Joining Hands and Hearts: Interfaith, Intercultural Wedding Celebrations--A Practical Guide for...

Joining Hands and Hearts: Interfaith, Intercultural Wedding Celebrations--A Practical Guide for Couples | Susanna Stefanachi Macomb | Praise for Joining Hands and Hearts

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Joining Hands and ...

	Joining Hands and Hearts: Interfaith, Intercultural Wedding Celebrations--A Practical Guide for Couples Susanna Stefanachi Macomb Atria, 2002 - 336 pages average customer review:based on 23 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

So you're getting married! The wedding is the most gloriously celebrated of life's rites of passage. Today couples of all faiths, colors, and cultures are choosing an interfaith ceremony for its spiritually inclusive and personal approach. It is a way of rejoicing in our differences and celebrating our commonality in an atmosphere of mutual love and respect.

If yours is an interfaith, intercultural, or interracial union, then you have already embraced a love that knows no boundaries. What could be more beautiful? But now that it's time to make a public statement to the world, you may suddenly be filled with questions: How do we make sure that our ceremony is a reflection of our love and our relationship?

How do we remain true to ourselves and still make our families happy?

How can we create a wedding ceremony that merges our religious, spiritual, cultural, and personal beliefs? Can we do this without offending or alienating anyone?

Who will officiate at our ceremony?

When and where will the ceremony take place? Which rituals will we include?

Joining Hands and Hearts will help you answer all of these questions and more, with a detailed questionnaire to help you learn more about yourselves and each other, practical guides to structuring an interfaith wedding ceremony, tender counsel on how to work with your families, and the most complete manual of religious, cultural, and universal rituals, prayers, vows, and blessings available. In warm, inclusive language, Reverend Susanna Macomb guides you through the most sensitive of issues with love and encouragement. She offers the stories and ceremonies of other couples to inspire you. You are not alone!

Interfaith, intercultural, and interracial couples bring healing and hope for all of us. You are the future, and Joining Hands and Hearts can help you celebrate your union with all of the love, grace, and magic it deserves.

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great book from a great person

Rev. Macomb's book is a must not only for those who are planning interfaith or intercutltural weddings. I'd say it's a must for ANYONE who is planning a wedding b/c it is laden with wisdom, knowledge, and real compassion and emotion. There is a multitude of beautiful readings that are pertinent to various parts of a ceremony, as well as a treasure-trove of tid-bits and historical facts about so many cultures. Most importantly, the book keeps things in perspective: why you are getting married, why it is important, and what it means. The book is well organized and well written, and has an honest and spiritual voice that is both calm and soothing.

We were lucky enough to have Rev. Susanna conduct our ceremony--she is a genuine and kind person who really loves and cares about what she does, and if you can't have her actually marry you, then this book is the next best thing!

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Praise for Joining Hands and Hearts

This book truly shaped my special day. The author is tremendously knowledgeable about a wide array of cultures and rituals. I am a Black American woman married to an Indian American man. I knew that I wanted to infuse both of our backgrounds in our wedding ceremony. Her book provided all I needed to do that. We answered the questionnaire featured in her book where we were able to illustrate our feelings toward our upbringing, families, and each other. These words were then interlaced throughout our ceremony. We incorporated our families into the ceremony as well - having them take part in certain rituals and reading our words of love to them. From her book I was able to pick out the rituals that I liked the most and that I felt tied in both of our cultures the best. We poured libation, tied the knot, exchanged rings and garlands, took the seven steps, jumped the broom, and of course kissed. Her book even had a number of readings associated with each ritual that I was able to choose from. Everything was absolutely perfect thanks to Reverend Macomb and her book. Her kind human spirit really comes through. I could not recommend her book more passionately.

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A wonderful guide to interfaith unions

Since we are based in the UK, I wasn't at first sure how useful this book would be to the European context but it has been a truly uplifting and empowering book, offering guidance on how to turn an interfaith wedding into what it is: a celebration of love that knows no religious or cultural boundaries. Susannah Macomb shows a good understanding of the sensitive nature of interfaith relationships, such as difficulties in articulating and managing our own and our families' expectations. The book deals with the often difficult realities of interfaith relationship while being optimistic and encouraging. By giving specific examples of how to integrate different cultural aspects into a wedding ceremony it is both a practical guide as well as spiritually nurturing.

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Sound piece of mind

I seriously encourage any couple of either mixed faith, culture, heritage, or any couple seeking guidance for their wedding to purchase this book. Rev. Susanna has put together a wonderful book that will put a stressed brides mind at ease. She gives you ways to deal with the stresses both large and small of your wedding. My Fiance and I are of mixed race, faith, and culture so we knew going into this wedding there would be challenges but not to the extent we have seen. Once I recieved this book I couldn't stop reading it. There are stories of both happy and sad times surrounding a wedding. I am at a better state of calmness after reading this book and want to thank Rev. Susanna for creating this book for brides like me needing help.

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Consider your expectations before ordering

I'm an interfaith minister and perform about 100 weddings per year. When I saw the title, "Joining Hands and Hearts: Interfaith, Intercultural Wedding Celebrations..." I thought it would have some good reference information and practical perspectives for my ministry.
As it turns out, this is one of those books that seem to be popular today that encourages couples to conceive and write their own wedding ceremony and then find a celebrant to perform it according to their instructions.
In the real world, at least the one I know, there are very few wedding officiants who work this way. Yes, of course we try to elicit the couple's thoughts and preferences and prepare a ceremony to suit their beliefs, backgrounds and personalities. But the only celebrants I know who will simply step up and read the couple's text are the ones who are just going through the motions, for a fee.
Most of this book focuses on walking the couple through an examination of all their thoughts, feelings, and life experiences; discussing possible implications; and then planning the content of their ceremony-- none of it being done with any guidance or input from a professional (except the writer).
It has a lot of pages, and occasionally raises a good point for consideration. But I think any member of the clergy should have learned all this long ago, and a bridal couple should be doing their planning with the person they've selected to perform their ceremony, so they can benefit from the knowledge base and practical expertise.

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reviews: page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

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