Christian Wedding Symbols And Symbolism

During a marriage ceremony and reception, there are a number of familiar Christian wedding symbols to be seen.

What do they mean? Why do we do certain things at weddings? Did you ever think about it? Let's take a look at a few of these....

Here in the United States, most brides wear a white or off-white dress to get married in. Many years ago, the color white symbolized the sexual purity of the bride. (I would like to add that for born-again Christians, it still does.) Back then, if you had children out of wedlock, or if you were pregnant (that is, if anyone found out), or if this was a second marriage, you could not wear white at your own wedding.

Now, white is a color for all brides to wear. Designers even make maternity wedding gowns. If this is your second or third marriage, fashion allows you to still wear white.

Why does the bride wear a veil? When I was a little girl, my mother took her bridal veil out of her hope chest and showed it to me. It was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen.

Back in the 1950's when she got married, the veil was used to cover the bride's head and face. Then when it was time to kiss the bride at the end of the ceremony, the groom would lift the covering from the bride's face for everyone to see as he kissed her.

My mother told me that wearing the veil meant that the bride was innocent and modest. In other words, the bride was a virgin with a good reputation.

Now, just like with the white dress, the veil is a romantic and pretty part of the bride's outfit and most brides wear some form of a veil. Some brides wear a headpiece such as a tiara or flowers or a beautiful clip in their hair instead of a veil.


Wedding Rings

The wedding ring is perhaps the most familiar of Christian wedding symbols. Rings actually come from pagan rituals performed many centuries ago. Men would braid grass together and wrap it around the ankles and wrists of their brides. Why?

They believed the ankle and wrist bracelets would stop the bride's spirit from leaving her body. Interesting, huh?

Today, the ring is a symbol of never-ending love and fidelity. Interestingly, even in the church, married people cheat with other married people.

And why do we wear the ring on the third finger of the left hand? Way back when, people believed that the ring finger of the left hand was connected by a vein to the person's heart. Putting the ring on that finger gave it a mystical power to keep a marriage and love intact.

Asian Traditions

Many of our Christian wedding symbols actually started in the ancient world, long before Christianity began, like throwing rice. This custom came from Asia. Rice symbolized fertility. It was thrown at newly married couples thousands of years ago to insure that they would have many children.

Traditions From England

In England, out in the country, when the happy couple walk into the church together to get married, the church bells chime a tune. After the wedding, as the couple leave the church, the bells chime out a different tune. The bells were once thought to keep evil spirits away.

Wedding bells are popular as Christian wedding symbols. You often see silver bells hung up as wedding shower and reception decorations. Here is where this wedding symbol came from.

Wedding Bible

Below, on this page is an article about The Heirloom Wedding Bible. Now, there is a way to make your day even more meaningful, for generations to come. You can choose an Heirloom Ceremony Bible to use in the wedding, and have as a keepsake for the rest of your lives together. Please read Susan's article below and then read my review of this Bible. They sent me one and I just love it! This is the perfect Christian wedding symbol to add to your ceremony.

Traditions From India

We have neighbors who came from India. They have some very interesting customs, clothing, and holidays, and they have the most delicious food. We went to a Diwali celebration here in San Antonio and the smells of the foods that were being served were incredible. The colorful costumes were beautiful to see. Below is an Indian groom on his wedding day in New York City, riding an elephant! No, not a Christian tradition, but the photo, courtesy of Twitter and Good Morning America, is an interesting one!

Below it is one of the Indian wedding party.

An Heirloom to Treasure

by Susan Armstrong
(Haysville, KS, USA)

The Wedding Bible is a symbol of your faith.

It's your wedding day, and everything is perfect. The flowers are beautiful, your unity candle is ready to light, all your friends and family are here to help you celebrate this moment.

Now, there is a way to make your day even more meaningful, for generations to come. You can choose an Heirloom Ceremony Bible to use in the wedding, and have as a keepsake for the rest of your lives together.

This beautiful Bible is designed just for weddings, for brides who truly want to include a symbol of their faith as part of the ceremony. Sometimes it is placed near the unity candle. Others have it open on the altar until the time for scripture readings.

Instead of having your best friend, or your sister or aunt stand up and read a Bible verse from a folded piece of paper or stumble over the small print in their Bible, ask them to use a Bible you will treasure forever.

