WEDDING CEREMONY - THE CHRISTIAN WAY

Traditional Christian Wedding still follows the old way of running how the ceremony goes and the Minister or Pastor who will officiate the order still has the say unless the couple has something rolled in their sleeves to make their wedding with a difference. Modern times speak of innovation and imagination that creep into doing contemporary wedding ritual without destroying the essence of a true Christian Marriage Rite. Ø PRELUDE – While guests are seated, especially the bride and the groom’s grandparents, a kind of prelude music sets the mood. It needs not be purely Christian Music but Classical Music defines what is best for everyone regardless if you appreciate or not the message that imparts. This takes around 10 minutes for your reverie. Ø PROCESSION – The traditional Christian Order doesn’t involve the principal sponsors and seems disregarding their presence and now a Christian Wedding involves them like a Catholic processional arrangement and evidently speaking, if you attend a Christian Wedding, you see principal sponsors marching along the aisle not like the old traditional way where the groom’s parents don’t march with their son or the bridal march where only the father walks with her daughter with the Bride’s mother already seated. Well, not anymore. Special people are given due importance. This is a sample of bridal entourage line-up similar to a Catholic Wedding now engaging members to be in with their partners walking on as majestic music is played. The Officiant Minister can devise it if he desires but this is the way it goes for many weddings, not excluding a Christian Rite. This is the order of the procession similar to a Catholic Processional Order of The Bridal Entourage. A. PASTOR OR MINISTER – STANDS AT THE ALTAR facing the congregation. B. BEST MAN - Stands at the left side of the groom C. GROOM AND PARENTS - Groom stands beside the Best Man while the parents are ushered in their seats D. PRINCIPAL SPONSORS - They march with their partners. Male principal sponsor on the right while the female principal sponsor at the left side. E. CANDLE SPONSORS - Both pair walks down the aisle F. VEIL SPONSORS - Both pair walks down the aisle G.CORD SPONSORS - Both pairs walks down the aisle H.BRIDESMAIDS AND GROOMSMEN - Partners as march the aisle I. JUNIOR BRIDESMAID - Marches alone J.RING BEARER - Marches alone K. COIN BEARER - Marches alone L. BIBLE BEARER - Marches alone M. FLOWER GIRL - Walks alone as she scatters petals on the aisle, if allowed N. MAID OF HONOR/MATRON OF HONOR O.PARENTS – TO WAIT AT THE MIDDLE AISLE P.BRIDE – WALKS ALONE WHEN THE CHURCH DOOR OPENS AS HER PARENTS WAIT AT THE CENTER AISLE TO HAND HER TO THE GROOM WITH Bridal March Music Ø GIVING OF THE BRIDE – The minister normally has his spiels signifying among the congregation that the bride has to be handed over to the groom with their acceptance by answering yes or a nod of acceptance. This is a typical Christian ritual. Ø OPENING PRAYER - A right gesture to commence a special event. Ø MESSAGE – ELEMENTS OF GOOD MARRIAGE are standard examples of carrying on with the minister’s words of wisdom, enumerating how important they are for the couple to heed on when listened to intently and depends upon the one delivering those important words. The pastor can do it otherwise with his own devised approach of giving a message not necessarily following the elements to its very essence. Just a sincere message can carry along. Ø CHARGE TO THE COUPLE –This act signifies a certain spell for the couple to take into account the compelling act of accepting the ups and downs of married life and their vow for each other to keep by their "I do's". This is the start up of everything else whether to continue the ceremony or not and it is one way of expanding the value of vows as they go on with the wedding ritual. Ø CHARGE TO THE PARENTS – A ritual that expresses how the guidance of their parents is considered that they should be around with their ready helping hand when the need arises. Ø CHARGE TO THE SPONSORS – A really nice gesture of suggesting an open arm to welcome the couple during time of trouble. Ø CHARGE TO THE CONGREGATION – This encourages everybody during the ceremony to at least, share a prayer for the couple to live a happy lives together as husband and wife. Ø THE PLDEGE – Now this turns to something nostalgic by saying what one feels like expressing what comes from the recesses of one’s sincere thoughts and this is the moment with tears or laughter, perhaps. This is the couple’s stage. It is not the usual vows rendered but the true understanding of what their intentions are going into the scene of belief where their words are sealed. Ø GIVING OF VOWS – A moment where two hearts are joined with the help of the minister applying the magic words uniting them together without fail. He now digs into the pure message of marital vows expressed and unreserved acceptance. Ø GIVING OF THE RINGS – This simply explains that they will be united forever by the power of the pastor’s words like the Christ Jesus. He has the power now at this very instance. Ø UNITY CANDLE – I love this dramatic moment especially the golden symbolism of the ritual where Background Music is played as they light their candles to be forever in flames, figuratively speaking. Ø BIBLE – A handy book that miraculously opens into their eyes the good teachings of the Lord. That every good has to be given to each. That love has to reign. That forgiveness is evident. Ø COINS – Plain to say that sharing their marital wealth is a practical way of dealing life as it goes. In sickness and in health, through wealth and abundance be theirs also to share. Ø VEIL AND CORD – This act finishes their pure intentions and no turning back or rejecting the call of time when something gets weary. They are totally one in spirit and soul entwined to travel in moment’s time and the end. Though at times each fails to keep the promise for frail is the human spirit but being together strengthens the bond to keep for eternity. Ø SIGNING OF THE CONTRACT – A Song or Music Rendition Ø PRONOUNCEMENT – Publicly, they are now accepted and in the eyes of God, they are true Christians of the world propagating the spirit of Christ-like self. That everybody has to be bonded to reach the pinnacle of free spirit exemplifying only the good. Ø THE KISS - A Catholic Wedding does this without fail with Music as they do an act of longing that from now on they are true to themselves. Ø DECLARATION – And so it is with the usual documentation of binding. Ø PICTORIAL - Music Ø RECESSIONAL – Music A Christian Wedding Ceremony is one dramatic moment with the rituals that speak of union and creating the real impression of accepting what pushes the couple joining hand in hand in marriage. It expresses how one feels and accepting now the other frailties and greatness as a human being. I now believe that it takes two to tango and marital bliss happens this way. Try to live in a desert alone and you be the judge.

