The Carbon advocate. [volume] (Lehighton, Pa.) 1872-1924, 1891-02-14
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from the Jews, but from the Romans
that the nations of modern Europe
del1ve their wedding ring. Among
the ancient masters OF the world, rings
were commonly used as part Of the
rite of betrothal. But Il Is worth
while TO notice that there was one
special difference between the ancient
and the modern use Of rings In this
respect. In their original employment
they were really not wedding, but
betrothal iingsi that Is, they were
given and taken as the public ex-
preston Of a mans promise to a wo.
man that he would marry her. As a
learned writer has told us in regard
TO the early Italians, ga man who
wished to pledge his faith to a woman,
placed a ring upon her finger, which
is at the present day preserved for
the benedictiOn Of marriage"
Two points are thus to be remem-
bered-that in old days there were two
distinct 'ceremonies--the betrothal and
the actual wedding-both of which
were equally essential to tho full
solemnization of a marriage; and
also, that the ring was originally used,
not for the second ceremony, but for
the first. Such was the custom dur
throughout the early centuries Of
Christianity. Marriage even then,
and for very considerable period
afterwards, was regarded In the light
Of a civil contract only, and was en-
tered into before magistrate, while
the ring itself was used as the symbol
Of promise in the preliminary rite of
betrothal.
Gradually, however, these two cere-
mo- les became merged into one by the
loss on the part Of the betrothal Of its
first formal character. For some time
after this, and in consequence Of it,
there was no small uncertainty in the
use Of the ring, which was not infre-
quently left out of the business alto
gether. But, after a while, it reas-
serted its Importance, and once more
came Into general use. Moreover, IL
now began for the hrst time to limit
itself habitually to the single hoop Of
plain gold-a form which has become
fnseparably connected with all our
modern notions of what the wedding
ring should be-
1t will thus be seen--to the surprise,
doub tless, Of not few of readers
that the wedding ring Is not a Chris
tian institution at all, but rather one
which we have inherited, along with
so much else in our ceremonial, di-
rectly from classical antiquity. This
leads the writer to mention a curious
point in connection with it's common
employment. In pagan Rome the be-
trothal ring was woVn on the third
finger (the one next to the little finger)
Of the Left hand, as it is to-day. This
position is said to have been chosen
from the belief-unfounded, of course
that there was vein of nerve running
directly from that finger to the heart
belief which was accepted, not alone
by the Ignorant masses, but also by
the learned men-the doctors and
philosophers Of the time. But in early
Christian days good deal Of confu-
sion seems to have prevailed upon the
matter, as a result of which the ring
was often placed and worn upon the
woman's right hand. In the old
Salisbury manual is found specific ref
erence to this fact in very singular
passage, which throws some inter-
esting light on the subject of the we'd
ding ceremony in general. From this
we learn that the bridegroom was to
receive the ring from the priest, who
| had blessed It (and this blessing, it
may be remarked, is still limited at in
the marriage service of the English
Episcopal Church); and then holding
the right hand of the bride in his own
left hand, he was to recite the words,
"With this ring / thee we'd" Then
he was to place the ring upon the right
hand thumb, saying, In the name of
the Father" then on the first finger
with the words, and Of the Son !"
then on the second finger, adding,
=" and Holy Ghost,n and finally, with
the closing " Amen" on the third fin-
! ger whero Il was to remain. But in
course of time uniformity was estab-
lished in favor Of the left hand, and
there Is no longer room for question
concerning this important point. OF
course, no one acquainted with the
marriage service Of the English Epis-
| copal church needs TO be told that it
Is absolutely necessary, according to
the rites Of that church, that q ring
should be employed, But beyond the
simple ordinance that q ring there
must be, the church makes no specific
conditions, so that (curious as It may
appear) ring Of any size or weight
material, or pattern, will serve the
| purpose perfectly well. II is natu-
| rally enough not often that one has
to chronicle any departure from recog-
nized custom in this regard but
such departures do from time to time
occur. A story is told of two paupers
'who came TO church and requested
to be married with the church key, as
| the parochiai authorities had not fur
nished them with ring" The clerk,
it Is said, not unnaturally, felt some
delicaoy'' about this, and finally found
another way out of the difficulty. He
fetched an old curtain ring from his
own house and with this extraordinary
article the loving couple were duly
united in the bonds Of holy matri-
mony. But, though this particular
clerk saw fit to hesitate, the church
key has been employed, and that more
than once, in place of the ring during
the last hundred years. Even the
Duke of Hamilton was married at
May Fair with a bed-curbain ring"
FrAnklln's Philanthropy.