Dumb question regarding weddings

[haapai]

Every single wedding that I remember attending has included the story of Ruth and Naomi.  I'm Protestant and not a big wedding-goer, but I have to wonder if this is absolutely standard procedure or if this story is a bit of an elective.  I've encountered it at second marriages that involved blending families, marriages across doctrinal differences, marriages among die-hard liberals, and marriages among folks who were well aware that someone in the front row of pews could not legally marry the person that they love. 

In other words, I've attended four Protestant marriages in the last twenty years and they all mentioned Ruth and Naomi.  My sample is kinda small and kinda blue-leaning, so I really have to ask if this is boilerplate or customized.  

[resolution]

I had a Catholic wedding and no Ruth or Naomi. We were given a booklet with maybe four different versions of the service to choose between. The booklet also had lists of more common Bible verses to choose for different segments of the service. I don't particularly remember Ruth and Naomi in with the selections but I suppose they could have been one of the options.

[andi9899]

I'm catholic and have never heard of this, so I'm gonna say it's not standard. Well, at least not at catholic weddings.

[Tennesseer]

?

Wedding Lectionary: Ruth 1:8-11a, 13b-17

[Wisconsin Beth]

I've heard it at Catholic weddings.  We didn't use it on ours but we did get to use my favorite verses from Genesis for the 1st reading.  To be honest, as long as I got that reading in, I wasn't worried much about the other ones. 

[Blonde Granny]

Back in the old days , 50+ years ago, it was simply the wedding vows and nothing anywhere near what could be considered a church service. However, that was the Methodist church also. Perhaps other church denominations  have their own way of doing it.

[zibazinski]

Disappearing post again.     I'm afraid I'm one of those people who feel not really married if it isn't a religious ceremony. When DH was first diagnosed I wanted to be married in his temple by his old rabbi. I'm not Jewish but I wanted a Jewish ceremony. The story of Ruth was to be incorporated.  I like it. But we ended up getting married Jan 1 by the water in a very cut and dried ceremony. About as special as my proposal-not. If we ever get out of this hospital and have a life again, I want a religious ceremony. Probably never happen. 

[myrrh]

I can't say I've ever been to a wedding where I heard the story of Ruth and Naomi. And I think I would remember as one of those names is mine.

[Peace77]

I don't recall ever hearing the story at a wedding.  It wasn't used used at any of mine.

[thyme4change]

Never heard that story, and I have been to a dozen protestant weddings.  Although, I have only been to 2 in the past 4 years - neither of them told the story.  

[haapai]

Hmmm... interesting results.  I knew my sample was small and skewed.  Now I wonder if couples chose that liturgy because there were already children in the picture or because they had forced lesbians to wear heels. 

[thyme4change]

I'm not sure how the story of Ruth and Naomi even applies in a marital situation.  Isn't the story that Ruth wouldn't leave Naomi?  Is the married couple suppose to be like that?  Or, did the church ask the bride to look after her MIL if/when the hubs dies?  

[haapai]

I seem to remember very little of the back story being told.  It was just heavy on the "your people shall be my people" and "where you go, I shall go too".  It sounded like a plea to please try to get along with your new in-laws and to please fasten your seat belts because you were going to go to some unexpected and new places. 

The more of the story that you include, the more it begins to sound like a glorification of subservience. 

[Tennesseer]

Ruth was the widow of Naomi's now deceased son.  Ruth wanted to stay with her 'MIL' as she believed she was now part of Naomi's people.  But Naomi told Ruth she (Naomi) was cursed by God and it was best for Ruth to go back to her own people.    

[zibazinski]

I thought it was beautiful and see nothing subservient about it. It's a vow of loyalty and fidelity and promises not to forsake her

[taz157]

Apr 28, 2015 17:08:18 GMT -5 zibazinski said:

Disappearing post again.     I'm afraid I'm one of those people who feel not really married if it isn't a religious ceremony. When DH was first diagnosed I wanted to be married in his temple by his old rabbi. I'm not Jewish but I wanted a Jewish ceremony. The story of Ruth was to be incorporated.  I like it. But we ended up getting married Jan 1 by the water in a very cut and dried ceremony. About as special as my proposal-not. If we ever get out of this hospital and have a life again, I want a religious ceremony. Probably never happen. 

I hope DH gets out of the hospital soon. It seems like he's been there for a long time now.


For the OP - I've never heard it and I've been to a few weddings in the past several years. Also, it was not at my wedding with DH almost 11 years ago.

[zibazinski]

83 days but who's counting?

[sesfw]

I think these are words a couple say to each other as a unification of a God and family.

In other words ........ I'm not leaving you. If you leave me, take me with you.

Yes, these were said when Bill and I married in 1961 ..... and when DH and I were married in 2001. Both services in a church although different brands of protestant.

[taz157]

Apr 29, 2015 6:35:11 GMT -5 zibazinski said:

83 days but who's counting?

I hope he can go home soon.

Did the transplant fail?

[zibazinski]

Not a bit. The heart is doing fantastic. The drugs you have to take to keep the heart from rejecting also make you very susceptible to infection. We have been fighting a nasty one for 87 days now. But we might just make it out of the hospital and into rehab this time.  <img text="" alt=" " src="http://syonidv.hodginsmedia.com/vsmileys/thumbsup.png">

[sesfw]

YAHOO !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[mroped]

I attended quite a few weddings back home in Romania. When someone gets married(or dies for that purpose) just about all in town go to it.
There, all weddings hapen the same. There is a book that they use for services for each Sunday and religious holydays over the year and includes weddings and baptisms and funeral ceremonies. There is no straying away from it. All are the same. Very rigid practices.
So, in all the weddings there is a part where the priest takes the groom, bride and Godparents(yeah, you have Godparents for the new couple) arround the table three times while he chants something about a dude Isaiah dancing and such.

The weddings that I atended here, never paid attention to the service so I couldn't tell if there were two alike.