The Orthodox wedding ceremony is a union that takes example from the alliance between Christ and the Church. Man and woman are united not just in prospective of themselves as individuals, but also in prospective of their life as a family. By uniting two people, the Orthodox wedding ceremony blesses the human spirit, soul and body, thus giving the family a solid structure in which give birth and educate its children.

Marriage is considered a way to execute Christ’s love and the Christian heroism, although it’s not an obligatory sacrament. The weights that one carries when unmarried are to be shared with the life partner after the official union. To represent this, the Orthodox ceremony also crowns the bride and the groom to represent Christ’s dignity but also in memory of the spiked crown he had to wear on his head while carrying his cross.

When the engaged willingly promise to protect, love and be faithful to each other, it’s a promise they make not to the priest, but to God himself and to the Church.

In the Orthodox ceremony there are two fundamental parts of the process: the Betrothal and the Crowning. The first includes the exchange of the rings, the procession, the declaration of intent and the lighting of candles. The Crowning, on the other hand, includes the readings from the epistle and gospel, the Blessing of the Common Cup and the Dance of Isaiah. When the sacrament is over, the priest walks around the analoj three times (Dance of Isaiah): it represents the way of the new family leading to Christ, through the eternal life and the pain of the cross. After that, crowns are removed. Orthodox wedding ceremonies, curiously, do not include an official vow, but obligations of marital fidelity and mutual support are obviously expressed.

The ceremony ends with the Greeting of the Couple.

At Villa Poggio ai Merli we will help you to set up your marriage in Italy in the way you wish. Foreign celebrations and traditions are always highly interesting, appreciated and intriguing and the staff is willing at its best to provide all that you might need to have your unforgettable wedding ceremony in the wonderful and naturalistic Tuscan landscape of our estate.