A Wedding Affair At The South by Augustine Music and Events

A little earlier to start the wedding ceremony at 3pm but the place of ceremony is cozy and cool enough to house a bigger crowd but the guests seemed many as they scattered around rather than being  together for the wedding ceremony. Filipinos love to join their friends and relatives the reason why the couple intends to invite mostly friends and relatives. But when the mass started they moved closer nearer the altar that seemed nice to watch after all. You could now watch a myriad of different colors of blue, yellow, pink and green gowns especially in one aisle where the members of the entourage had their posh styles matching their presence together with the young, good-looking male entourage in suits.

The couple had their wedding songs and music list for the members of Augustine Music and Events to perform and as the need arouse doing them with the usual style combining solemnity and pure modern melody as their choices fit. Music really makes or breaks a wedding day and for us gifted with subtle ear for right music, nothing goes wrong -  a trademark from outstanding wedding musicians of Manila, Philippines that can stand beside seasoned performers of the highest caliber. Filipino Musicians are one of the best in the world.

Well, the ceremony turned really that nice, without those distracting car and jeepney honking because St. James The Great Church is located in a posh haven where silence is evident and where distractions are nil. A fit ceremonial ground for a solemn wedding rituals. And that special day of March 31 was one true wedding.

It took the rituals more than an hour and no rushing happened. The next event was a mass scheduled for 5pm and ample time for the guests to have souvenir shots with the couple before proceeding to the venue at Bellvue Hotel, 20 minutes travel to reach the reception area. There was no hustle for us musicians because the program proper would start a little late around 6:30 pm and no need for us to join the cocktail that followed after the wedding ceremony.

Before the wedding reception program started, wedding musicians of repute did jazz music to liven the air as guests were received hand in hand with photo-booth sessions where they had their fun photos taken and served as souvenirs from the couple. The foyer is a comfortable to be in moving around because of the wider space despite tables set for the cocktail. Still, there was big room to chat and move around before the program started.

