Filipino Wedding Traditions 

Filipino Wedding - Facts and Trivia
Congratulations on your upcoming wedding!  Read about Filipino wedding traditions and the Filipino cord & veil ceremony below:

• Traditionally, Filipino wedding expenses are paid for by the groom’s family in the Filipino wedding. However nowadays, Filipino wedding couples give their share from their own savings. Some Filipino wedding couples even pay for all the wedding expenses themselves.

• The Filipino bride holding an heirloom rosary with the bridal bouquet during the nuptial mass was a practiced tradition. This Filipino wedding tradition is now being revived by some Filipino brides to honor their Catholic heritage. Instead of a bouquet toss, some Filipino brides opt to offer the flowers to a favorite Saint or to the image of Virgin Mary at the church, or on the grave of a loved one.
• Filipino wedding couples have a few pairs of Ninongs & Ninangs (godparents) to stand as witnesses in the Filipino wedding ceremony.
• Most Catholic churches don't allow a Sunday Filipino wedding. A Catholic Filipino wedding ceremony is held with a full mass that runs about a hour.

• Aside from the exchange of rings, the giving of the arrhae (money in the form of 13 pieces of gold or silver coins) is a part of Filipino weddings as the Filipino groom's pledge of his dedication to the welfare of his wife and children.
• The arrhae is carried by a coin bearer who marches with the ring bearer during the Filipino wedding processional and recessional.
• If the Filipino couple intends to have their own Filipino wedding vows, they need to inform the officiant.
• Most Filipino brides prefer a custom-made wedding gown than having it ready-made off-the-rack.

• The most popular month for Filipino weddings in the Philippines is December (until early January) and not June.
• Filipino grooms walk down the aisle solo or with his parents.
• Filipino wedding Invitations usually have an insert that includes all the names and roles of each in the bridal party.
• Aside from the bridesmaids and groomsmen, three pairs of wedding attendants stand as secondary sponsors who facilitate in the Filipino wedding tradition of the wedding candle, veil and cord ceremony held during the Filipino wedding. The candle sponsors each light the Filipino wedding candles located at each side of couple. The flame from the candles symbolize God's presence within the union. The lighting of a unity candle is sometimes used as a variation.

• Next, the veil sponsors will drape and pin the long, white veil on the Filipino groom's shoulder and over the Filipino bride's head. This Filipino wedding tradition symbolizes the union of two people "clothed" as one.
• Finally, the cord sponsors stand up with the cord (a silken rope, a string of flowers or links of coins) in the form of a figure eight, and each loop is loosely placed around the neck & shoulder area of the Filipino couple. This Filipino wedding tradition symbolizes the infinite bond of marriage. The veil and cord Filipino ceremonies can have the couple 'tied-up' together while kneeling for almost half the time during the Filipino ceremony.
• As part of the Filipino ceremonial dance at the reception, some Filipino couples incorporate a Filipino wedding tradition of the “money dance,” where guests pin dollar bills on either the Filipino bride or groom and in return they get a chance to dance with them.
• Filipino newlyweds release a pair of white doves during the reception to signify a peaceful and harmonious marital relationship.

Filipino Wedding Traditions

The Cord and Veil Ceremony
In the Filipino wedding tradition the Cord and Veil ceremony is done at the end of the wedding after the couple has been pronounced husband and wife.

The officiant reads as the veil sponsors, usually a male and female from each side of the family, place the white veil over the shoulders of the kneeling couple.

The veil symbolizes living under God's protection and being clothed as one. The cord is looped in a figure 8, the symbol of infinity, and placed over the couple by Cord Sponsors. It represents the ties that bind the couple together who will now walk through life as equals.

Sample Reading for the Filipino Cord and Veil Ceremony

Officiant: [Name] and [Name], this veil covers you today reminding you and us that Christ covers us in his love. Your new home will be a place where God dwells because you have chosen to live under the mantel of His love.

The Officiant reads as the cord sponsors place the figure eight cord over the necks of the couple. The cord used alone is also known as the Lasso.

Officiant: The Cord looped and crossed in the center is wrapped around the bride and groom to symbolize the Blessed Trinity; the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit who are one and the same. This cord without beginning or end symbolizes this same union and the infinite nature of your marriage.

Your Ultimate New Jersey Wedding Officiants 
You are ready to say, "I do!"  You are in love and have found the right person to marry, but who's going to pronounce you "husband and wife?"  At Best Wedding NJ, our New Jersey Wedding Officiants have performed hundreds of New Jersey wedding ceremonies throughout the state of New Jersey.  Our New Jersey Wedding Officiants are committed to making your special Filipino wedding a day to remember! 

Call now for a FREE consultation with one of our New Jersey wedding officiants and find out why we are the number one choice of couples in New Jersey!  Call 732-262-3037 or contact us on the form below.  Be sure to include your wedding date and location.

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