On my last blog, I wrote about the thoughts running through my head as I was walking down the aisle to my groom.
On this blog I would like to share with you the main highlight of the wedding ceremony. In most wedding ceremonies the highlight is the exchange of vows. That moment when the bride and the groom vow to each other, “for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death us do part…”
No, that was not the highlight of our wedding ceremony. The highlight was our priest - at least his homily.
Now don’t get me wrong, the whole ceremony was wonderful. But like all brides say, the whole ceremony really will go by sooo fast the next thing you, know, the ceremony is over!! And that’s the exact same thing that happened to ours. The whole thing went by so fast, I was excitedly looking forward from one part of the ceremony to another that before I realized it the whole ceremony was done and the photographers were asking us to pose for pictures.
Our exchange of vows was sweet, but sadly unremarkable. In the movies, the couple recites the vows while looking at each other with so much love in their eyes. That wasn’t it at all for Kelvin and me. We were simply following the priest’s instructions and just read the vows from the small booklet we didn’t have to time to look into each other’s eyes. Looking back at our ceremony, I wish we had said our vows slower, giving us time to really digest what we were saying to each other. But all in all, the vows were sweet, traditional, and romantic.
But like what I said, the vows weren’t really the highlight of our ceremony. The real deal was the priest’s homily.
Why, you ask? You can ask all of our guests and they can surely tell you why. In fact, one of our guests even posted about it.
What was the priest's homily about?
Ladies and gentlemen, the priest talked about animals of the same gender having sex on the streets.
Yes, folks, you read that right. He asked us if we have ever seen two male dogs having sex on the streets.
You see, we soon found out that the good father was massively anti same-sex marriage and anti-divorce. And he clearly expressed his dismay during our wedding ceremony.
He first asked Kelvin if he was a man and he then asked me if I was a woman. He then spoke vehemently about us fighting for man-and-woman marriage, and that divorce isn’t legal on the Philippines.
He also said that humans are worse than animals. Inside a church filled with, well humans!
He asked everyone, “Can you imagine a dog in the streets; a dog, male and male doing sex at the same time? No you can’t do that! Or a cat! So Kelvin and Ellaine, you should fight for that institution, marriage!”
He also talked about marriage binding a man and woman forever. At one point he told Kelvin, “You cannot return Ellaine to her family, or you cannot even exchange for another woman. And this will last forever and ever!”
Now this one I totally agree with! Haha!
Our brilliant video team of course captured the incredible homily. Here it is for your viewing pleasure!
Some of our friends asked us as to what was going through our minds during the homily. Looking back I remember Kelvin and I holding hands so tight I thought our bones would break. Kelvin was stroking my hands trying to soothe me, he was probably afraid I would freak out or something.
Personally I had mixed feelings. First, I couldn’t believe that the priest was talking about gay marriage and divorce when Kelvin and I are not gay and we’re not getting a divorce. In fact, we were doing the exact opposite! We certainly cringed when the priest mentioned the cats and dogs of the same gender having sex on the streets.
Second, I felt awkward a little embarrassed because a good number of our guests (and suppliers!) were gay! It was so awkward I couldn’t look around to check how they were reacting.
And third, I finally felt relief when father finally talked about us and stressed on the importance of marriage and not separating or having a divorce.
Was I upset? No I was not. I thought I was going to be. But I wasn’t; not even at that moment. I was shocked, I felt awkward, and a bit embarrassed; but I was not upset. I realized I was feeling so much love from Kelvin, from our families and our guests I had no room for anything else. I was too happy to feel anything else.
And now I ask myself, had I known would I change anything? Hmm I probably would. But then again, if anything, his homily made our wedding ceremony all the more memorable. Something Kelvin and I would talk about for years and years to come.
Note: The priest wasn’t the original priest who was supposed to marry us. The parish priest of the Air Base who was supposed to marry Kelvin and me was called away by the base commander on our wedding day so he had to find a replacement.
#KelandLeng2015
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Wedding Blog: http://www.kelvinandleng2015.blogspot.com/
My life's blog: http://www.sentimentsofleng.blogspot.com/
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