So, at the specified time I started my spiels as the wedding program host doing it the easy flair I am comfortable doing and enjoying the moment with the couple and guests. They had their program for me to handle and had the sheer fun with. The program run a little longer than I used to be doing but the involvement of the guests kept me going without realizing the time that progressed that long and the guests stayed for dancing. And dancing time did happen filling the dance floor with led and laser light hovering around amidst the darkness. Even the kids had their share of fun dancing to their innocent hearts’ desire.

Wedding destination is an experience that cracks the memory out for us weddingmusicians and event wedding planners to always put to writing to remember and having the time immediately pushes me for some notes. That measures how we can go about improving as a team for we have some flaws to correct. But the sincerity arises and expresses as we go about doing the best we can – doing weddings. 

WEDDINGS AND BEYOND - AUGUSTINE MUSIC AND EVENTS

Weddings and Beyond Bridal Fair slated on January 14 and 15 started the year with a blast. It was hugely received as guests kept pouring in to attend to their wedding needs with a wide array of suppliers that sprouted in PICC forum. Though it coincided with another bridal exhibit at the Mall of Asia, Weddings and Beyond pulled through with greater mark, obviously. And proud to say that I had the time with my ware exhibited.

My observations centered to some points need mentioning. A certain lady by the name of Marianne made us comfortable by moving around and asking sincerely if we were okay. That simple gesture dictated that personnel of Weddings and Beyond have that distinct advantage through what we call personalized service. Second point was during the ingress and egress, they were not intimidating when it came to that point. I felt relaxed with bringing in and out my needed materials for the exhibit. Third point was all suppliers were handed a tikoy for Chinese New Year is near. Imagine how many suppliers attended. But it serves as a promotion, one thing sure. Fourth point I would blankly say that this was a colossal event and they started it right.

I had fun moving around, too and saw varied tastes as they arranged their booths. Some made it so grand that spoke their success as suppliers. Few had simple booths, like mine but managed to hand my leaflets which was my paramount concern to at least know that Augustine Music and Events is something worth hiring as they visit our website displaying our passion and dedication to the world of entertainment and dedicated wedding planning service.

Once again, I want to thank Marianne and the rest of Weddings and Beyond helping small suppliers like me start the year right. For sure, God provides.

WEDDING EMCEE PHILIPPINES - THANKSGIVING PRAYER

PRAYER BEFORE MEAL

"Lord God, Creator of the universe, Father of us all, we have gathered here around this dinner table to celebrate the love and commitment that have united (bride's name) and (groom's name), in a wonderful bond of marriage. Bless, Father, this food that we are about to receive with grateful hearts as a sign of your continuous bounty and providence. May your generous blessing descend also upon these newly married spouses,their families and friends present here at this joyful banquet.We make this prayer in the name of Jesus our Lord and Savior, Who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, on God for ever and ever. Amen"

EULOGY TO PRINCESS DIANA AS RECITED BY MARIO LUPATO

Earl Spencer's Eulogy to Diana
Sept. 5, 1997

LONDON I stand before you today, the representative of a family in grief, in a country in mourning, before a world in shock.
We are all united, not only in our desire to pay our respects to Diana but rather in our need to do so. For such was her extraordinary appeal that the tens of millions of people taking part in this service all over the world, via television and radio, who never actually met her, feel that they, too, lost someone close to them in the early hours of Sunday morning. It is a more re- markable tribute to Diana than I can ever hope to offer her today.

Diana was the very essence of compassion, of duty, of style, of beauty. All over the world, she was a symbol of selfless humanity. All over the world, a standard bearer for the rights of the truly downtrodden, a very British girl who transcended nationality. Someone with a natural nobility who was classless and who proved in the last year that she needed no royal title to continue to generate her particular brand of magic.

Today is our chance to say thank you for the way you brightened our lives, even though God granted you but half a life. We will all feel cheated, always, that you were taken from us so young, and yet we must learn to be grateful that you came along at all. Only now that you are gone do we truly appreciate what we are now without and we want you to know that life without you is very, very difficult.

