Why You DON"T Need Three Readings in Your Non-religious Civil Wedding Ceremony
In removing religious content and references from the marriage ceremony civil celebrants and non-denominational wedding officiants have converted religious practices, such as incorporating three readings and blessing of wedding rings, into their secular equivalents without necessarily questioning that they should be included at all.
The reason there are three readings in the religious marriage ceremony is because a Christian religious marriage ceremony is defined as a service of worship and all services of worship include a reading from the Old Testament, New Testament and the Epistles.
Each has a particular liturgical importance and religious significance because they are from different parts of the scriptures that Christians regard to be holy.
Remove that significance and it is hard to justify the necessity for including three poems, three extracts from works of poetical prose, or a mix of these.
And it definitely is not necessary to have them read one after another so that they create a sort of intermission in the ceremony.
That is not to say that readings do not have a role in a marriage ceremony.
They can perform three very important functions:
The good news is that when the rigid three-readings-in-here structure is removed you are free to include what you want read wherever in the ceremony it will have the greatest impact and contribute to the flow of the ceremony rather than impeding it.
Question the practice, choose your reading(s) if any mindfully, include it in the ceremony where it best fits, and relax and enjoy an amazing wedding ceremony that speaks to the heart of everyone there.
The reason there are three readings in the religious marriage ceremony is because a Christian religious marriage ceremony is defined as a service of worship and all services of worship include a reading from the Old Testament, New Testament and the Epistles.
Each has a particular liturgical importance and religious significance because they are from different parts of the scriptures that Christians regard to be holy.
Remove that significance and it is hard to justify the necessity for including three poems, three extracts from works of poetical prose, or a mix of these.
And it definitely is not necessary to have them read one after another so that they create a sort of intermission in the ceremony.
That is not to say that readings do not have a role in a marriage ceremony.
They can perform three very important functions:
- Having a reader come up from among the guests to read a poem or piece of prose is a visual opportunity to emphasise the connection between the couple and the community of friends that supports them.
- A reading can provide a concise commentary on some aspect of the relationship or of marriage in a way that taps into both an emotional and intellectual wellspring of meaning
- A reading can add light and color to the ceremony by taking the focus off the officiant/celebrant.
The good news is that when the rigid three-readings-in-here structure is removed you are free to include what you want read wherever in the ceremony it will have the greatest impact and contribute to the flow of the ceremony rather than impeding it.
Question the practice, choose your reading(s) if any mindfully, include it in the ceremony where it best fits, and relax and enjoy an amazing wedding ceremony that speaks to the heart of everyone there.
