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Crowned with Glory and Honor: Guidelines for Orthodox Marriage Preparation

This brochure presents readers with a set of helpful guidelines for Orthodox marriage preparation, including such concepts as the meaning of crowning, and the purpose of the Betrothal Service. Department Director Khouria Maggie Hock encourages all parishes, couples and families to make use of this valuable, free resource.

Holy Matrimony is a sacrament of the Orthodox Church in which a man and a woman agree before Christ, the priest, and the Church to be loyally united together for life. Christ blesses their marriage through their sacramental union in the Church. God’s grace is imparted through this ceremony to help the couple live together in His love, mutually fulfilling and perfecting each other. A sacrament is a mystery in which the heavenly and earthly realms are brought together by the Holy Spirit. We are joined in Holy Matrimony with Christ, as He is the Bridegroom and the Church is His Bride.

Click here to download the brochure in full.