White Wedding

Some of our friends from church told us that we missed the first white wedding at church. I knew there weren’t too many white people who attended so I wondered who had gotten married while we were away. After they told me, I realized that white wedding simply means formal wedding with a white dress!

During our times in Papua New Guinea we have been privileged to celebrate and commemorate with our friends some of the more significant moments of life. I have been involved in the birth of 2 babies, we have attended several funerals, a handful of New Testament dedications and most recently we were invited to the wedding of our friend and associate pastor of our church, Mr. Martin Mareco. I was so excited about attending this event not only because I love weddings, but because I had not attended a PNG wedding before. I was imaging thebeating of Kundu drums as the chief led the groom into the area dressed in traditional grass skirts. The bride would come after the blowing of the conch shell and she would arrive adorned from head to toe in feathers and shells with bright markings on her cheeks. I imagined the traditional dancing and decorative guests as they gave gifts of pigs and clay pots. Imagine my (slight)disappointment when it turned out to be an almost exact, though lovely replica of the many “western” weddings I have attended in my life—complete with the wedding march, the kiss, and sharing of cake bites. One exception however, was the inclusion of the word “obey” in the vows. I had not heard this word used in too many American weddings of my generation. Though it was not as I had imagined, it was actually a beautiful reminder that things are changing for the better for many of the Papua New Guineans. Marriage in the past has not always been formally or officially recognized. One of our friends here shared how if a man and woman move into one another’s home, then they are considered married. The flaw that comes from this “tradition” is that when either one moves out, the marriage can be considered dissolved, leaving a string of unwanted spouses and children in the wake. This lack of accountability and commitment has created a dissolution of family units and family values in the country. Please pray for the people of PNG as they take steps toward strengthening the family unit through these “white” weddings.

Mr. Martin Mareco

Martin and Groomsmen

Can you find us?

The Father Escorts His Daughter Lao

The Unity Candle

Martin and his lovely bride Lao

Frying Fish for the Wedding Feast

Pastor Harry Serves the Cake

Auntie watches over the abundance of food brought by the guests.  Plenty of greens, fish, chicken, pig, sweet potatoes, bananas and rice filled the plates of the many guests.