Saint Markella Greek Orthodox Church
A Formal Guidance for a Greek Orthodox Wedding
For the sacramental union of a man and a woman to be proper in the eyes of the Church, the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony must be per-formed in the Orthodox Church. For such an ecclesiastical marriage to be valid, the following must be adhered to:
1.No impediment to marriage may exist.
2. A Civil Marriage License must be obtained from civil authorities and presented to the parish
Priest prior to the wedding.
3. An Ecclesiastical Marriage License must be obtained (By the Church Office) from the Diocese Department of Registry authorizing the priest to perform the sacrament.
4. At least two pre-marital meetings must take place 1 with the parish priest and a mandatory by the Archdiocese at a given date and place before the wedding.
5. The Sacrament of Marriage must be celebrated by an ONLY Orthodox priest(s) according to the liturgical tradition of the Church.
6. The priest must belong to the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese. A marriage performed by a priest of another Orthodox jurisdiction in communion with the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese is also recognized as valid by the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese.
7. Before requesting permission from the Bishop for the marriage the priest must verify:
a. that the parties in question are not already married ecclesiastically or civilly (unless to each other civilly) either in this country or elsewhere;
b. that the party or parties who are members of another parish obtain a certificate of membership from the parish to which they belong. (The Couple must become members then of St Markella.)
c. that if either or both parties are widowed, that he or she must present the death certificate of the deceased spouse;
d. and that if either or both of the parties have been divorced and/or have remarried, whether or not the remarriage was recognized by the Church, that they must present the appropriate certificates.
8. No more than a total of three marriages will be allowed by the Church.
9. When one or both of the parties are divorced, they must obtain an ecclesiastical divorce as well in order to marry again in the Church.
10. In the case of a mixed marriage, the non-Orthodox partner must be a Christian who has been baptized in the name of the Holy Trinity. A marriage cannot take place in the Orthodox Church between an Orthodox Christian and a non-Christian.
11. In the case of mixed marriages between an Orthodox Christian and a non-Orthodox Christian, the marriage must be celebrated by an Orthodox priest in the Orthodox Church according to the Orthodox tradition.
12. The couple must agree that the children must be baptized in the Orthodox Church.
12. The Sponsor (Koumbaros or Koumbara) must be an Orthodox Christian in good standing with the Church. A person who does not belong to a parish, or belongs to a parish, which is not in communion with the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese, or who if married not in the Orthodox Church cannot be a Sponsor. Non-Orthodox persons may be members of the rest of the wedding party.
13. No invitations should be printed until the date is cleared with the parish priest.
14. If the bride and/or groom have come from Greece after their 17th birthday, they must present, when they apply for their church license, a Certificate of Eligibility for Marriage from the Bishop of their town or province in Greece.
15. To insure the proper dignity and solemnity of your wedding ceremony, pictures can only be taken if the photographer speaks with the parish priest at least one half hour prior to the wedding.
16. The singing or playing of Orthodox or non-Orthodox hymns and other secular songs before or after the service must be cleared through the parish priest.
17. If the priest is expected to attend the reception a formal invitation must be sent as is done in the case of other guests.
18. If a guest priest is to be invited to participate in the service, it must first be approved of by the parish priest.
20. If the bride is under 18 years of age, and if the groom is under 21 years of age, a letter of consent from the parents must be presented at the time they apply for the Ecclesiastical Marriage License.
The following are necessary for the ceremony:
1. Rings for the bride and groom, Stefana (crowns), 2 white candles.
Days when marriage is not permitted.
1. January 5-6
2. Great Lent and Holy Week
3. August 1-15
4. August 29 (Beheading of St. John the Baptist)
5. September 14 (Elevation of the Holy Cross)
6. December 13-25
7. The day before feast days and all Holy Days of our Lord.
8. NOTE: Exceptions to the above can only be made by special permission of the Bishop of the Diocese.
Saint Markella Greek Orthodox Church
1960 Jones Ave. North – Wantagh, NY 11793
Telephone: (516) 783-5760
Wedding Arrangements
The following information and requirements are intended to provide the prospective bride and groom with guidance on the road to Holy Matrimony. The church office should be notified a year in advance in order to set the wedding date on the church calendar. An appointment with the priest should be made 40 days prior to the wedding day. At this meeting the following should be made available:
1. The Baptism and Birth Certificates. (For both the bride and groom).
2. The Wedding License from City Hall. (30 Days Prior To the Wedding Date)
3. The Official Married Address.
4. The full names of the Best man and the Maid of honor if they are also the Koumbaroi.
The current residence of the best man (Koumbaros or Koumbara).
They must both be of the Orthodox faith. If married outside the church, civilly, or
Divorce without proper Archdiocese resolution they may not participate in the
Wedding.
5. Arrangements must be made for the wedding rehearsal.
6. Arrangements must be made if you would like to have a white runner to cover the center aisle.
7. Both of the fiancées must be members or become members of our church as a new family.
Stewardship cards must be filled out prior of the Archdiocese Marriage Application.
8. The Koumbaro or Koumbara must also be a current member(s). In the event they belong to another Church they must have a letter from the pastor attesting to their good standing.
9. If either the bride or groom is not of the Orthodox faith, but is a Christian of a different denomination, they must provide that Baptismal certificate, which must be approved by the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese.
