Marriage Covenant Ceremony
Whenever I officiate weddings, I teach that marriage is not a contract, but rather a covenant made before God. A contract is ‘a method of transaction for mutual benefit in which a period or obligations are determined in advance.’ If it is not in the interests of either of the parties, it can be broken at any time. However, a covenant made before God must be kept, even if one party tries to break it. It is just like how God did not abandon us to our sins but kept His promise to save us, even to the point of death on the cross.
There are cases of young people living in Australia who have received permission from their parents to get married, registered the marriage, but are unable to hold the wedding right away. We also see situations where people postpone marriage because they can't afford it. In these cases, it would be better to have a “marriage covenant ceremony” first. There is a church that first implemented this “marriage covenant ceremony” (Down Church in Korea) and there, it was held as a special item during their service. At our church, I think we could hold the marriage covenant ceremony during Wednesday prayer service. The intended order of the marriage covenant ceremony is as follows.
1. After praise and worship, the senior pastor will call the two people to come to the front. 2. Following the senior pastor’s lead, they will take the time to make their vows before God. 3. They will place their hands on the Bible and a blessing prayer will be offered.
4. The two will be declared husband and wife before God. 5. Those who attend will have a time to celebrate and bless them. 6. A communion service will be held just for the two of them. 7. The two will each say their vows. 8. They will receive the prepared “Marriage Covenant Certificate.” Since I am a certified Australian marriage celebrant, my marriage will be officially recognised. However, since a wedding ceremony will be held separately in front of both parents, the celebration of the marriage covenant ceremony will not be excessive, and if required, it can be held without a great burden of preparation.
The marriage covenant ceremony itself is a marriage ceremony, but if you will be having another, separate wedding where the parents are present, it can be applied in the sense of an Israeli engagement ceremony that is a commitment to marry until the wedding itself. I hope that this will enable a good culture for young adults at our church who are worried about postponing their wedding for various reasons.
Word of the week
House church is fundamentally required for registered church members. This is because, when meeting with new members, registration is conditional on participation in house church. When registering, please first participate in a house church before completing the registration card.
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이동주 2024.05.11 21:43
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Whenever I officiate weddings, I teach that marriage is not a contract, but rather a covenant made before God. A contract is ‘a method of transaction for mutual benefit in which a period or obligations are determined in advance.’ If it is not in the interests of either of the parties, it can be broken at any time. However, a covenant made before God must be kept, even if one party tries to break it. It is just like how God did not abandon us to our sins but kept His promise to save us, even to the point of death on the cross.
There are cases of young people living in Australia who have received permission from their parents to get married, registered the marriage, but are unable to hold the wedding right away. We also see situations where people postpone marriage because they can't afford it. In these cases, it would be better to have a “marriage covenant ceremony” first. There is a church that first implemented this “marriage covenant ceremony” (Down Church in Korea) and there, it was held as a special item during their service. At our church, I think we could hold the marriage covenant ceremony during Wednesday prayer service. The intended order of the marriage covenant ceremony is as follows.
1. After praise and worship, the senior pastor will call the two people to come to the front. 2. Following the senior pastor’s lead, they will take the time to make their vows before God. 3. They will place their hands on the Bible and a blessing prayer will be offered.
4. The two will be declared husband and wife before God. 5. Those who attend will have a time to celebrate and bless them. 6. A communion service will be held just for the two of them. 7. The two will each say their vows. 8. They will receive the prepared “Marriage Covenant Certificate.” Since I am a certified Australian marriage celebrant, my marriage will be officially recognised. However, since a wedding ceremony will be held separately in front of both parents, the celebration of the marriage covenant ceremony will not be excessive, and if required, it can be held without a great burden of preparation.
The marriage covenant ceremony itself is a marriage ceremony, but if you will be having another, separate wedding where the parents are present, it can be applied in the sense of an Israeli engagement ceremony that is a commitment to marry until the wedding itself. I hope that this will enable a good culture for young adults at our church who are worried about postponing their wedding for various reasons.
Word of the week
House church is fundamentally required for registered church members. This is because, when meeting with new members, registration is conditional on participation in house church. When registering, please first participate in a house church before completing the registration card.