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Etiquette on the Front (posted 24 December 2005)
So I have a question of etiquette. I’d write Emily Post, but I’m on a tight schedule.
In about a month I’m going to be a guest at a Jewish wedding ceremony. Let’s say I plan on getting up in the middle of the ceremony in order to shout a liturgical reading from Corinthians towards the bridge and groom, and start passing out blessed hosts and wine to the guests, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Now, they haven’t asked for me to do any of this, of course, but I figure that it’s just a nice way to spread wedding day cheer in a Christian society.
That shouldn’t be perceived as rude, should it? I mean, you’re not some kind of secularist, launching a War on Christian Marriage, are you?
Happy holidays, y’all.
Mz Manners replied:
This is a very good question. I believe it would be most appropriate to put your plan into action at the wedding. When Jews invite Gentiles to their function it is expected that they will share (in some cases force) their particular religious beliefs with the group. Don’t be shy! You could even bring your priest as your guest in case anyone actually wants to partake in communion (or confession).
Your friend,
Mz Manners
Otto Kerner replied:
Honestly, if you were a Christian, and seriously believed (as almost all Christian sects supposedly do) that non-Christians are going to hell when they die, I don’t see how you could justify not doing this sort of thing. Well, except for the purely pragmatic case that it is more likely to irk people and drive them away from you than it is to convert them.