A Christian marriage is one of the seven sacraments, which is performed in a church by means of which the grace of the Holy Spirit is obtained. Holy Matrimony is based on the Bible. (Gen. 1:27,28, 2:18, Mt. 19:4-6). The Canon of the Church requires that before matrimony, there are some conditions which must be met:
- Both couples should be Christians to obtain the grace of God
- Both should belong to the Orthodox Tewahedo Church. If any one of them is not a member, he/she should first be a member of the Church
- No pre-marital sexual relationship is permitted
- Both should consent to be united in marriage
- No marriage is allowed within seven generations so as not to break the rule of kinship that forbids marriage between close family relations. (Lev. 18:6-21; Deut. 7:3-4).
- As the marriage of Christians epitomizes the unity between Christ and the Church, it shall not be broken. (Eph. 5:32),
- In our Church, only one-to-one marriage is allowed
- Re-marriage cannot be conducted by any one of the two partners unless divorce is affected because of adultery or one of the partners dies. (Mt. 19:6-9)
- Bishops and priests celebrate the Sacrament of Matrimony
- Matrimony is not performed without Holy Communion. (Fetha Negest Article 24:899)
- Parents should be consulted and their consent should be secured
Fact:
The sacrament of Matrimony involves partaking of the Holy Communion/Qurban
It can only be performed by Priests or Bishops
Verse:
“and said, ‘For this reason, a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’ So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate” Matt 19:5-6
“For this reason, a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.”Ephesians 5:25