Comparative Religion Weddings

Your Typical Christian Wedding includes...

Venue

* Usually inside a church

* Hall may be used

Dress

* A traditional white gown/ ball dress is worn by the bride. She usually has a vial and carries a bouquet of flowers in her hand.

* The groom would wear a black and white tuxedo with either a bow or a tie.

Rituals

The Procession

* Seating of the Parents

Having the support and involvement of parents and grandparents in the ceremony brings a special blessing to the couple and also expresses honor to the previous generations of marriage unions.

The processional music begins with the seating of the honored guests:

o Seating of the Groom's grandmother

o Seating of the Bride's grandmother

o Seating of the Groom's parents

o Seating of the Bride's mother

* Bridal Processional Begins

o Minister and Groom enter usually from stage right. If the Groomsmen are not escorting the Bridesmaids down the aisle to the altar, they also enter together with the Minister and Groom.

o Bridesmaids enter, usually down the center aisle, one at a time. If the Groomsmen are escorting the Bridesmaids, they enter together.

o Maid or Matron of Honor enters. If she is being escorted by the Best Man, they enter together.

o Flower Girl and Ring Bearer enter.

* Wedding March Begins

The Bride and her father enters. Typically the Bride's mother will stand as a signal for all of the guests to stand. Sometimes the Minister will announce, "All rise for the Bride."

* Opening Remarks - "The Call to Worship"

* The Opening Prayer

* Congregation is Seated

* Giving Away of the Bride

* Worship Song, Hymn or Solo

* The Charge to Bride and Groom

* The Pledge

* Wedding Vows

* Exchanging of the Rings

* Lighting of the Unity Candle

* The Pronouncement

* Communion

Many times couples will incorporate Communion into the wedding ceremony, making Communion their very first act as a married couple.

* The Closing Prayer

* And finally: "You may now kiss the bride!"

* Reception

After this ceremony is the Reception

Food

* Any type of Christian (Western) food is acceptable. However the Wedding Cake is by far the most important and anticipated food.

* Great care is taken in its preparation- it is white.

Some interesting extras

* Often the bride's bouquet is thrown (by the bride turning away from that direction) into a crowd of female (unmarried) ladies and the one that gets it will be wedded next, according to the tale).

Your typical Islam/ Muslim wedding includes...

Venue

* Usually in a hall.

Dress

The Bride's Dress

* The covering of the head is done as a sign of respect.

* The ghunghat, which is equivalent to the veil of the Christian bride, is worn by the bride. (usually a cherry/ reddish colour)

* The chunri, (draping) worn with a ghaghra choli, is tucked in at the waist on one end, pleated beautifully around the body and draped delicately over one shoulder.

The Groom's Dress

* They wear a safa with its flowing tail-end.

* White flowers can be tied in suspended strings over the forehead, called sehra.

* The groom may wear a white silk brocade suit, sword and turban as his wedding outfit.

Rituals

The Wedding Ceremony

*

The meher, (a compulsory amount of money given to the bride's family by the groom's family) is decided upon by elders of both families.

* Before reading a selected piece from the Koran (the holy book of the Muslims), witnessed by two male persons and a lawyer or eminent person, the priest will ask the bride if she is happy with the arrangement and whether she agrees to marry the groom. The boy is asked the same.

* The marriage is registered (nikaahnama). The groom is then taken to the women's section. He gives money and gifts to the sisters of the bride. He receives the blessings of the elder woman and offers his salutations.

* After their first meal, the groom and bride are seated together. The Holy Koran is kept between them and they are allowed to see each other through reflection by mirrors.

* The groom spends the night in a separate room at the girl's house with a younger brother. In the morning he is given clothes, money and gifts by the bride's parents. That afternoon his relatives come to accompany the bridal couple to their home.

* The Rukhsat Ceremony

The farewell by the father of the bride: he gives her hand to her husband and asks him to protect always her.

* Gifts are exchanged between the bride's family and the groom's family before and after the wedding.

* Walima- The Weddding Reception

Food