Pagan Marriages:
 

How many of our wedding customs are "pagan" in origin???

Re: Pagan Marriages:
 

How many aren't?

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Take the flower petals sprinkled down the aisle, for instance. Their purpose is to prevent evil spirits from following the wedding party during the ceremony. Evil spirits of course, hate the smell of flowers (hence all the bouquets), and wouldn't be caught dead walking on them!

Actually, I just made that up. Pretty good, though, isn't it? :heeheehee

Re: Pagan Marriages:
 

:(I really believed you there for a minute) :smack

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:laffatu

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Timmy is on some kind of drugs

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Mmmmm... I wonder how many you can spot in just this one video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-94JhLEiN0

Re: Pagan Marriages:
 

Nope you fell for it........:smack

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I heard that the "wedding cake" is of pagan origin.

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The wedding ring.

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Throwing rice.

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The wedding arch.

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Something borrowed, something new...

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I wonder... how many of those who condemn Christmas trees and traditional Western holidays had a "pagan wedding"??? :heeheehee

Re: Pagan Marriages:
 

pagan origins:

Deodorant
Telephone
Internet
Building cities (Gen 4:17)
Living in tents (Gen 4:20)
Owning cattle (Gen 4:20)
Playing the harp and organ (Gen 4:20)
Skilled in welding (Gen 4:22)

:happydance

Re: Pagan Marriages:
 

:heeheehee

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*sigh*

We always go here don't we?

Re: Pagan Marriages:
 

I don't condemn Christmas trees... I just don't participate in it myself.

Our wedding contained no wedding rings, no white dresses, no rice being thrown, no arches, no lighting of candles, no flower petals being sprinkled down the aisle etc. And our marriage has lasted wonderfully for over 20 years.

The interesting thing is that I didn't know anything about pagan origins back then. I still participated in Christmas for 3 years after we were married. Some of those things just didn't "feel" right so we didn't have them and others... I guess God was just being good to us and leading us beyond our current understanding.

So that was your point huh?

Re: Pagan Marriages:
 

I agree with Dig.

I don't condemn others for celebrating Christmas, I just do not participate in it.

I did not learn of the pagan origins of Christmas until I was around 50 years old. How's that for a late bloomer? :heeheehee

However, if I knew 29 years ago what I know now, I might have done a few things different with my wedding ceremony.

I just marvel that I lived most of my life in pagan customs and did not even know it was pagan customs. Does it hurt to inform people and let them make up their own mind how they live their life?

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Great post...

:thumbsup

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...was just having a lil fun...:highfive

People's understanding of pagan differs from person to person. What an American might call pagan, an Asian might refer to as their culture.

To me, pagan is coming into agreement with the devil by way of one's actions. But I don't see inanimate objects as pagan.

Some people worship gods made of wood.
Some people use wood for their houses.

People worshipping wood does not make wood bad in my opinion...hope you get my drift...:thumbsup

Re: Pagan Marriages:
 

HA... Drift... wood... drift wood. LOL...

This is the way I look at it for myself.

First... our whole world is pagan... the clock... the calendar etc. We can't free ourselves of all things pagan... that's for sure.

What I busy myself with are things that involve my worship to God etc. I want to rid what I offer to God as worship and any rituals between me & God from things that were created to worship another God.

It is my desire to rid my worship of rituals etc that were designed to worship another God to the best of my knowledge and ability.

Re: Pagan Marriages:
 

For the sake of discussion,

What if, instead of ridding oneself of things that were made to worship another god, a person uses those things to worship the one True God (with the knowledge that those other "gods" do not exist?)

Re: Pagan Marriages:
 

Why give our Creator second best? Why give to Him something that was created for a non-existent god?

It's like an afterthought....Oh ...this god does not exist so maybe I can worship this way for the Creator of the universe?

Give to Him that which pleases Him, not made originally for other gods.

Re: Pagan Marriages:
 

Col 1:16
For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him:

Strictly speaking, nothing was made originally for other gods. They might have been USED TO worship other gods BUT they were not MADE originally for other gods.

So using that line of thought, my suggestion about using things that were previously used to worship other gods to worship the One True God was more along this line (as an example):

Rom 6
19 I put this in human terms because you are weak in your natural selves. Just as you used to offer the parts of your body in slavery to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer them in slavery to righteousness leading to holiness.

Re: Pagan Marriages:
 

Oh...I dunno my good friend. :) I was just responding to your post:

:icecream:heeheehee

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Ha..I see...

I meant USED...lol

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I'm running pretty busy right now and I'll have to return to your posts when I can... but before I do I'd like to know... Are you being serious?

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How can we consider ourselves married in the eyes of God when the Minister proclaims, "by the power vested in me by the state of ______ I now pronounce you man and wife"?

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:smack

Quit messin with an old woman's mind here. :heeheehee

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lol...serious about what?

I mean like let's say, pre-conversion, a person used their home to for ungodly parties.
Then after conversion, that person uses their home for a house fellowship.

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:happydance

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What is done at marriage ceremonies today does more to appease church folks and the state than God.

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Either you just completely aren't even getting what we're even discussing... at all... or you're just playing games.


I'm going with games.

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Yep.

The state cares little for the religious side of a marriage or for God.

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There is also the old mariner tradition of the Captain having the legal power to perform weddings. I always wondered what they say. Is it something like "by the power invested in me by the Seven Seas AArrrrrr, I now pronounce you man and wife."?

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That's one angle.

One could say... all things belong to the one true God. Nothing should be reserved for a false god. Dominion thinking.

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Romans 14:22-23 "Hast thou faith? Have it to thyself before God. Happy is he that condemneth not himself in that thing which he alloweth. And he that doubteth is damned if he eat, because he eateth not of faith: FOR WHATSOEVER IS NOT OF FAITH IS SIN."

Paul here is referring to idol worship, which is basically the topic of this discussion, or pagan customs.

If we tried to rid ourselves of each and every pagan and idol custom or thing in our lives, we really should just go hide out in a mountain somewhere, and live like a hermit off the land, because otherwise, we will be dealing with some form of pagan idol/worship on a daily basis.

For if we follow the Julian calendar and refer to today as Monday, we are speaking of a pagan thing. It is almost virtually impossible to live in our culture without being a part of some sort of pagan symbol, idol, or custom.

That being said, if we WORSHIP anything other than the one true God, and give our allegiance, and life over to it, that is a totally different thing. As long as our FAITH is in Jesus in whatever we do, then I believe God accepts it, even as Paul said, whatsoever then is not of faith, is sin.

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It is impossible to rid oneself of all pagan influence.

I'm not a fanatic about it though. I just go where I am led by the Spirit in this regard.

My husband and I took our wedding rings off (very paganistic I am told)

But we did not do it for that reason. My fingers got fat. :heeheehee

My husband lost weight and he was afraid his ring would get caught in one of the machines he works with and mangle his hand.

I am thinking of going to the jewelers and have it stretched so I could wear mine.

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Amen. I agree!

:lol Good for you