Many couples will choose to have their wedding ceremony in a religious setting. Whatever your faith, there are certain things which may be different about a wedding in a house of worship, both for the bride and groom and their guests. This guide to etiquette for religious wedding ceremonies will ensure that everything goes smoothly on the special day.
These days it is very common for people to have friends and even family members who are of a different religion (or possibly who follow no religion at all). It is also far more common than it used to be for the bride and groom to come from different faiths. All of this diversity can lead to some confusion on the part of the guests. It is up to the bride and groom to make sure that their guests have an understanding of what is happening, and it also falls upon the witnesses at the wedding ceremony to know how to act and what to do in a church (or synagogue or mosque) wedding.
Some people would say that if the bride and groom have a large number of guests who are not members of their religion then they should have a secular or at least a non-denominational marriage service. While it is generally appropriate for the couple to take their guests' comfort into account, it is truly not fair to deny a bride and groom the opportunity to have their union blessed (or in the case of Catholics, to receive the holy sacrament of marriage). This is one of the few parts of the wedding where the couple really does have the right to put their own beliefs and wishes first; that is not to say, however, that they should not attempt to do so in a thoughtful manner.
A very simple thing which the bride and groom can do from the start is to give guests a hint about what is to come with their wedding invitations. The name of the house of worship being listed as the ceremony site should make it obvious to anyone that the ceremony will be religious in nature, of course, but there is more than can be done. It is particularly important that Roman Catholics specify that guests are invited to a Nuptial Mass, if they have opted to have a full Mass with Communion. The Nuptial Mass by its nature is one of the longer wedding ceremonies, and guests appreciate having a sense of what to expect.
When a wedding ceremony is religious in nature, it may include rituals which are unfamiliar to some of the guests. This is when a wedding program can come in really handy for so much more than listing the names of the bridesmaids or thanking your aunt for loaning the bride her pearl wedding jewelry as the "something borrowed". If a couple will be having a Jewish service for instance, it would be very nice to include brief explanations of some of the customs, such as the chuppah, so that people of other faiths can follow along and also so they can have a greater appreciation for the significance of any special rituals. It can also be considerate to include a notation such as, "We invite all those who have been baptized to join in the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist" or something to that effect at a Catholic ceremony. That helps guests know what to do; for instance in this case, it would be a polite way of letting non-Christians realize that they should remain seated during Communion.
Wedding guests have a few responsibilities of their own at a religious wedding. Chief among them is to show respect, whether they share the bride and groom's faith or not. This means dressing appropriately in demure clothing with classic accessories like pearl wedding jewelry, rather than showing up in something risque or flashy. When a guest is unfamiliar with the rituals of a particular religion, they should simply do their best to follow along: stand when others stand, sit when they sit, and so forth. Guests should not take part in any religious customs which are reserved for members of a religion to which they do not belong. And last, but not least, wedding guests should refrain from obviously checking their watches to see "how much longer this thing can possibly drag on", even if it is a full Nuptial Mass! With these pointers in mind, the wedding ceremony should be every bit as meaningful and blessed as the bride and groom intended.
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