Friday 5 March 2010

mighty stories, dangerous rituals






we're going to start working through our wedding liturgy at some point. i'm really, really excited about this aspect of marriage prep....
here's a beautiful quote from Herbert Anderson/Edward Foley on the subject...

"the marriage ritual is a nonthreatening place for a couple to begin to explore the relationship betwen the Jesus story and their life togtether, because it focuses on an objective* liturgy and not on the couple's faith. it provides a useful framework for reflection on the future of their marriage . since the marriage rite consists pf a seriees of prayers, readings, and blessings interspersed with musical interludes and symbolic gestures, the task of planning the ritual could simply focus on selcting and arranging these various elements. if, hower, our aim is to foster "weddings that wed", preparing for the ritual is more like a theological relfection than logistical planning. As they consider various parts of the wedding ceremony, the couple is invited to search for the Jesus story in their own narratives of faith in order to enhance their practice of living with contradictions."

Marriage is a wedding of stories.