Earlier this year, I had the privilege of presiding at the wedding of Kate and Matthew (pictured above), when they were married at St. Mary Magdalen. I was very pleased subsequently to receive a photo of the couple and I hope to hear from them in the future about their journey through life together. What an important occasion it can be for couples! Sometimes they save up for a year or two in advance for this special day in their lives. The fact that they want to make this such a priority suggests the importance of the occasion for them.
We want this important occasion to be really special for you. This means that each couple has to think carefully about what they want to include in the service. The wedding ceremony planner of the Church of England is a great help here, because it can enable couples to produce a customized service sheet for discussion with the minister. The other thing which I think is really important is for the couple to think through together the reasons why they fell in love with each other, why they want to get married, and what their expectations are of each other in married life. If this is written down and sent to me as minister, it acts both as a guide to the address that I give at the wedding ceremony itself, making it more personal; and very importantly, it helps make the couple more confident that they have joint expectations and aspirations for their married life together.
We want marriage to be for life. Don’t get it wrong: think it through carefully with each other well before the day. Do you want to share your home with others, making it a place of hospitality? Do you want children, if you are so blessed? Do you want to bring them up as Christians? Are you prepared to be completely open with each other about the past and the present (the future will look after itself if you are)? These and many other questions are worth pondering on and spending some time on together before you commit yourselves publicly. There is an old adage that a problem shared is a problem halved. Is that to be your sort of marriage, a marriage of equals? Is it to be a marriage built on love, respect and mutual trust? If so, please contact us if you would like to be married at St Guthlac’s!