The Heirloom Bible has special features that make it perfect for the wedding ceremony. It's a large, illustrated Bible with a gold-embossed cover, and it is designed specifically for use in wedding ceremonies.

It includes a section where you can choose from favorite wedding scripture verses, and they are printed large enough to read easily from the lectern in your church.

There is also an area to document the names of the participants in your wedding, and a place to begin your family tree information as a new couple. It's the kind of keepsake you will treasure the rest of your life, because it was used in your wedding and represents your first Bible as a couple.

Since studying a family Bible is one of the most important ways to keep Christian marriages strong, the gift of an Heirloom Ceremony Bible often comes from a pastor or a mother or grandmother. To make this keepsake even more personal, your names or the date of your wedding may be embossed on the cover.

I know of couples who have had the scripture read from the Bible during the ceremony, and then the Bible is presented to them as a couple at the end of the Wedding Ceremony, just before they are introduced to the congregation. What a special way to put your faith first, as you begin your life together!

Heirloom Family Bible
by: Juanita

Susan,

When I opened the box and unwrapped the Heirloom Family Bible, I was delighted to see both my name and my husband's name imprinted in gold on the outside front cover of the Bible. My husband, a pastor, and I love it. It is truly beautiful with the gold-leaf pages and the attached ribbon bookmark. We are proud to display it in our living room, allowing visitors to see that God plays a very important part in our lives and in the lives of our three children.
The family section in the front is great for recording all of the important events during a couple's marriage, along with a history of both the bride's and groom's family trees. What a beautiful keepsake to pass on to the couple's children!
The dictionary in the back is helpful. The four colored resource sections are a nice feature. With one for the loss of a loved one, one for wedding Bible verses, one for Christmas scriptures, and one for the Easter story, you can easily find important verses when you need them.
I understand that this beautiful Bible is used to share wedding Bible verses during the actual wedding ceremony, read by someone special to the couple, and then it is presented to the couple as a wedding gift. This is a great idea and a great way for young couples to start their married lives together. The personalization on the front cover makes The Heirloom Family Bible the perfect wedding gift.
This beautifully bound Bible will grace any home. It is the perfect size for a coffee table book. I believe this is a gift that any Christian couple will treasure over the years, as they read it together, allowing the Lord to bless and strengthen their marriage.
Thank you for the opportunity to review this Bible. I highly recommend it to Christian couples to use in their wedding ceremonies. In years to come, it will be a beautiful reminder of their special day, to be treasured always!
--Juanita

"Pull Together!"

by Abby
(Kent Ohio)

My mother and dad were married in the Little Brown Church in the Vale, in Nashua, Iowa, in 1939. After the ceremony, the minister had them ring the bell. "Now pull together like that for the rest of your lives!" And they did. They were married for nearly 60 years when my dad died at 86.
My husband and I also rang the church bell at our marriage, as did my son and daughter-in-law and soon my daughter and her fiance.
It was a wonderful feeling, pulling that big rope and hearing the bell ring out over our town! I highly recommend this tradition.

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Abby,
I love this idea. What a beautiful picture of a husband and wife working together to have a great marriage. Thank you so much for sharing this!
--Juanita

Crowns Of Vines

by Petro
(Keiv)

In the Ukrainian Catholic church the man and the woman wear crowns of vines. I don't know what this is for. Do tell me.

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Hi Petro,

I had to do a little research on the wearing of vine crowns. It is very interesting. Near the end of the marriage ceremony, the bride and groom are crowned with myrtle vines shaped as a crown. Myrtle represents purity and love between the bride and groom. It also represents fertility so they will be blessed with children. The crowns are placed on the couple's heads to represent the making of their own kingdom where they are the rulers and they are partners with Christ, and they owe it to Him to live a married life of honor and commitment. The couple then says their vows with their hands on the Bible.

Thank you for bringing this to our attention.

--Juanita

Revelation 19

by Ashish Pandey
(Delhi,INDIA)

I would like to quote about the color of Bridal dress in a Christian Marriage:
The white wedding dress has a two-fold significance. It is a symbol of the wife's purity in heart and life, and in reverence to God. It's also a picture of the righteousness of Christ described in Revelation 19:7-8. Christ clothes his bride, the church, in his own righteousness as a garment of "fine linen, bright and clean."

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Ashish,
Thank you so much for the correction and for the addition of Revelation 19:7-8. That is beautiful and I appreciate you including it here!