We have all despaired at our loss over the past week and only the strength of the message you gave us through your years of giving has afforded us the strength to move forward. There is a temptation to rush to canonize your memory; there is no need to do so. You stand tall enough as a human being of unique qualities not to need to be seen as a saint. Indeed, to sanctify your memory would be to miss out on the very core of your being, your wonderfully mischievous sense of humor, with a laugh that bent you double. Your joy for life, transmitted wherever you took your smile and the sparkle in those unforgettable eyes. Your boundless energy which you could barely contain. But your greatest gift was your intuition and it was a gift you used wisely. This is what underpinned all your other wonderful attributes, and if we look to analyze what it was about you that had such a wide appeal, we find it in your instinctive feel for what was really important in all our lives.

Without your God-given sensitivity, we would be immersed in greater ignorance at the anguish of AIDS and HIV sufferers, the plight of the homeless, the isolation of lepers, the random destruction of land mines. Diana explained to me once that it was her innermost feelings of suffering that made it possible for her to connect with her constituency of the rejected.

And here we come to another truth about her. For all the status, the glamor, the applause, Diana remained throughout a very insecure person at heart, almost childlike in her desire to do good for others so she could release herself from deep feelings of unworthiness, of which her eating disorders were merely a symptom. The world sensed this part of her character and cherished her for her vulnerability, while admiring her for her honesty.

The last time I saw Diana was on July 1, her birthday in London, when, typically, she was not taking time to celebrate her special day with friends but was guest of honor at a special charity fundraising evening. She sparkled, of course, but I would rather cherish the days I spent with her in March when she came to visit me and my children in our home in South Africa. I am proud of the fact, apart from when she was on display meeting President Mandela, we managed to contrive to stop the ever- present paparazzi from getting a single picture of her -- that meant a lot to her.

These were days I will always treasure. It was as if we had been transported back to our childhood, when we spent such an enormous amount of time together -- the two youngest in the family. Fundamentally, she had not changed at all from the big sister who mothered me as a baby, fought with me at school and endured those long train journeys between our parents homes with me at weekends.

It is a tribute to her levelheadedness and strength that despite the most bizarre life imaginable after her childhood, she remained intact, true to herself. There is no doubt that she was looking for a new direction in her life at this time. She talked endlessly of getting away from England, mainly because of the treatment that she received at the hands of the newspapers.

I dont think she ever understood why her genuinely good intentions were sneered at by the media, why there appeared to be a permanent quest on their behalf to bring her down. It is baffling.

My own and only explanation is that genuine goodness is threatening to those at the opposite end of the moral spectrum. It is a point to remember that of all the ironies about Diana, perhaps the greatest was this -- a girl given the name of the ancient goddess of hunting was, in the end, the most hunted person of the modern age.

She would want us today to pledge ourselves to protecting her beloved boys William and Harry from a similar fate, and I do this here, Diana, on your behalf. We will not allow them to suffer the anguish that was used regularly to drive you to tearful despair.

And, beyond that, on behalf of your mother and sisters, I pledge that we, your blood family, will do all we can to continue the imaginative way in which you were steering these two exceptional young men, so that their souls are not simply immersed by duty and tradition but can sing openly, as you planned. We fully respect the heritage into which they have both been born and will always respect and encourage them in their royal role, but we, like you, recognize the need for them to experience as many different aspects of life as possible to arm them spiritually and emotionally for the years ahead. I know you would have expected nothing less from us.

William and Harry, we all cared desperately for you today. We are all chewed up with the sadness at the loss of a woman who was not even our mother. How great your suffering is, we cannot even imagine.

I would like to end by thanking God for the small mercies he has shown us at this dreadful time. For taking Diana at her most beautiful and radiant and when she had joy in her private life.

Above all, we give thanks for the life of a woman I am so proud to be able to call my sister -- the unique, the complex, the extraordinary and irreplaceable Diana, whose beauty, both internal and external, will never be extinguished from our minds.

GETTYSBURG ADDRESS READ BY MARIO LUPATO

The Gettysburg Address

Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
November 19, 1863
Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.

But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate -- we can not consecrate -- we can not hallow -- this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us -- that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion -- that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain -- that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom -- and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.

First In Time - Record of The Oldest

The curiosity of man sometimes extend beyond imagination and hoping to learn about the history’s oldest. Records are kept and others are forgotten. There are still known records and familiar to some but extensive research requires to really discover the OLDEST RECORDS.

The most important thing is to consider its authenticity and because we are now in a no impossible world there are proofs to show and my short video clip tells so.

Please enjoy the show.