depends on a lot of things. I'm getting married at a different church out of state and I have to get permission from my priest. (Catholic)

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Yeah I'll probably end up calling and asking; the few I have my eye on don't have anything posted on their website. I'm hoping that my pastor might also have some contacts as he is very active throughout the state and in neighboring areas. Thanks!

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Oh wow - $700 is a lot of money (maybe just in my mind for a church). Thanks for this info!

View Quoted Comment Oh we totally agree! Bit of a sticker shock when they told us. But since it was so tough to find a church that agreed to it, we gave in.

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The church we got married in charges $1,500. . .so $700 sounds like a steal!

$700 is not that bad honestly. If a church is free or cheap then you're likely paying the same amount in "donations" anyway.

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Oh my goodness... I guess I could understand if you were getting more than just the ceremony space; like if you were able to use other rooms to get ready and if their sound guys were running sound. But still, that's a major cost from what I've seen from previous weddings. My aunt got married in her large church for free, and the churches I have attended (big and small) would charge a fee that simply covered minimal expenses. I guess it all depends on the type of church and the location!

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Also, unrelated, but I saw some of your photos and your wedding was beautiful! Definitely what I'm going for with mine this coming December. Congratulations!

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Thank you! And yes, fortunately I did get more for that price than just using the church for the ceremony. It included the church pianist, a coordinator for the ceremony who also handled the sound, and pre-marital counseling. But Sonoma in general is an expensive area.

Im sure for a fee you can find a church.

It depends on the church. You can often get some idea from their websites. I know in our area, the Unitarian church will rent out the church, and let you use your own pastor.