Marriage in the marriage ( Greek: στεφάνωμα (τοῦ γάμου) ) - “the main part of the church blessing of the marriage” in the Orthodox , as well as in the ancient Eastern churches [1] , or, in a broader interpretation, the “ church marriage ceremony ” [2] .
In the traditional culture of the Slavs, it is one of the culmination rituals of the wedding rite , making out marriage , along with engagement , wedding night, etc. [3]
The name is due to the fact that crowns are held above the heads of those entering into marriage [2] . Such a detail is not peculiar to Western church ceremonies of marriage [4] (for this reason, obviously, it is not entirely correct to call them a “wedding”).
In Slavic countries, metal crowns are used (sometimes from precious metals), the Greeks use garlands of flowers, sometimes artificial ones [4] .
Content
The Origin of the Sacrament
In pre-Christian Greece, the custom was to decorate married people with flowers, and their heads with wreaths . The church adopted this custom, "having cleansed of pagan attributes and supplemented with Christian elements, the main of which is the Communion of the Holy Mysteries ." Christian authors of the 1st-2nd centuries did not leave reports about how Christians got married, which gives reason to believe that they, at least in part, entered into marriages “according to the customs of the society surrounding them” [1] .
At the beginning of the II century, the rank of church marriage was not yet developed. Tertullian mentioned the participation of Christians in the betrothal and marriage of the Roman ancient ceremony. "By the 4th century, the celebration of the liturgy in connection with marriage became a common practice." Church ranks began to take shape at the same time. “The basis of these ranks is made up of Christian elements, primarily the Eucharist and priestly blessings, but rituals inherited from the Old Testament and ancient times are also used,” which include “giving the bride marriage gifts, joining the right hands of the bride and groom, and wearing the bride’s special clothes or bedspreads, putting on wreaths on the bride and groom, a wedding feast, a procession of the bride and groom in their house, singing hymns during the procession and upon arrival at the house. ” The donning of wreaths was also reported by Tertullian, who did not approve of this rite as borrowed from the Gentiles [5] . However, it should be noted that the crown (wreath) as a Christian symbol, taken from the ancient world, was inherent in Christianity from the earliest times - this symbol is already found in the texts of the New Testament (1st century AD) - including in the Epistles Apostle Paul (see, for example, 1 Cor. 9:25, 2 Tim. 4: 8 and a number of other places).
Only at the end of the 4th century did the marriage ceremony receive Christian understanding, however, St. Gregory the Theologian mentions it only as a generally accepted custom. But already Saint John Chrysostom highly praises the marriage and interprets it "as a symbol of the victory of the newlyweds over carnal pleasures." By the end of the 5th century, in Eastern Christianity, the wedding of Christians was becoming common. In the West, at the same time, the marriage ceremony corresponds to the rite " velatio ". Subsequently, the church order of marriage in the West developed differently than in the East, “and the wedding did not become its main rite” [1] .
So, the Christian wedding ceremony was rethought by Christians, but it was far from immediately that it became part of the church blessing of marriage. Probably, at first the wedding became an obligatory part of the church order only with the marriage of Byzantine emperors , as well as high-ranking officials. A detailed description of the ceremony of the wedding of the Emperor of Mauritius in 582 shows that "in the VI century, among ordinary people, the rite of marriage was still associated not with a church rank, but with a festive meal" [1] .
The order of the church rite of betrothal and the sacrament of wedding is in the treasury .
The Sacrament
Unlike, for example, Baptism , the Sacrament of the Wedding is not performed on any day. In the practice of the Russian Orthodox Church, a wedding is not performed: during multi-day fasts ; on the eve of the twelve and great holidays; on the eve of patronal festivals; during Christmas time; during the Cheese Week ; on the eve and the very days of the feast of the Beheading of John the Baptist and the Exaltation of the Holy Cross .
They do not crown both Easter itself and throughout the entire Bright Week . It is also forbidden to make weddings on Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and at night.
However, the ruling bishop has the right to bless to make the wedding and at the time at which it is usually forbidden to perform. If, in violation of all the rules, the priest performs a wedding during the forbidden time, then it will be recognized ex post facto anyway. [6]
Slavic folk traditions
In the past [ when? ] The Slavic wedding ceremony included some folk rites, including those performed at other moments of the wedding - the union of young people (tying hands, exchanging rings, a separate treat and sharing food and drink). Circling the young around the lectern in the church in a folk rite corresponded to walking around them (see salting and salting ) around the table (or stove, well, oak, home, barn, etc.) at the bride’s wedding or upon arrival to the groom; standing on the footboard, on the belt in front of the altar , corresponded with the blessing of the parents on the casing or on the belt; wedding crowns - a wedding wreath [7] .
