Many couples want to seal their marriage union not only with a painting in the registry office, but also with a church ceremony. A wedding is a long-standing Orthodox tradition that links two people with spiritual ties. This ritual belongs to one of the seven sacraments of the Russian Orthodox Church. But to perform it, you need to know the basic rules and procedure for the ceremony.
It is necessary
- - white wedding towel;
- - wedding rings;
- - underwear crosses;
- - white handkerchiefs for candles;
- - a cape to cover the shoulders of the bride (with a low-cut dress);
- - icons.
Instructions
Step 1
Agree on the wedding with the priest a month before the ceremony. Choose the date together with the clergyman, since the ritual cannot be performed during fasting, on certain days of the week, and also if the bride has her period on that day. People who are blood relatives, mentally ill or unbaptized are not allowed to the wedding.
Step 2
The wedding ceremony is carried out only after registering the marriage at the registry office (so take the appropriate certificate with you). When going to church, put on neck crosses. A wedding bride needs a closed dress or cape to cover her bare shoulders and décolleté. An obligatory attribute of the bride's wedding dress is a veil. It is desirable that it be long: it is believed that the longer the veil, the longer the family life will be.
Step 3
Get engaged before the wedding. Earlier, the engagement preceded the wedding a month or even a year before the ceremony. At the end of the 20th century and at the beginning of the 21st century, the betrothal is carried out immediately before the wedding and is an integral part of it. For engagement, enter the temple and stand apart from each other (the groom is on the right, the bride is on the left).
Step 4
Wait for the priest to bring you the Cross and the Gospel and join your hands with the epitrachilia (church breastplate). After that, follow the priest to the center of the temple, where you will be blessed and presented with lighted candles. Cross yourself before picking up the candles. Hold the candles with your hand covered with a white handkerchief. After reading the prayers, the priest will take wedding rings from the altar (they must be handed to him even before the ceremony), put them on your fingers and exchange them. Make the exchange of rings three times - as a sign of awareness of the chosen path. After that, the betrothal is considered complete and the wedding ceremony begins.
Step 5
Singing "Glory to Thee, our God, glory to Thee!" go to the lectern and stand on the white foot (a white towel, a tablecloth or just a piece of white linen serves as it), brought by relatives in advance. Before marrying the newlyweds, the priest will ask you if you are firm in your intentions and did not give the promise of marriage to someone else. Having listened to the prescribed answers, the clergyman will read a prayer, put crowns on your heads (sometimes witnesses hold them over their heads) and after a cycle of prayers, the final of which is "Our Father", he will give you a common cup of red wine. Drink it to the bottom, the bride should drink the last drops, as the keeper of the hearth.
Step 6
Then, to the sounds of solemn singing, follow the priest around the lectern, where the Cross and the Gospel lie. Walk around the lectern three times and wait for the priest to remove the crowns from you and congratulate you on your marriage. At this, the wedding ceremony is considered over, and the young can receive congratulations from relatives, friends and loved ones.
