An Interreligious Celebration of Marriage Event in Colorado

Reported by Gale Alves

On November 18th, an Inter-religious Celebration of Marriage event took place in the Colorado Family Church. It was hosted by the Women's Federation for World Peace of Colorado and was sponsored by the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification. Six married couples participated: two with a photo of their spouses, and four with their spouses present. Jim and Linda Howell officiated.

The main theme of this event was that we need each other to create a culture of peace. No one religion, denomination, race or ethnicity can do it alone. Marriages and families centered on God are the foundation of a harmonious society.

White streamers flowing from the ceiling heightened the wedding atmosphere and banners depicting the world's religions lined the wall of the sanctuary.

At the beginning of the event, four speakers presented their perspectives on marriage and family:

• Massoud Farazandeh - Prayer Imam for the Lady Fatima Center
• Moyna Hudgens - a member of the United Methodist Church and a Colorado UN Chapter representative
• Carlos Pierce - lay minister of The Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter-Day Saints
• Dr. Michael Hentrich - Family Federation for World Peace and Unification

One of the couples who participated was a young Catholic couple. They brought their 9 well-behaved children. The wife is expecting twins! Due any day. They were the hit of the event.

We showed a Women's Federation for World Peace video. The guests were amazed and inspired by the depth and breadth of Rev. and Mrs. Moon's service and educational projects, and by our presence in the UN.

We projected photos of some of the large marriages performed by Rev. and Mrs. Moon: the 2,075 and 6,000 couples Blessings in 1982; the 30,000 couples Blessing in 1992; World Peace Blessing at the United Nations in 2001; and the 144,000 Inter-religious and International Clergy Blessing in 2002. We called them "Marriages for Peace," which they are.

The event was a team effort. All of the participants echoed the same happy sentiment: "It was a wonderful event!"

The Prayer Imam expressed a bit more: "We should be gathering together more like this, rather than just being in our own places of worship. I am glad you all focused on marriage and family. It is the essence of life."

Also, the lay minister of the The Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter-Day Saints said, "thank you for inviting my wife and me to this event. We felt warmly welcomed and we too believe in marriage between a man and a woman and that marriage is eternal."

To conclude this article, I want to share "12 Points for a Happy Marriage" written by Thomas Hudgens, the husband of Moyna Hudgens. She shared these "commandments" with all of us during her presentation.

"Commandments for a Husband"

1. Love your wife.

2. Let her know she is the most important person in the world to you.

3. Have intimate relations at least 3 times a week.

4. Never go to sleep without kissing her "good nite."

5. Never put her "down" - always build her "up."

6. Give encouragement in all she does.

7. Find things to do together, those you both like, and those that only she likes.

8. Allow her to have time to herself, if she wants it.

9. Share financial information with her.

10. You are a team, so work together.

11. Be willing to say, "I'm sorry."

12. Always resolve disputes based on"what" is right, not "who" is right.

Wise, inspiring words that both husband and wife can live by to have a happy marriage.