A number of ritual actions symbolized the union of the groom with the bride and the bond of marriage. Going to the wedding, on the way or at the entrance to the church, the young walked, grabbing the ends of the scarf ( Ukrainian , Nizhny Novgorod. archang. ), a rushnyka ( Grodno. ), with hands tied together ( kuban. ). At the same time they crossed the church threshold in order to be inseparable ( Bulgarian. Dobrudzh. ), At the same time they were baptized “to live loverier”, and at once they blew out candles to live and die together ( Rus. ) During the wedding, the priest threw on them a plate ( hutsul. , Maked. ), Connected ( puddle ) or tied his hands with a scarf, rushnyk ( Ukrainian Belor. , Serb. ), two wreaths from a wedding tree ( Polish tarnobrzeg. ), at the altar they connected ( Polish. ) or pushed young heads ( Maced. ) Young stood up on one spread out footrest ( V.-Slav. , Polish. ), on one floorboard ( Perm. ), on the red belt woven by the bride ( bel. ) At the end of the wedding, the young people went around the altar, holding on to handkerchiefs ( maz. ), The bride hid behind the altar, from where she was taken out by "friendships" (friends) and handed to the groom ( Polish. ); the young were given half a broken bagel ( tarnobrzeg. ), kalacha and apple ( Slovak. ) Leaving the church, the young people crossed the castle, which they closed and threw into the river, "close the door of life for the young Bulo Naviki" ( Yekaterinoslav. ) [8] .
See also
- Marriage in Christianity
- Wedding Towel
Notes
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 Yellow, 2004 .
- ↑ 1 2 Wedding (inaccessible link) // Russian Humanitarian Encyclopedic Dictionary: In 3 vols. - M.: Humanit. ed. Center VLADOS: Filol. Fak. St. Petersburg state University , 2002.
- ↑ Gora, 1995 , p. 327.
- ↑ 1 2 "I need you to be myself." Sacrament of love: hermeneutics of promise and forgiveness . Orthodoxy and the world , portal.
- ↑ Tsypin V.A. , Zheltov M.S. , Ageeva E.A., Orekhanov G.L. Marriage // Orthodox Encyclopedia . - M .: Church Scientific Center "Orthodox Encyclopedia" , 2003. - V. VI. - S. 146-181. - 752 s. - 39,000 copies. - ISBN 5-89572-010-2 .
- ↑ Wedding calendar for any year
- ↑ Gora, 1995 , p. 327–328.
- ↑ Gora, 1995 , p. 329.
Literature
- The cult tree / T. A. Agapkina // Slavic antiquities : Ethnolinguistic dictionary: in 5 volumes / under the general. ed. N. I. Tolstoy ; Institute of Slavic Studies RAS . - M .: Int. Relations , 1999. - T. 2: D (Give) - K (Crumbs). - S. 67–70. - ISBN 5-7133-0982-7 .
- Wedding / Gura A.V. // Slavic Antiquities : Ethnolinguistic Dictionary: in 5 volumes / under the general. ed. N. I. Tolstoy ; Institute of Slavic Studies RAS . - M .: Int. Relations , 1995. - T. 1: A (August) - G (Goose). - S. 326–333. - ISBN 5-7133-0704-2 .
- Wedding // Shaparova N. S. Brief Encyclopedia of Slavic Mythology - M .: AST: Astrel: Russian Dictionaries - 2001. - 624 p. - S. 159–160
- Zheltov M.S. Marriage of marriage // Orthodox Encyclopedia . - M .: Church Scientific Center "Orthodox Encyclopedia" , 2004. - T. VII. - S. 661–668. - 752 s. - 39,000 copies. - ISBN 5-89572-010-2 .
- Markov N.F. Marriage crown // Orthodox Theological Encyclopedia . - SPb. : Edition of Petrograd. Appendix to the spiritual journal "Wanderer", 1902. - T. 3. - St. 1090
- Omelyanchuk S.V. Remnants of Paganism in the Old Russian Family - Vladimir: Vladimir State University.