Church authorities say a Roman Catholic priest died while performing a wedding ceremony in Germany.

Munich's Merkur newspaper reports that the priest had just begun a prayer Saturday at the St. Lambert abbey chapel in Bavaria when he fell forward onto the stone floor.

Wedding guests performed first aid on the 47-year-old Polish-born priest while the organist tried to comfort the distraught bride.

The archdiocese of Munich and Freising in southern Germany confirmed Tuesday that the priest died of a heart attack.

It said the priest led an Italian-speaking community in nearby Rosenheim after spending many years working in Rome.

Merkur reports the wedding of the German bride and her Italian groom continued at a nearby church with another priest.