This is a sweet little Christian tradition stemming from Ireland in which a bride carries a white bible instead of the bouquet down the aisle. Typically this bible is a family heirloom that has been carried throughout the generations.
As I read a bit more about this tradition, I also discovered that some families host a White Bible Ceremony instead of the bridesmaids tea. During this ceremony, it is the families hope to put the focus back on the spiritual meaning of the wedding versus the chaos of the details. The ceremony starts as the mother-of-the-bride (the groom's mother can do this as well or a grandmother) presents her daughter with the white bible that was present at her wedding and passes on a bit of advice. Then each person presents the bride-to-be a flower symbolizing different aspects of life and marriage: red carnation signifying important decisions such as where to live and whether to have children, a yellow rose for sincerity and a white carnation for purity of heart. Then greenery is added to represent Christian growth and the groom's mother binds the flowers together.
Even though I don't see a lot of California brides giving up their bouquet for this tradition, I love the idea of taking a few minutes before the ceremony to incorporate a White Bible Ceremony just before walking down the aisle. The white bible with the flowers can then be placed by the guest book or even brought into the ceremony by the Maid of Honor and placed at the alter.
See y'all next Sunday!
Photo Credit: Southern Weddings Blog
Content Credit: Southern Weddings Blog and The Decatur Daily
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