The Christ Light in Marriage

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We are pilgrims on a journey,
 fellow travellers on the road;
 we are here to help each other
 walk the mile and bear the load.

2 Sister, let me be your servant,
 let me be as Christ to you;
 pray that I may have the grace to
 let you be my servant too.

3 I will hold the Christ-light for you
 in the night-time of your fear;
 I will hold my hand out to you,
 speak the peace you long to hear.

4 I will weep when you are weeping,
 when you laugh I'll laugh with you;
 I will share your joy and sorrow,
 till we've seen this journey through.

5 When we sing to God in heaven,
 we shall find such harmony,
 born of all we've known together
 of Christ's love and agony.

Today Jocelyn, our second child and older daughter, marries her fiancé Jeff in Whitby. They have been together for eight years and already have a family, Ruby and Ronan. Well Ruby is feline, and Ronan is canine, but they are definitely kin to Joce and Jeff.

I am very impressed by them as a couple. They are both doing well in their chosen vocations, they are homeowners, and they voted in the advance polls. Of course what is such a relief to us as parents is that their love for each other is evident and they make each other happy.

Since our family is lousy with clergy I get to walk Jocelyn down the aisle with Ruth while her brother Isaac presides at the ceremony. Her cousin Michael could have been in that role as well, and there are two grandfathers and a great uncle who will be present as part of the ministerial cloud of witnesses.

We put no pressure on the couple to make this a 'ligious ceremony, but they have chosen to include God in the various elements of the service, which warms our hearts. So often that isn't the case today, and we are grateful, because Christ and the Christian community were important in our family through the years.

My brother Eric, and cousin-in-law John Abrams are accomplished musicians and they will play and sing The Servant Song, at Joce's behest. And the pipe organ of Trafalgar Castle will sound forth at the hands of Patrick Dewell, son of Doug Dewell, our music director at St. Paul's during the decade I was there.

Please pray for us all on this day of celebration!