The Sacrament of Holy Matrimony and Crowning According to the Canons of the Armenian Holy Apostolic Church

Holy Matrimony

Holy matrimony is a Sacrament of the Armenian Orthodox Church in which a man and a woman solemnly vow before Christ, the priest and the congregation to be true to each other for life. Their conjugal union is blessed by Christ through the Church. God’s grace is imparted to them to live together in His love, mutually fulfilling and perfecting each other.

The marriage ceremony of the Armenian Church is steeped in ritual and symbolism, conveying the Mystery of Christ's true presence among His people. Each of the acts that you will observe today have special meaning and significance.

The Rings

The rings are blessed by the priest who takes them in his hand and, making the sign of the cross over the bride and groom’s heads, says: "Oh lord we pray and bless these rings so that those who will wear them will be clean and inseparable as says the psalmist; "mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other" (psalms 85:10)

The Bride and Groom exchange the ring. The ring is the symbol of the pledge, commitment and solemn promise that a bride and groom make to each other (See marriage of Isaac and Rebecca, Genesis 24:47). The exchange signifies that in married life the weakness of the one partner will be compensated for by the strength of the other, the imperfections of one by the perfection of the other (vice versa).

The Joining of the Right Hands

One of the purpose of the marriage ceremony is to acknowledge publicly a life-long commitment as expressed in the pledge, "until death do us part". To express the life-long commitment of love. The Bride and groom will be asked to join their right hands.

Their right hands are joined when the Priest reads the prayer that beseeches God to "bless also your servant (name) and handmaiden (name of bride), directing them in all good works merciful and ever loving Lord our God.." The hands of the bride, the groom and the priest are joined momentarily at that point in the service signifying that the couple becomes one being and one flesh in the presence of the Church and through the sanctifying action and grace of God. The Priest hand on top of the hands is symbolic of Christ at the center of the bride and grooms union

The Crowning

The office of the crowning which follows is the climax of the wedding service. The crowns (Narod) are the sign of the glory and honour with which God crowns name and name during the sacrament and of the future glory in God’s Kingdom. They are crowned as the King and Queen of their own little kingdom, the home that they will rule with wisdom, justice and integrity.

The exchange of the marriage crowns emphasizes the mutuality and shared equality of the King and Queen.

The Common Cup

The marriage at Cana of Galilee was attended and blessed by Christ, and was the occasion for His first miracle. There He transposed the water into wine and gave it to the newlyweds. In remembrance of this blessing, wine is given to the Bride and Groom. The drinking of wine from the "Common Cup" serves to impress upon them that from that moment on they will share everything in life, joys, as well as sorrows, and that they are to "bear one another’s burdens." Their joys will be doubled and their sorrows halved because they will be shared.

Love.........

is patient and kind;

love is not jealous or boastful;

it is not arrogant or rude.

Love does not keep a record of wrongs;

it is not irritable or resentful;

love is not happy with evil,

but rejoices in the truth.

Love bears all things, believes all things,

hopes all things, endures all things.

Love never fails.

1 Corinthian 13:4-8a

For the complete text of the Liturgy of Holy Matrimony, see

The Wedding Service of the Armenian Apostolic Orthodox Church

Order of Service

Processional:

Opening Prayer: The Lord’s Prayer

Exhortation: (Priest)

Exchanging of Vows

Blessing of the Rings (presented by the Ringbearer)

The Joining of the Hands

Hymn: Nayya ee mez.

"O Christ, Look Upon Us With mercy"

Prayer: (Priest)

Introit: (Deacon)

Hymn: Ourakh Ler Sourp Yegeghetzi.

"Rejoice O Holy Church"

Bidding: (Deacon)

Reading from the Epistle: Ephesians 5:

I Corinthians 13

Gospel Reading: Matthew 19:4-6

Confession of the Catholic and Apostolic Faith:

The Nicene Creed (325-381 AD)

"We believe in one God, the Father almighty, the maker of heaven and earth, of things visible and invisible. And in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, begotten of God the Father, only begotten, that is of the same substance as the Father.

God from God, light from light, true God from true God, begotten and not made, of the self-same nature of the Father, by whom all things came into being in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible; who for us men, and for our salvation came down from heaven and was incarnate, was made man, was born perfectly of the holy virgin Mary by the Holy Spirit; by whom He took body, soul, and mind and everything that is in man, truly and not in semblance. He suffered, was crucified and was buried and rose again on the third day and ascended into heaven with the same body and sat at the right hand of the Father. He is to come with the same body and with the glory of

the Father to judge the living and the dead; of whose kingdom there is no end.

We believe also in the Holy Spirit, the uncreated and perfect, who spoke in the Law and in the prophets and in the Gospels; who came down upon the Jordan, preached in the apostles and dwelt in the saints.

We believe also only one universal and apostolic holy Church; in one baptism with repentance for the remission and forgiveness of sins; in the resurrection of the dead, in the everlasting judgment of souls and bodies, in the kingdom of heaven and in the eternal life."

Bidding:

Deacon: to guide our steps into the paths o peace, let us beseech the Lord.

Congregation: Lord, have mercy.

Deacon: To dispel from our midst all the thoughts of the evil one, let us beseech the Lord.

Congregation: Lord, have mercy.

Deacon: To bestow upon us healthy thoughts and virtuous conduct, let us beseech the Lord.

Congregation: Lord, have mercy.

Deacon: To keep us under the shelter of His Almighty right hand, let us beseech the Lord.

Congregation: Lord, have mercy.

Deacon: Let us commit ourselves and one another to the Lord God Almighty.

Prayer: (Priest): Lord have mercy…

Placement of the Narods (Crowns)

Hymn: Tak Bardzanatz

"O Glorious Crown"

Bidding: (Deacon)

Prayer: (Priest)

Removal of the Narods (Crowns)

The Blessing of the Wine

Prayer: (Priest)

Bidding (Deacon):

Prayer (Priest):

Signing of the Marriage documents

Return of the Wedding Party

The Lords Prayer

Benediction

Recessional

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