Normally all Christian wedding are celebrated in a Church. The friends and family members of the bride and the bridegroom attain the wedding celebration. Just like any other wedding in other religion Christian wedding is also celebrated over a couple of days. As there are pre wedding, wedding and post wedding rituals. An Anglo Indian Christian bride traditionally wears a white gown in western style and the groom wears a suit. The wedding rituals are conducted along with the holy mass. Like in all Indian matrimonial rituals, this community too, has an interesting lecture with an emphasis on the sanctity of marriage given by the priest. Christian wedding rituals and customs are simple and easy to follow.
Among the main pre wedding rituals there are functions like bridal shower, which is an informal hen party hosted by the bride's female friends. It is mainly a female get together to celebrate the occasion. It is a fun filled function where games are played, they sing and dance the whole night. The friends and relatives shower gifts upon the bride. The bride serves a pink cake with a thimble hidden inside. According to tradition, the girl who gets the slice of cake with the thimble in it will be the next to marry.
Welcoming the bride is done on the day of the wedding; when the groom sends a car to pick up the bride and waits for her outside the church. When the bride arrives, the Best Man welcomes her with a kiss on either cheek and hands her a bouquet of flowers. The couple walks down the aisle slowly and gracefully with the wedding procession in tow till they reach where the priest stands for the wedding mass. The priest then welcomes them and offers his best wishes. The wedding mass begins with hymns and selected readings from the Bible. The priest then delivers the homily, with an emphasis on the sanctity of marriage. The next ritual is the blessing and the exchange of the wedding rings. The ceremony comes to an end with the final blessing of the priest. The guests, towards the end, shower their blessings on the newly wedded couple. The last formality is the couple then signs the register and walk down aisle, arm in arm.
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