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Questions:
(1)
To get married in the Orthodox Church, do both parties have to be
baptized in the Orthodox Church?
(2) Does the wedding ceremony have to be in the Church building itself
or can it be at another location?
(3) How does the Church view re-marriage by a divorced individual? Is
there a required annulment process?
(4) Are there any pre-wedding requirement? I.e., classes, etc?
(5) Can we get married on a Friday or
Saturday? |
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Answers:
Very
Rev. Ihor Kutash
kutash@unicorne.org
1. No, but they both must have
been baptized and at least one must be an Orthodox Christian.
There are some Orthodox communions that require that both be
Orthodox prior to marriage (as you may have noted in "My Big Fat
Greek Wedding" - although I don't recall whether this was
required of the groom or whether he did it simply to share
communion with his bride).
2. Many Orthodox Bishops require that the marriage be celebrated
in the Church building, but there are some in my experience
which have permitted it to be celebrated elsewhere when there
was a good reason for it.
3. Some Orthodox Bishops require - and may issue upon the
recommendation of the priest who is preparing the couple - a
"removal of the Church blessing" upon a marriage. Some will
simply give the blessing for the (re)marriage based upon such a
recommendation. Usually priests will not take it upon
themselves to celebrate such a marriage without their Bishop's
counsel and blessing.
4. The priest will normally want to meet with the couple once or
several times to counsel and prepare them. Or there may classes
available - or literature or audio-visual material that the
couple will be asked to go through. Such things are very useful
at any rate. Marriage is one of the most important steps people
can take in their lives - well worth any effort to prepare for
this spiritually as well as psychologically. To have a marriage
end in divorce is always a great tragedy - especially when there
are children involved. Please do take the time to prepare, to
pray, to ponder, to discuss. There are still no guarantees -
except that the Lord, Who chooses us and guides us in our
decisions, as we seek His blessing and help, will never abandon
but always be there with us and for us. And so should we
endeavour to remain with Him and for Him. This makes for a
blessed marriage and family!
5. Traditionally, the most appropriate
time to celebrate a marriage is on Sunday afternoon. This is the Lord's
day - the day of His Resurrection by which He confirms that He has won
His Bride, the Church, by His suffering and death. The Icon of the
Resurrection shows him raising Adam and Eve from their tombs - they
represent the Church, the company of all those saved by Him through
their ongoing, dynamic reception of this victory. What a great day to
enter into the Mystery of Holy Matrimony, led by Him!
However this is not always convenient since a Marriage is followed by a
reception which may go on into the wee hours of the morning and make it
difficult for the guests to get to work on Monday. Hence Marriages are
very often celebrated on Saturday as a concession to the couple's desire
to celebrate this joyous moment with their family and friends - although
this then makes it difficult for them to get to the Sunday Liturgy as a
result. Fridays are usually avoided since that is the day we remember
the Lord's Passion and so are solemn and fast in company with the
faithful, who strive by penitence and effort to share in His Passion so
that they could better share in the joy of His Resurrection each Sunday.
For more information please see the
summary of articles on
weddings on this site.
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