This past Saturday, I went to the wedding of my friend, James, to his seminary sweetheart, Michelle. It was an absolutely gorgeous wedding ceremony, though a bit longer than most I’ve been to. This was primarily because whereas most weddings I’ve attended have strictly focused on the process of marrying a couple (vows, rings, etc.), there was a much broader element of worship involved this time. It was all quite beautiful.
One of the most interesting aspects (to me, at least) was the fact that the newlyweds administered Communion to everyone. James had mentioned to me that they planned to do it, as both he and Michelle had wanted their first act as a couple to be one of service to others. It was a beautiful thing.
Another interesting twist they put into the service was the dismissal process. Rather than having everyone pass through a receiving line, James and Michelle chose to re-enter the church and individually dismiss their guests themselves. It was a wonderful touch and made the whole process seem more personal.
The wedding also served as something of a reunion for many of us who were friends while attending Susquehanna University. About ten of us who had been involved in Acts 29 attended the wedding, many bringing their spouses (for those who married outside our merry band of misfits) and children. And even Dianne, our old IVCF staffworker, was able to make it with her husband. As a result, everyone was able to spend some time catching up and learning what each other had been doing.
Of course, there was also a number of people from Asbury Theological Seminary present, as James and Michelle had made many common friends while attending there. As a bonus, this meant that I was able to meet Cathedral Days blogger, Michel, who also happened to be James’s best man.
Sunday morning, those of us from Susquehanna who were able to stay in the area met at the Williamsport Perkins for breakfast. By this time, our number was down to a mere nine adults and three children. Yet, the restaurant found it challenging to put together enough seating for all of us. But after fifteen or twenty minutes, their efforts paid off.
While at Perkins, Gerry gave me the third degree about the jewelry I was wearing. I had to go through each pendant as well as my bracelet and ring, explaining the significance and/or purpose of each. It turned out to be a pretty nice conversation.
I have created a photo album for this wedding. Currently, only the pictures included in this entry are there. I hope to add more later this week.
Nice!
I wanted to have communion for everyone at my wedding, but I thought about it, and it wouldn’t have worked very well. There was a mix of protestants and catholics and non-christians there, and I wouldn’t have known how to make it not awkward. I wouldn’t have had a problem with whoever wanted to take the communion, because their heart isn’t my business, but I didn’t want to make to awkward for those wondering if they should do it or not.
I ended up just having communion with Sam and it was really nice.
Aww, I love weddings. Me and my husband consecrated and served the cakes and wine at our Wiccan handfasting – some people felt they should not partake, but that was fine. It was nice to have a little contact with everyone – and I admire your friends’ commitment to service to others.
Anyway, congratulations to your friends.
We had a similar situation at James’s wedding, Yvonne. There were about four or five of us who chose not to partake. Fortunately, we were able to simply remain in our seats as everyone else went forward. No one even gave us funny looks. Though Gerry’s wife, Christine, gave me a funny look when I suddenly moved to the end of the pew beside her just before our pew went forward. I think she eventually figured out I wanted to make sure I got out of everyone else’s way when they went forward. 😉
I’ve been to weddings where we were individually Dismissed and one’s where they had the Welcome Line (of everyone in the wedding party) outside, Ive never considered one action more special than the other.
From what I understand, interfaith communion requires special permission from the bishop to pull off beforehand (at least for those in the RCC). I imagine that Christian communion would have to get similar permission in advance as well.
Actually, no. Most mainline/Protestant churches (including both the Wesleyan and Methodist churches, which James and Michelle belong to respectively) welcome anyone who profess Christ as Lord and Savior to partake in communion.