Marriage is the intertwining of two lives, but there is no guarantee that two people who fall in love will share their religious beliefs. However, having differing religions need not be a barrier to your your perfect wedding ceremony. By celebrating beliefs from both of you and drawing on traditions and rituals from two faiths, it is possible to create a perfect wedding ceremony that celebrates and encapsulates what makes your relationship special and unique.
It can be a delicate balance as couples will often want to combine two sets of traditions without upsetting their families, as well as creating the the perfect ceremony, but with the support of your celebrant this can be navigated sensitively so that everyone is kept happy, whilst creating a ceremony that reflects your commitment and values.
An interfaith wedding ceremony will often mix religious traditions without having to label the wedding to any specific faith, some interfaith couples choose to follow traditions very closely, while other couples will simply choose a nod to tradition. Choosing the location for an interfaith wedding can be difficult, as it will need to be a neutral location. The joy of using a celebrant for an interfaith wedding, is that you can also choose exactly where you want your wedding to take place without any constraints as to the content of your ceremony.
You might be looking for ways to include spiritual elements that feels special for both of you. My objective as a celebrant, first of all, is to listen to how you visualise your ceremony, what will it feel like, what kind of rituals might it include that are important to you both. This would lead to discussions and (some research!) and chats over coffee, so that we can plan a ceremony that feels right for you both. Some ways we can do this are:
Choosing readings that are special and significant to you by authors of the same faith whose views reflect yours, or readings from scriptures if you want to focus on more religious content.
Carefully selecting music or songs that nod to tradition
Including rituals from both religions that are important to you
You could even include explanations and translations of specific religious customs so that family and friends can understand, and participate in, unfamiliar traditions.
We can also invent new rituals to modernise or combine rituals from two faiths
The structure of the wedding ceremony can be designed exactly as you want it
Vows can also be written so that they are personal to you and stay within the bounds of your two faiths and traditions
Everything is optional of course, and discussion and planning is everything. If you are planning an interfaith wedding and are ready for an informal chat do contact me and we can have a chat.
