Eastern Orthodox Wedding

britafrica · February 2010

Anyone here having a traditional Greek or Russian Orthodox Wedding? If so how "traditional" are you making it? What customs are you including or excluding?

bel138 · February 2010

If you have questions about the Liturgy, I might be of some help, as I'm Eastern Catholic and the ceremony would be virtually indistinguishable.

I usually see Orthodox posts on the customs and traditions board. They might be able to help you a bit more there.

jkara525 · February 2010

I have a cousin who is strict Greek Orthodox and when she got married she did a short ceremony. I was not raised Orthodox so it is why i'm not doing an Orthodox ceremony. My cousin, did the crowns and had the koumbaro move the rings back and forth between the bride and grooms fingers. She also had her groom meet her at the door of the church and walk her down the aisle. I had not seen this before and was so confused...found out that basically it's a nod to the Greek custom where the bride and groom walk into the church first and are followed in by all the guests. From what I have seen, that is not something commonly done in America but is done in Greece sometimes. Not sure if you are Greek or Eastern so I don't know if this applies to you.

Your Priest should be able to help you construct the ceremony...and figure out the tradtions to include that are important to you and your FI. When my parents got married 45 years ago, they did like a 90 minute ceremony to include all the customs but I think that even the strictest of Orthodox couples are cutting back these days. No matter what you decide to do, the elements of the Orthodox ceremony are unique and beautiful so you can not go wrong. Hope this helps!

Blueyed228 · February 2010

My family is Greek Orthodox and my sister had the traditional greek wedding. We are only half greek so my dads side did not know much about the ceremony (along with quite a few guests). In the program she gave little paragraph explanations about what was going on and in the meaning behind it. So many people are used to vows etc, it made it easier for them to understand what was going on and they thought it was neat being able to follow it in the program.

Also, the candle that she had to hold the whole time was HEAVY and she started sweating trying to hold it up, lol, so keep that in mind when you choose your candles.

And the stefanos (sp?)- crowns- that she got kept getting stuck in her hair when the priest lifted them so make sure you wrap them in satin so they sit easy and dont catch.

britafrica · February 2010

Thanks everyone! I'm actually Russian Orthodox, but grew up in a Greek Orthodox church (because it was the closest Orthodox church to us). We'll be headed back to the Greek church I grew up in for our ceremony. We are doing about a 15 minute betrothal ceremony and 45 min wedding ceremony. I've created a wedding program that outlines the symbolism of the pageantry, so non-Orthodox attendants will be able to follow along and appreciate the unique ceremony. If anyone would like a digital copy of this - just e-mail me, I'd be happy to share! Cheers, B.

dazapp · March 2011

My fiance's family is greek orthodox and mine is catholic. We are told we can have a dual ceremony. Anyone have this experience in NYC and have any advice?

Brookely12 · May 2011

If your fiance is Orthodox and wishes to remain in the Orthodox Church, you must have and Orthodox wedding. Marriage is a sacrament in the Orthodox Church and finds its foundation in the Eucharist. Thus, if being able to commune in the Orthodox Church is important to your fiance, you will want to have an Orthodox Ceremony. You cannot combine ceremonies. If you have questions about the Orthodox doctrine on marriage, you can find good answers at www.oca.org (site for the Orthodox Church in America). I'd also recommend Marriage: An Orthodox Perspective by John Meyendorff. My fiance and I are reading that now as we prepare for our own Orthodox wedding.

doctabroccoli · May 2011

I have no input since I'm Roman Catholic, but I just wanted to tell you guys to post more often! This board is very heavily swayed towards Roman, and it'd be great to have more diversity!

ravenray · May 2011

I would be interested in looking at that. I am Russian Orthodox so not cradle born. I didn't even know you could leave things out? But then again I have only been to like three weddings and two of them were for people getting remarried in the church. But then again the Russians are slightly different from the Greek.

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