Since ancient times in Russia, one of the most important pre-wedding ceremonies was a parental blessing. The very meaning of this word sounds like “praising the future.”
Why do I need a parental blessing?
The decision of young people to marry or get married against their parental will never boded well, because only a parental blessing for a wedding was considered a pass to a happy family life, bestowed peace and prosperity. Pronounced with true faith, it had a special power and meaning. The rite of blessing was so obligatory that if the bride and groom were orphans, they turned to godparents, and if they did not remember them, then the most respected people in the village were invited to the role of planted parents, to whom grateful children had to provide assistance and respect until old age. Today, despite the ongoing changes in the life of the new generation, fashion trends and addictions of modern youth, centuries-old traditions are still strong. However, about howbless your son before the wedding, unfortunately, not everyone remembers and knows how to perform this beautiful sacral procedure with a daughter.
How should the blessing ceremony take place?
So, let's try to figure out how to bless your son before the wedding?
According to the old custom, the blessing occurs as follows: after the procedure for the redemption of the bride in her house, before leaving for the registry office, just before leaving, the parents pick up the oldest icon of the Savior and the Virgin in the house, the bride and groom they kneel in front of their parents, and they, in turn, put the sign of the cross over them with an icon, read a prayer and say their parting speech. The blessing of a son before the wedding (as well as daughters) is not only a wish for happiness and wise advice on how to save it, but also the approval of the choice of the children of their other half. It is at this moment that the bride becomes the daughter of the groom's parents, and the groom, respectively, the son of the bride's parents. This ceremony is always very touching and rarely leaves anyone indifferent. In the old days, after the blessing ceremony, the bride often cried, as she left her father's house forever.
More things to know…
Before you bless your son or daughter before the wedding, you need to make sure that young baptized people are the main condition for performing the ceremony.
Traditionally, the daughter had to be blessed with the icon of the Mother of God, while blessing the son beforethe wedding may have been both an icon of Christ the Savior and St. Nicholas the Wonderworker. The icons with which the parents blessed the newlyweds were sent to the newlyweds' home after the wedding to keep and protect their fragile family happiness for many years. They become a true family heirloom and are passed down from generation to generation.
As the Bible says, God has given fathers and mothers a special power over their children, which they must use wisely and lovingly. Therefore, the rite of parental blessing is a tremulous, exciting and responsible moment not only for the newlyweds, but also for their parents.
