![]() ![]() Rev 19:8 And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints. Just as earthly brides are adorned in beauty, so also the Bride of Christ will be presented to Jesus as a chaste, pure virgin. White, of course, is the raiment of righteousness and purity. Here comes the bride-and she’s all dressed in white. When the time is right, Jesus will come to receive His Bride, the Church. ![]() Jesus will come on the clouds from His Heavenly place, a place that we on the earth have not yet seen and we don’t know where it is. This prefigures what we are told will happen at the Rapture. Usually, he enters from an undisclosed room in which he has been waiting until the time to come forward to receive his bride. No one really knows from where he has come. With the invited wedding guests gathered, seated, and looking forward, the groom traditionally enters from the right side of the church. In churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave forming a cruciform (“cross-shaped”). It’s now an event venue called “ The Transept.” That’s a great name for a wedding venue, eh?Īs defined by Wikipedia, a transept is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the edifice. My daughter’s wedding was held in a historically restored, 1814, German Gothic design church. Many churches are built in the form of a cross with the length of the building being crossed by what is called a transept. And it will be more lavish and extravagant than any earthly celebration! Here are my thoughts for your consideration. May the typology of an earthly wedding be a reminder that God’s perfect plan for our glorification, as the Bride of Christ, awaits us. But remember, no pattern, typology, or metaphors “fits” perfectly in how they teach us about heavenly and spiritual things. Many things in our world are typological of God’s design and His prophetic plan. Now, before I share my thoughts, let me remind you that this is simply symbolism and a pattern that points to a promise. Setting aside the amazing fact that his bride agreed to this unusual change of tradition, it caused me to wonder, “Does an earthly wedding ceremony prefigure the ultimate wedding, when Jesus comes for His Bride? Is there a ‘picture’ in the bride and groom coming together as one that points to the Church and Christ being united?” Therefore, the Bridegroom should come to receive his bride, prefiguring how Jesus will come for His bride, the Church. The groom was a Christian, seminary graduate, teacher/preacher, and he believed that the wedding ceremony prefigured the Rapture. Years ago I heard about a Christian wedding ceremony in which the Bride stood at the front of the church and the groom came down the aisle to meet her. That’s partially covered in Are We the Bride of Christ Now? Or is That Future? While there is a great deal of typology in ancient Israel’s marriage customs, this is about Christian marriage ceremonies that are held in the times in which we live. For example, an appropriate time might be at the close of the liturgy, just before the final blessing and recessional.Before starting, understand that this is not about the Jewish marriage traditions. If permitted, the lighting should be done outside The Order of Celebrating Matrimony itself. Some parishes allow the unity candle practice because of its personal meaning to the couple. One reason the church’s marriage liturgy does not include lighting the unity candle may be because its popular meaning-two lives becoming one-is already profoundly signified through the couple’s exchange of vows and rings and in the nuptial blessing. We honor the Paschal Candle because it represents Christ, the Light. From this candle, all the candles given at infant and adult baptisms are lit. Our most important candle is the Paschal or Easter Candle, lit at the Easter Vigil. Lighting candles, however, does have great significance in the Catholic Church. A unity candle is not required, and in some churches, it is not allowed. Lighting the unity candle, though not part of the Catholic rite of marriage, is common in Catholic weddings. ![]()
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