Before the wedding

Engagement. A Greek tradition that is also found in other parts of the world is the marriage request. The potential groom will meet with the bride's parents and ask for their daughter's hand in marriage.

Dowry. Although the idea of a dowry may seem obsolete to some people, it is still a Greek tradition. The mother of the bride usually spends years collecting a variety of things from sheets to towels and other household items for her daughter's marriage. The dowry enables the bride to set up housekeeping.

When the bride dresses, the unmarried girls attending the wedding in pencil write their names on the soles of shoes of the bride. Tradition says that no matter what the names will be erased first married. Usually, of course, after so many hours standing, after photographing the wedding dance at the reception, they have erased everything.

The shoe is narrow The custom was the best man who wants to go get the bride from her home, trying to put the shoes, they are closely linked. And while all that shouting does not enter the shoe, the only way to eventually hold the money that will put the best man at the bottom of the shoe. This picturesque scene is over there that can afford the best man.

Two or three days before the wedding, the couple organizes a celebration called Krevati (Greek for bed) in their new home. In Krevati, friends and relatives of the couple put money and young children on the couple's new bed for prosperity and fertility in their life. After the custom, they usually have a party with food and music.

The Koumbaros is an honored guest that participates in the wedding ceremony. Traditionally, the Koumbaros is the grooms godfather. Today, he is usually the best man. He assists with the crowning of the couple and the exchange of the rings three times between the bride and groom before it is placed on the bride and grooms third fingers.

The crowning is the focal point of the marriage ceremony. The bride and groom are crowned with thin crowns, called stefana, which are joined by a white ribbon and have been blessed by the priest. The crowns symbolize the glory and honor that is being bestowed on them by God, and the ribbon symbolizes their unity. The Koumbaro then exchanges the crowns between the heads of the couple, three times.

The marriage crowns are extremely important to a Greek couple, and will be saved after the wedding, and often placed on display in their new home... Traditionally, the crowns were made of materials ranging from lemon leaves to vines to gold and jewels.

Ceremonial Walk: After the bride and groom are adorned with the wedding crowns, they will walk around the church altar for three times. This ceremonial walk is important in a Greek wedding, as it symbolizes the first steps of life as a married couple.

The couple drink red wine from the same glass . This is not "communion" in the formal religious sense, but about sharing the cup of life. At the end of the wedding ceremony, as the newly wedded pair leave the church, the guests throw rice and flowers for fertility and felicity.

After the ceremony, usually the couple hold a great wedding party in some place with plenty of food, drinks, music and dance, usually until next morning. Candied almonds are distributed in odd numbers among the guests. The odd number signifies that the couple are united henceforth as one and cannot be separated.

A typical Greek wedding will usually have more than 100 invited people (but usually 250-500) who are friends, siblings, grandparents, uncles, aunts, first or second cousins, neighbors and colleagues. It is common to have guests whom the couple has never met before.

Greek wedding receptions are festive and include savory foods, plenty of wine, singing and dancing. Traditional Greek dishes such as dolmathes, kapama, moussaka, spetsiota, and spanakopita may be served. Ouzo, and wine are the drinks of choice. Diples, fried pastries made of honey and nuts are usually displayed on the same table as the wedding cake

. The famous Kaslamantiano or Circle dance, involves two circles that form around the bride while guests throw money at the musicians and break dishes for good luck.

The dance begins with just the newlyweds dancing alone together while each holds one end of a scarf. It is the job of the everbusyKoumbaros to get the rest of the guests out on the dance floor, until the bride and groom are dancing in the center of a large circle of cheering dancers.
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Opa! A final important custom which everyone should know about Greek weddings is the exuberant shouting of Opa!at frequent intervals is the ultimate expression of joy and happiness. It is hooray, wonderful, and cheers all rolled into one excited shout. A statement of euphoria, wishes for a great happiness, and an allaround toast to life, Opa! is the perfect expression of the atmosphere of merriment and celebration which surround all Greek weddings.

During a Greek baptism the child is provided with a name of Christian origin and then presented to the Church as an anointed child of God.

A Greek baptism in the Christian Orthodox Church is a major event in the life of any family. Because of the numerous rites which accompany it, many of which go back to the earliest centuries of Christianity, the baptismal service is a complicated one.

EXORCISM - The first step begins with the entrance to the church. This is to show that the one being received is not yet a member of the Church. The priest calls upon the godfather to renounce Satan . The renouncing of Satan is done facing the west, it is where the sun sets, the place where the ancient Greeks believed to be the location of Hades, the gates of Hell.

THE TRIPLE IMMERSION - We believe that Christ died for our sins. The full immersion in water symbolizes death. Through baptism we share mysteriously in Christ's death. The baptized infant rises out of the water as a new person, cleansed of every sin and promising the surrender of his life to Christ, his Savior.

The baby is immersed in water three times, while the priest recites the formula 'The servant of God ..(name) is baptized in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.' The new Christian life of the baby is symbolized by the lighting of a white candle. The baby is clothed in white and carried three times around the font.

Confirmation, called 'anointing' or 'sealing', takes place immediately after Baptism. The priest takes the chrism, or consecrated oil, and anoints the baptized person with the sign of the cross on the forehead, eyes, nostrils, mouth and ears. The god parents then anoint the entire body of the child with the oil

The new clothes signify the entirely new life that we receive after we are baptise. The white robe symbolizes the purity of the sole cleansed from sin.

A procession around the baptism font by the priest and godparent holding the child is believed to be a reflection of the celebration of angels dancing and expressing their joy that a new soul has been registered in the Book of Souls

Sweets are distributed to the guests, and the family and friends then enjoy a large meal, either at home or in a taverna.