Obtaining a Sacramental Certificate

Prior to receiving Communion, Confirmation or Marriage sacraments, one must obtain a copy of one’s baptismal certificate from the church in which the sacrament occurred. If the church in the Archdiocese of Newark is still open, you must contact that church to obtain your certificate. Please see the parish finder on the Archdiocesan website at http://www.rcan.org/parishes/ If that church has closed, it may have been merged into another parish, or the records may be housed at the Msgr. William Noé Field Archives and Special Collections Center. Please open the link Closed Parishes where you should find the name of the institution which now holds the records you seek. If they are conserved at the Msgr. William Noé Field Archives and Special Collections Center, please open the link for Application for Sacramental Certificate, print the form and forward it to The Msgr. William Noé Field Archives and Special Collections Center with the appropriate fee.

Note: This form is for the purpose of obtaining a copy of a baptismal, communion, confirmation or marriage certificate for current use. Examples of current use include need to obtain 1.] baptismal certificate 6 months prior to marriage, 2.] confirmation certificate in order to serve as confirmation sponsor, 3.] baptismal certificate to prove age for Social Security applications, 4.] marriage certificate to prove relationship for Social Security applications or baptismal/marriage certificates for a Tribunal.  This form is NOT for use in family history searches – please open the Genealogy Letter for information on that type of search, or call 973-761-9476 for further information.