The Catholic Priest and the Jewish Wedding

I recently did a beautiful interfaith wedding at the La Costa Hotel and Golf Club in Northern San Diego County. The couple has a very close relationship with a Catholic priest.  They think of him as a friend and mentor and wanted him involved in the wedding.

He elected not to work though the Roman Catholic Church process.  He would have needed approval to officiate outside of his home parish, outside of a church building, and in an interfaith wedding.  He elected
to not coofficiate.  He did not wear his clerical collar and made it clear that he was not receiving the vows.

The wedding was a Jewish wedding with me, the rabbi, as the only officiant.  We followed the usual format of a Jewish wedding from having a chuppah at the beginning to breaking a glass at the end.

But that did not mean that he could not participate in the wedding. The priest wore a business suit, and we both gave separate, meaningful short talks to the couple.  And he joined me in bestowing a blessing on the new couple.

Above is a picture if us giving the blessing.   We don’t have to co- officiate to give the wedding and the newly married couple the spiritual strength of two religious traditions.