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Interfaith
Wedding Ceremony Ideas
by Heather Greene
These days,
it's becoming more and more common for couples of different religious
backgrounds to get married. Many religions have embraced this fact-- in two of
the four major Jewish sects, interfaith marriages are regularly performed, most
Protestant clergy are willing to Officiants interfaith marriages, and more and
more Catholic priests, Conservative Judaism rabbis, and Islamic leaders are
conducting interfaith ceremonies. Ask other interfaith couples in your area for
recommendations if you're having a hard time finding someone yourself. Or, you
could have your wedding performed by a non-religious Officiant. You will still
have the opportunity to incorporate religion into your ceremony if you do this,
but it will eliminate the hassle of finding a religious Officiant who's views
about interfaith marriage are the same as yours. |
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It may not be easy pulling off an interfaith ceremony. Your relatives may be
upset that you are straying from tradition and even you and your fiancé may have
some different ideas about how the ceremony should be run and which traditions
and rituals should be part of the ceremony. You will need to take a lot of time
to consider exactly what marrying someone of a different faith means to you and
how you will handle your differences on the wedding day and beyond. With some
compromising and understanding though, we're sure you're interfaith wedding will
go on without a hitch.
Since there is no traditional interfaith ceremony format, we can not recommend
one that you should follow, but below you will find some tips for how to
incorporate two religions into your ceremony.
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Involving Both Families-- Chances are, if anyone is upset about you having an
interfaith marriage it's the older generation-- your parents and grandparents.
The best thing you can do to help them come to terms with your decision and
understand it is to have both families participate in the ceremony. Unity
candles are a wonderful idea to involve both parents and in this case, the
candle lighting will have extra symbolism as you are not only joining your two
families, but also your two faiths. At many interfaith marriages involving
Christian and Jewish grooms and brides you will notice that the couple is taking
a cue from the Jewish religion and having both parents walk the bride and groom
down the aisle. This is sure to make both sets of parents feel special on the
big day.
Neutral Ground-- It's important for many couples and their families to have a
completely neutral ceremony. Many Officiants steer clear of using non-inclusive
language and avoid using mentions of things unique to one religion (for example,
mentions of Israel, Jesus as a savior, etc.) and instead focus on God's love and
the theme of unity and togetherness. In general, we'd advise against having the
ceremony in a place of worship unless it is special to both the bride and groom.
Music and Readings-- Incorporate music and readings from both your faiths into
the ceremony or you can have faith neutral readings and music. We have several
suggestions for readings as well as tips for readers weddings in our ceremony
section. |
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Programs-- Wedding programs are almost a necessity at an interfaith wedding if
you will be incorporating aspects of two faiths into your wedding. A good
program will explain the meaning and origin behind any religious rituals that
take place at the wedding, that way, none of the guests will be confused about
what is going on (your guests may not have attended a wedding outside of their
faith group).
Having two Officiants-- Many interfaith couples are now deciding to have two
Officiants present at their wedding ceremonies, one from each religion. By
having two Officiants, you'll be making everyone more comfortable, plus two
heads are always better than one and two Officiants can give you more ideas
about conducting and interfaith ceremony than just one.
About the
Author
Heather Greene
is the head writer for the wedding planning site, Wedding Wonderful located at
www.weddingwonderful.com. This article originally appeared on Wedding Wonderful.
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