- This aspect of marriage is recognised in the promises a bride and groom make to each other in a Christian marriage ceremony:
A Typical Wedding Ceremony
The ceremony will begin in the normal way, with the bride, sometimes on her father's arm (although this is a matter of personal choice), and bridesmaids processing down the aisle to the groom and priest. You and your groom may choose the alternative greeting ceremony. In this version, just before the start of the ceremony the guests will assemble in the church porch to greet you on your arrival. You will then walk with the priest down the aisle to the altar, followed by the guests. During the procession, an Entry Antiphon (a passage from the bible which may be sung or recited) may be used or a hymn sung. You will then sit or kneel on special cushions, which are usually decorated satin.
If you have chosen a wedding without having a mass, the service begins with a welcome from the priest and the congregation are invited to make the sign of the cross. An opening prayer is spoken by the priest, after which the congregation are invited to sit. Readings from the Old or New Testament follow. The priest then speaks about the mystery of Christian marriage, the dignity that wedded love holds, the grace of the sacrament and the responsibilities that married people possess.
He will address both of you, reminding you of your life within the Church:
"My dear friends/Dearly beloved, you have come together in this church so that the Lord may seal and strengthen your love in the presence of the Church's minister and this community. Christ abundantly blesses this love. He has already consecrated you in this baptism and now he enriches and strengthens you by a special sacrament so that you may assume the duties of marriage in mutual and lasting fidelity. And so, in the presence of the Church, I ask you to state your intentions."
The congregation will stand while the priest addresses the couple by asking them three questions:
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"Have you come here freely and without reservation to give yourself to each other in marriage?"
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" Will you love and honour each other as man and wife for the rest of your lives?"
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"Will you accept children lovingly from God and bring them up according to the law of Christ and his Church?"(This one may be excluded if you are an older couple.)
You both answer the questions separately, and declare that you know of no lawful impediments that would prevent you from marrying. The priest will then ask you to give their consent to marriage by saying, "Since it is your intention to enter into this marriage, join your right hands, and declare your consent before God and his Church."
The bride's father, relative or friend may take your hand and place it in your groom's. You will exchange vows, with your groom reciting his before you. Your groom will say:
"I, Richard, take you, Judy, to be my wife. I promise to be true to you in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health. I will love you and honour you all the days of my life."
To which you will answer:
"I, Judy, take you, Richard, to be my husband. I promise to be true to you in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health. I will love you and honour you all the days of my life."
There will be occasions when the priest, for pastoral reasons, will, instead, obtain your consent to the marriage through questions saying:
"Judy, do you take Richard to be your husband? Do you promise to be true to him in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health, to love him and honour him all the days of your life?"
To which you will respond:
"I do."There has never been the option of using the vow 'to obey' in the Catholic Church.
Once you have both given your consent, the priest will announce:
"You have declared your consent before the Church. May the Lord in his goodness strengthen your consent and fill you both with his blessings. What God has joined, men must not divide. Amen."
Your best man will place the rings on the priest's prayer book and the exchange of wedding rings takes place after the priest has blessed the rings and made the sign of the cross over them:
"May the Lord bless these rings which you give to each other as the sign of your love and fidelity. Amen."
This will either be done in the ordinary way, or the groom will first put the ring on the bride's thumb, then three fingers in turn and say:
"With this ring, I thee wed, in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost. Amen."
As the groom promises his bride: "With all my worldly goods I thee endow", he may give her some small coins as a token of his vow. You repeat his words or may choose to use another version such as, "Take this ring as a sign of my love and fidelity. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit."
A Bidding Prayer spoken by the priest follows the exchange of vows and you are asked to seal your union at the end by kissing each other, unless you chose to have a mass in which case you kiss when the mass has been said.
Homework – hand in on Monday
3. Answer the following GCSE question: Describe and explain the teachings which are found in a Christian marriage ceremony. (8).
You can use any Christian denomination. Remember the work that we have done in class about marriage being a reflection and an experience of God’s love. This is a key area to explain.
You need to describe those parts of the ceremony which emphasise these ideas. For example – in the vows the couple promise to love each other unconditionally for the rest of their lives. This is similar to God’s love which is also unconditional and permanent.
Think about the type of love the couple should have, the place of children within marriage, the idea of becoming a new family unit, etc Just going through and explaining each of the symbols is not enough.