Catholic Gap

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They are absolutely not unavoidable. It may be unavoidable to have an afternoon ceremony, but then you need to prioritize finding a reception venue that allows you to start your reception in the afternoon as well.

View Quoted Comment The gap is now unavoidable due to the fact that I've booked both places. These comments about gaps being rude or unavoidable are just making me feel nervous about my wedding. They're not very productive.

Hi Cassie,

I wouldn't stress about the gap. I disagree with the other posters because ceremony times differ depending on the church, and most people I know get married at the Parish they belong to, so it's not like they have any other options. Just because some couples can make evening ceremonies happen doesn't mean every church will accommodate. All three of the Catholic ceremonies I've recently attended started at 2 or 2:30pm, and that was the couple's only option. There was a pretty big gap for pictures and it was fine. I know it may not ideal, but guests will find ways to kill the time, and one of them actually benefitted me because I had time to go home and let my dog out.

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It's not the ceremony time that we're saying is flexible, it's the reception time. If you're locked into a certain ceremony time, then the reception should be planned around that so that there isn't a gap for guests.

View Quoted Comment That makes more sense, but I guess I'm just desensitized to it because it's standard practice in my area to have early ceremonies and dinner receptions. Most religious couples don't do a first look, so they take pictures for up to two hours after the ceremony. Even when they offer cocktail hour immediately after, I hold out on arriving until closer to dinner because I don't want to spend hours waiting around. Depends on how social your crowd is and how many people are coming in from out of town I guess.

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But again, that's a bad hosting decision that should be avoided. You don't need to do a first look in order to not do 2 hours of photos after the ceremony. You just need to be organized and focused and get all the photos that you can (with the bride and groom separate) before the ceremony.

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"...that should be avoided." Cassie just said it was unavoidable. They've already booked everything, so I was trying to make her feel better that all religious weddings I've attended had gaps. The most recent one was one of my favorite weddings I've been to because it was a close friend and our group had a blast together even during the 2-3 hour gap. It might not be ideal, but guests are just going to be excited to celebrate with you if they genuinely care about you. And if they're that inconvenienced to wait for free food and drinks, then don't come lol.

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And I'm trying to influence the people who are still planning their ceremony and reception times and may be considering having a gap. Also, that's a terrible hosting mindset - 'if you mind me treating you badly, don't come.'

View Quoted Comment I picked a venue where I could have the ceremony and reception at the same place because I hate making guests even drive between locations, but religious weddings are long, usually all day events and guests should know that. Making them kill some time isn't treating people badly lol, at most it's just boring or inconvenient. Maybe it just varies by state or country because a 1-2 hour wait before reception for pictures is legit the standard here. I agree I wouldn't personally have picked that timeframe, but I'm just letting OP know it's not going to be the end of the world. People can still have a good time even if there is a gap.