[B5JMS] Declaration of Principles at my Wedding

[b5jms at mail.fsl.cs.sunysb.edu]

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From: Jim Royal <jimroyal at canada.com>
Date: Wed, 21 Jun 2006 19:26:13 +0000 (UTC)
Lines: 46

This past weekend, I married the girl of my dreams.

Our wedding was rather unconvential. She's a muslim, I'm an atheist.
And since we were not allowed to hold the ceremony in the mosque, we
decided to hold it in the reception hall -- a 1930's French-style
caberet in Montreal. The ceremony was on the stage, and we opened and
closed with music from "Le fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain" and "Les
triplettes de Belleville."

And in the middle of it was the Declaration of Principles.

My wife's family is originally from India, but her parents were born in
Uganda. My family comes from England, France, Denmark, and Slovenia.
The caberet was filled with an astonishing array of people -- Indian,
European, African, Chinese, Iranian, Afgan. 

Thanks to my wife, I've come to understand the world just a little
better. I have looked into the world of Islam as seen through the eyes
of the most outwardly-focused and progressive group, the Shia Ismailis.
Our family history and culture have been so utterly different, yet we
see eye-to-eye on many things. Learning about the reasons for our
differences and similarities has been an incredible education in
diversity.

And so as one of our readings, I asked my dad to read a slightly edited
version of the Declaration of Principles. Our wedding, after all, was a
gathering in common cause to declare that We Are One.

The reaction to the reading was tremendous. Virtually no one knew the
source of the text. The minister (from a local United Chuch) was bowled
over by the power of Joe's words, and wants to encorporate them into
his own sermons. Many of the attendees told me how moved they were by
the synchronicity between the message and our multi-ethnic, eclectic
wedding.

I want to thank Joe profoundly for his words. They encapsulate so
perfectly my experience in getting to know my new family. Thank you,
Joe. Thank you.

-- 
Jim Royal
"Understanding is a three-edged sword"
http://JimRoyal.com
http://DigitalWind.com



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From: jmsatb5 at aol.com
Date: Wed, 21 Jun 2006 23:43:07 +0000 (UTC)
Lines: 56


Jim Royal wrote:
> This past weekend, I married the girl of my dreams.
>
> Our wedding was rather unconvential. She's a muslim, I'm an atheist.
> And since we were not allowed to hold the ceremony in the mosque, we
> decided to hold it in the reception hall -- a 1930's French-style
> caberet in Montreal. The ceremony was on the stage, and we opened and
> closed with music from "Le fabuleux destin d'Am=E9lie Poulain" and "Les
> triplettes de Belleville."
>
> And in the middle of it was the Declaration of Principles.
>
> My wife's family is originally from India, but her parents were born in
> Uganda. My family comes from England, France, Denmark, and Slovenia.
> The caberet was filled with an astonishing array of people -- Indian,
> European, African, Chinese, Iranian, Afgan.
>
> Thanks to my wife, I've come to understand the world just a little
> better. I have looked into the world of Islam as seen through the eyes
> of the most outwardly-focused and progressive group, the Shia Ismailis.
> Our family history and culture have been so utterly different, yet we
> see eye-to-eye on many things. Learning about the reasons for our
> differences and similarities has been an incredible education in
> diversity.
>
> And so as one of our readings, I asked my dad to read a slightly edited
> version of the Declaration of Principles. Our wedding, after all, was a
> gathering in common cause to declare that We Are One.
>
> The reaction to the reading was tremendous. Virtually no one knew the
> source of the text. The minister (from a local United Chuch) was bowled
> over by the power of Joe's words, and wants to encorporate them into
> his own sermons. Many of the attendees told me how moved they were by
> the synchronicity between the message and our multi-ethnic, eclectic
> wedding.
>
> I want to thank Joe profoundly for his words. They encapsulate so
> perfectly my experience in getting to know my new family. Thank you,
> Joe. Thank you.
>
> --
> Jim Royal
> "Understanding is a three-edged sword"
> http://JimRoyal.com
> http://DigitalWind.com



Not the first time I've heard of this sort of thing, but it never
ceases to induce awe.  Thank you, and best of wishes in your married
life.

jms