Wedding Docs 101: Correcting Discrepancies in Church Documents

One of the usual headaches that soon-to-weds encounter during wedding preps is when there is a discrepancy in their required wedding documents, whether it's in their birth certificate or their baptismal and confirmation certificates. I swear, ang hirap mag-asikaso ng mga papeles para sa kasal.

I also had some problems regarding my church documents.. You see, I do not have a "Ma." in my birth certificate, but in my baptismal and confirmation certificates, they affixed a "Ma." before my name. Apparently, there is a rule that every girl must be baptized with a "Ma." in her name, which will serve as her Christian name. Unfortunately, Christ the King would not accept my baptismal and confirmation certificates because of this discrepancy. Sobrang strict nila sa totoo lang.

And so, I had to request for a partial change of my parish records. I tried searching for blogs that would give me an idea on how to do this, but I couldn't find one. And so, by writing this post, I hope that I can help other soon-to-weds in fixing any discrepancy in their church documents... or at least those couples who were baptized/confirmed in churches under the Diocese of Cubao. Hehe.

Here is the step-by-step process in requesting partial changes of my baptismal certificate. I also followed these same steps to fix the discrepancy in my confirmation certificate.
 

1. I went to the church where I was baptized—St. Joseph Shrine in Anonas, Cubao—to ask for a letter from the parish priest requesting for an amendment on my baptismal record. The church required a clear copy of my NSO birth certificate and Form 137, which is the transcript of my school records. Since I didn't have my Form 137, I was asked to bring copies of three valid IDs as reference. I also had to write an affidavit stating the corrections and the purpose of my request.
   
   
2. I then brought the request letter, my baptismal certificate, affidavit and  other documents to the Chancery Department for approval. It is the building in front of the Immaculate Concepcion Cathedral in Cubao.
   
   
3. Once my application for partial changes was approved, I was given a written decree issued by His Eminence, authorizing the parish priest of St. Joseph to correct my baptismal record.
   
   
4. I then brought the written decree and the related documents to St. Joseph. After a few minutes, my baptismal certificate already had the necessary changes made. Yey! :)

Actually, the Chancery decreed that they could not delete the "Ma." in my baptismal and confirmation certificates because it is my Christian name. However, they added in the "Observada" column that despite the "Ma." in my church certificates, they still pertain to the same person. Luckily, Christ the King still accepted my certificates even though my name was not officially changed. Yey again!

Of course, there were some fees involved in the changing of parish records, although I really couldn't remember how much I paid for them. So just to be safe, be sure to prepare at least P1,000 for the documents.

So now, all we have to do is wait for our wedding banns to be released and our church documents are done! Yey! :)

Our Save-the-Date Video by Aisle 1401

With only two months left before our wedding day, it's time to reveal our Save-the-Date video, made by Aisle 1401! Watch this, and you'll probably get an idea on how Mox and I met and "fell" in love. Haha!

You have to wait after the wedding for our full prenup video though. Syempre, kelangan may surprise pa rin. Hihihi.


Mox and Nat 's Teaser from Aisle 1401 on Vimeo.

 

The Marriage Vocation Program for the Engaged

Two weekends ago, Mox and I attended the Marriage Vocation Program for the Engaged at Christ the King Church. This two-day workshop serves as our pre-cana seminar, which is a requirement for our wedding.

So why do I call it a workshop? Because it is  more interactive than the usual lecture-type seminars. First, the speakers will give a short talk and then share their experiences as connected to the topic. Then, the couples will be given questionnaires that they must answer individually, after which they will discuss their answers to their partners. Frankly, I thought that the 15 minutes given for the couple's dialogue weren't enough! Ang dami ko pang gustong idiscuss kay Mox. Haha!

At first, I was irritated because I thought the seminar was too long, but in the end, I was very happy that Mox and I took the time off our busy schedules to attend this workshop. We were able to touch on topics that we haven't really discussed thoroughly during our three-year relationship. We talked about our opinions on love, communication, religious expectations, children and even sex! Mox and I have similar views on some topics, but we also discuss those where we have different opinions.It's really refreshing to know Mox's take on the things that are undeniably important for our marriage. :)

Aside from the couple's sharing, there were also small group discussions where we had to share our opinions to other couples in our group. It's nice to hear their views on the topics discussed because it opened our minds on the different challenges that we may face once we get married. We also made some new friends too! :)

The seminar fee is P2,500 per couple, which is already inclusive of lunch and AM and PM snacks for two days. There was even an official photographer who took our couple photo and group photo, which were our souvenirs from the seminar. After a thanksgiving mass, we had a short "graduation" ceremony where we were given our certificate. Yey!

There are other similar workshops like Discovery Weekend and CEFAM that are accepted as pre-cana seminars for Christ the King. But for those who cannot afford the fees for those seminars, the Marriage Vocation Program is the perfect alternative. :)