Wedding ceremonies are often tied to religion in many cases. If the couple is from the same faith, planning may be able to go pretty smoothly – at least as far as the ceremony itself is concerned. But what about when two people of different faiths want to tie the knot? If you’re in the middle of planning a mixed-religion wedding, we have a few tips. Keep reading for what you need to know about how to plan an interfaith ceremony.

Take Your Time

The engaged couple may already have an image of their future wedding in their mind, so they might be less willing to negotiate right away. Instead of rushing right into planning, take some time to be engaged and figure out the best way to approach your interfaith ceremony. Seeking guidance from a clergy or couple’s counselor could help. This is an excellent opportunity to talk about what role religion will play in your new life together after the wedding.

Choose Your Traditions

If your and your fiance’s faiths are important to you, try to include both in the wedding ceremony. Feel free to mix and match the elements that each of you finds to be wedding necessities. In the end, you should each feel that your religion is included just as much as you want and that your wedding feels like the wedding you’ve always wanted.

Choose an Officiant

It can be challenging to choose an officiant comfortable with doing an interfaith ceremony, but it isn’t impossible. Since religion plays a big part in your lives – and your wedding – you’ll want an officiant or officiants that will honor both religions and be willing to offer a blend of rituals. Choosing two officiants – one from each faith – could work out for the best; you’ll have two clergymen who can accurately perform each faith’s rituals appropriately. The two officiants can then perform the ceremony together. If you choose two officiants, make sure they know how the ceremony will be performed and which traditions and symbolism may need to be explained.

Educate Your Guests

If you want guests from both sides of the wedding couple to be at ease during the ceremony, consider setting up a wedding website. It’s a popular choice for engaged couples to set up sites to accept gifts, donations, and RSVPs, but a website is also an excellent opportunity to educate your guests about the upcoming nuptials. For example, a page explaining the different faiths and wedding ceremonies – and how they’re important to the couple – will help your guests feel more informed and involved.

Unity Ceremony

If you’re having an interfaith marriage to highlight the different religious traditions of the couple, a unity ceremony could be a great addition to emphasize that even though the newlyweds come from different faiths, they still are united in their new life.

Lighting a unity candle together is a popular symbolic gesture during a unity ceremony, but feel free to choose an action or item that is more personal to you and your fiancé.

Even planning an intimate wedding with a limited number of guests can be overwhelming. To bring your small wedding to life with a justice of the peace service in a small chapel or location of your choosing near Boston, contact Justice Lydon & Co today! We look forward to working with you.