Many different wedding traditions have developed over the years in the Christian church.

There’s the tossing of the bride’s bouquet and the removal of the bridal garter. There’s also the tradition of the wedding cake and of course, the tradition of the wedding ceremony itself.

Most of these traditions have been around in some form for many centuries. However, few traditions that are held during Christian weddings today have developed in popularity as quickly as the lighting of personalized unity candles.

What Are Personalized Candles?

Personalized  candles are the ones used during the unity portion of the wedding ceremony. At that point in the ceremony, the bride and groom light a unity candle together to signify the melting of their lives into one being.

The ceremony itself is comprised of two long taper candles and the bigger unity candle. The mothers of the bride and groom will both light one of the taper candles before the ceremony begins. Then the bride and groom will each take the taper candle that their own mother lit and light the middle unity candle.

After the unity candle is lit, the bride and groom either blow out their candles to signify that they are completely one now, or they can place them side-by-side with the unity candle to show that they are one, but still retain their individuality.

Personalized unity candles have increased in popularity as the wedding industry continues to boom. Personalized unity candles are unity candles that have some sort of personalization added to them by the marrying couple. Personalized unity candles can have anything from their names to a favorite quote inscribed into the candle. The couple can then save this as a reminder of the most important day of their lives.

What is the history behind this ceremony?

The personalized unity candles have really come into popularity within the past thirty years, unlike other wedding traditions that have been passed down from generation to generation. It is not known if unity candle ceremonies were originally created by Christians. However, Christians are the religion now known for this ceremony.

Unity candle ceremonies were further popularized by a popular daytime soap opera in the early 1980’s. After the unity candle ceremony was performed on the show, many newlyweds-to-be expressed an interest in this ceremony and its popularity continues to grow to this day.

Make Your Wedding About You

Ask any wedding planner, and she will tell you to make your wedding about you and your future spouse, not anyone else. You can partake in tradition, or you can create your own. What is most important is that you let your wedding day go down in memory as the best day of your life. Don’t let someone else, like popular culture or your family, dictate what your wedding will be like.

Photo by RichInMN

 

Photo by Corey Ann