January 21: Here Comes...the Convert

My parents' wedding picture, from the days when inter-faith considerations were a mute point because people married someone from the farm next door.

By Magdalena I. García

An inter-faith couple seeking the services of a minister to officiate a Christian-Muslim wedding has allegedly been refused by their own pastor. Word has it that the bride intends to convert to the Muslim faith after the wedding, so the request for a Christian rite is a puzzle. A minister friend said he could understand why a pastor would refrain from participating in such a charade (my words, not his), feeling this might be “contributing to a believer’s movement away from Christianity.”

Interesting. “Contributing to a believer’s movement away from Christianity.” I never thought about such ministry options! They don’t teach this in seminary. Then, again, if the bride is determined to leave, shouldn’t we wish her well? Is this an opportunity for a contemporary re-enactment of the Parable of the Prodigal Son/Child? And aren't we supposed to have a pastoral rite to frame every transition in life? I will look again through the Book of Common Worship, but I don’t recall seeing a liturgy for such avant-garde occasions. Maybe the Unitarians have one. (If you find a liturgy, please send it along.)

Liturgical quest aside, this marriage petition embodies the challenges of living and ministering in a multi-cultural—and, therefore, multi-faith—world. No, we’re not in Kansas anymore! You’re guts don’t lie. And it doesn’t seem like we’re going back to Kansas, so we may as well take off the ruby slippers. It might be a good way to build bridges with believers who pray with bare feet.

My hunch is that this soon-to-be-wed couple is no more or no less serious about their faith commitment than any other I’ve met. But pre-marital counseling does provide a little window of opportunity to engage them in conversation about something other than the nail polish they should get for the big day (and let’s be clear: both the bride and the groom get a manicure these days!).

And about the pastor who refuses to marry this couple.... Well, at moments like this I’m not sure I’m going to like heaven. Our earthly segregation seems so much easier to handle!