10. If one of the parties was ecclesiastically married in an Orthodox Church and obtained only a civil divorce then they must fill an application (Supplemental Marriage Form 165) AND apply for an Ecclesiastical Divorce. This application should be made at least four (4) months prior to the wedding. The application and decision of the spiritual court takes approximately 2-3 months.
11. The following are required for the wedding ceremony:
a. Two large candles.
b. Two smaller white candles.
c. A silver tray with white Jordan almonds along with the wedding crowns.
d. The wedding rings.
e. Rice to be distributed to the well wishers outside the church at the end of the wedding ceremony.
f. At the end of the ceremony, and after the guests have offered their congratulations, the Koumbaro or Koumbara must sign the wedding license documents at the Pastors’ office.
MIXED MARRIAGE:
It is a fact that the more things a couple hold in common, the more likely it will be that they live their married lives in peace and harmony. Shared faith and traditions spare the newlyweds and their children many serious problems and strengthen the bonds between them. However the Orthodox Church blesses inter-faith marriages under the following conditions:
1. The non-Orthodox partner must be a Christian who has been baptized in the name of the Holy Trinity.
2. The couple should be willing to baptize their children in the Orthodox Church and nurture them in accordance with the Orthodox Christian Faith.
If these conditions are not met, then the Orthodox Church shall not solemnize the wedding. In such a case it is possible for the couple to marry outside the Orthodox Church. The Orthodox partner, however, should then bear in mind that a married Orthodox Christian whose wedding has not been blessed by the Orthodox Church is no longer in good ecclesiastical standing with the Church and consequently does not have the right to receive the sacraments of the Church, including Holy Communion or to become a sponsor at an Orthodox wedding, baptism or chrismation. An Orthodox Christian who has been married outside the Church and who wishes to be reconciled to the Church is encouraged to request from his or her local Orthodox priest that his or her marriage be blessed in the Orthodox Church.
A non-Orthodox Christian who marries an Orthodox Christian does not automatically become a member of the Church and is therefore not permitted to receive Holy Communion or other sacraments of the Church or a Church funeral. These are privileges of the baptized or chrismated members of the Church.
THE SACRAMENT OF HOLY MATRIMONY
At the Old Testament, the Marriage was affirmed with a religious ceremony. In the Gospel, the first recorded miracle of Jesus Christ after His Baptism was performed in the wedding in Canaa in Galilee.
As Saint Paul says in his Epistle the Sacrament of Matrimony is a great mystery. The reason is that the two people from two different parents, from different backgrounds they become one. The matrimony of marriage is rich in symbols.
The Service of Matrimony is composed of two services. The first part is the Engagement service and blessing of the rings. The second part is the Wedding service and the blessing of the crowns.
The First part:
The Service of matrimony starts with petitions to God for the newly engaged servants of God. A prayer for the rings is read. The Priest blesses the rings on the Holy Gospel and after making three times the proclamation of the engagement on the newly engaged couple, he places the rings on their right hand. Then the Best man/woman exchanges by crossing his or her hand the rings on their right hand three times and at the end it places it on the right hand again. In the mean while the priest reads a great benediction including the prophets and saints of the Old Testament and New Testament and the first part concludes.
The Second Part
A start with the words Blessed is the kingdom, which usually is the beginning of the Sacrament. Petitions again to God for the new life of the people who are getting married. In the prayers abundance of every good in their home is asked from God, also love and peace to be their companion etc. Then the priest unites their hand by reading a prayer and crowns them by blessing first the crowns on the Gospel and then on their head by crowning them. Then he takes the Common cup filled with wine, sign of fertility and blesses the cup and the couple sips three times the wine from the same cup, which represents that they are one, they are united. Then the priest takes them by holding on his right hand the Gospel and with his left hand their united hands and they go three times around the small table which is at front of the altar the part called Solea, where the wedding ceremony and all ceremonies take place.
The meaning is that they first walked as husband and wife in the Church and Jesus Christ guided their first steps. The Gospel that the priest holds on his right hand represents Jesus.
Then the priest blesses with a special prayer their forehead and takes off the crowns and places them on the gospel. He splits their hands that he united earlier with the gospel and after some conclusion prayers the services finish. The bride and the groom leave the church together with the bridal party and guests.
INSTRUCTIONS FOR ORTHODOX FAITH WEDDINGS
For the union of a man and woman to be recognized as sacramental valid by the Orthodox Church, the following conditions must be met:
· The Sacrament of Matrimony must be celebrated by an Orthodox Priest of a canonical Orthodox jurisdiction, according to the liturgical tradition of the Orthodox Church, in a canonical Orthodox Church, and with the authorization of the metropolitan of the metropolitan.
· Before requesting permission from his Metropolitan to perform the marriage, the Priest must verify that:
a) neither of the parties in question is already married to other persons, either in his country or elsewhere;
b) the parties in question are not related to each other to a degree that would constitute an impediment;
c) If either or both parties are widowed, they have to present death certificates of the deceased spouses;
d) If either or both of the parties have been previously married in The Orthodox Church, they have to bring their ecclesiastical as well as civil divorces;
e) The party of the parties who are members of a parish other than the one in which the marriage is to be performed they have to provide a letter of Good standing from the Parish priest of the community they belong for the present year;
f) A month prior the wedding they have to obtain their civil marriage License from the Town Hall and bring it to the priest.