Poll: Jewelry, Rings, and Bands

[Josh]

I would be interested on the pagan background of wedding bands. I don‘t wear one nor does my wife. On the other hand my wife wears some jewelry which I do not see as a problem as long as it is not loud/ostentatious (is that a word?).

It was a Roman custom related to various superstitions and worship of false gods. They believed the ring should go on your ring finger since the vein there goes to some particular place (the heart maybe)?

From Wikipedia:

The earliest use of jewelry to signify a bonding was often chains and bracelets. This evolved to the use of the symbolic ring. In ancient Egypt, the Sun and the Moon gods were feared and worshipped. A ring was a symbol of these spirits, both of whom were also related to the home and hearth. The endless circle showed the eternal nature of the bond, while the open centre was meant to be a doorway to things unknown.

This tradition was later assimilated by the Greeks, after Alexander the Great conquered Egypt in 332 BC. Up to this time betrothal rings were generally made out of hemp, leather, bone, or ivory. In early Rome the use of metal rings gradually began to take over from these materials, and the metal of choice back then was iron. Gold and silver rings were given on rare occasions, to prove that a man trusted his wife with his valuable property.

I see zero need for Christians to continue these pagan practices.

As far as trusting the wife with valuable property - pretty much every plain Anabaptist has their house and business and vehicles with their wife’s name on the deed or title. That seems more significant to me than a wedding ring…

[Sudsy]

I would be interested on the pagan background of wedding bands. I don‘t wear one nor does my wife. On the other hand my wife wears some jewelry which I do not see as a problem as long as it is not loud/ostentatious (is that a word?).

It was a Roman custom related to various superstitions and worship of false gods. They believed the ring should go on your ring finger since the vein there goes to some particular place (the heart maybe)?

From Wikipedia:

The earliest use of jewelry to signify a bonding was often chains and bracelets. This evolved to the use of the symbolic ring. In ancient Egypt, the Sun and the Moon gods were feared and worshipped. A ring was a symbol of these spirits, both of whom were also related to the home and hearth. The endless circle showed the eternal nature of the bond, while the open centre was meant to be a doorway to things unknown.

This tradition was later assimilated by the Greeks, after Alexander the Great conquered Egypt in 332 BC. Up to this time betrothal rings were generally made out of hemp, leather, bone, or ivory. In early Rome the use of metal rings gradually began to take over from these materials, and the metal of choice back then was iron. Gold and silver rings were given on rare occasions, to prove that a man trusted his wife with his valuable property.

I see zero need for Christians to continue these pagan practices.

As far as trusting the wife with valuable property - pretty much every plain Anabaptist has their house and business and vehicles with their wife’s name on the deed or title. That seems more significant to me than a wedding ring…

I believe the wedding ring (at least the band) also can have meaning that 'I'm married so don't be flirting with me'. When a married woman, in churches that don't have jewelry restrictions, doesn't wear her wedding band, I have heard other women wondering what she might be up to. Married women are expected to wear a wedding band as an identifier that they are married.

[steve-in-kville]

I believe the wedding ring (at least the band) also can have meaning that 'I'm married so don't be flirting with me'.

That's my angle. Both my wife and I do not have no such things, nor do we intend to. But I know at work, newer female employees have wondered about my marriage status (like I'm a catch anyway!) until someone pipes up that "he has, like, 20 kids."

That typically puts it to rest.

[barnhart]

I would be interested on the pagan background of wedding bands. I don‘t wear one nor does my wife. On the other hand my wife wears some jewelry which I do not see as a problem as long as it is not loud/ostentatious (is that a word?).

I'm not sure what Ernie had in mind but it might be the pre-christian era custom of men marking their property as a symbol of ownership. This cuts against the new testament teaching (and Jesus' example) of men and women as equal co- heirs in the kingdom of God. In Christ their is no male or female, we are told. But the ring tradition persists by adapting the narrative from property and ownership to binding covenant between equals.

Side note: There are other parallel practices I would also tag as pagan in origin, such as daughters signing purity pledges to their fathers or fathers "giving away" their daughters in the wedding ceremony. (That should stir up some controversy).

[Ken]

I see zero need for Christians to continue these pagan practices.

Do you have any idea how many traditions have their origins as pagan practices?

Celebrating Christmas and advent around the winter solstice
Christmas trees and greenery in the house
gift giving
keeping cats as pets
days of the week (Friday comes from the Norse goddess of love, Freya and Monday is named after monandaeg, the moon goddess, etc.)
months of the year (all have names with pagan roots)
bridesmaids at weddings
birthday candles
mistletoe
etc....

and yes...wedding rings.

[Josh]

I see zero need for Christians to continue these pagan practices.

Do you have any idea how many traditions have their origins as pagan practices?

Celebrating Christmas and advent around the winter solstice
Christmas trees and greenery in the house
gift giving
keeping cats as pets
days of the week (Friday comes from the Norse goddess of love, Freya and Monday is named after monandaeg, the moon goddess, etc.)
months of the year (all have names with pagan roots)
bridesmaids at weddings
birthday candles
mistletoe
etc....

and yes...wedding rings.

I didn't make an argument that just because something has pagan origins, it's bad and we have to stop doing it. But the fact it has pagan origins is not an argument to keep doing it... wedding rings/engagement rings certainly are not something that has any basis in Christian tradition.

Some things like wearing expensive jewellery were explictly negated in both the NT and in early Christian practice. I feel those are the ones to zero in on.

[Josh]

I would be interested on the pagan background of wedding bands. I don‘t wear one nor does my wife. On the other hand my wife wears some jewelry which I do not see as a problem as long as it is not loud/ostentatious (is that a word?).

I'm not sure what Ernie had in mind but it might be the pre-christian era custom of men marking their property as a symbol of ownership.

As I understood it (and this still goes in eg Indian culture), part of the practice was from a dowry sort of thing where the husband to be gives the wife to be expensive stuff to prove he trusts her and/or trusts her family, etc. - there is no need for Christians to do this sort of thing.

Side note: There are other parallel practices I would also tag as pagan in origin, such as daughters signing purity pledges to their fathers or fathers "giving away" their daughters in the wedding ceremony. (That should stir up some controversy).

I am fairly certain the origins of the "purity pledges" was in some homeschooling person's mind in the 1990s... it certainly doesn't exist as a cultural artefact much before that.

At Mennonite/Amish weddings, at least in plain/more conservative groups, there is no father giving anyone away. The wedding is done under the auspices of the church's authority and the couple's own authority, each in their own right, as members. The father and mother of the bride and groom are simply there as observers, and (possibly, but not required to be) as members. If the bride's father is a minister, it is common for him to conduct the wedding ceremony, but under his authority as a minister, not as a parent.

Interestingly as groups get more liberal, and brides get more fascinated by seeing Pinterest picture perfect weddings, there is more pressure to start doing things like the "father giving the bride away" (what does that even mean?), fancy floral arrangements in the church house, expensive decorations, and eventually, expensive engagement rings, immodest attire, etc.

(A related topic is the adoption of the "white wedding", that is, all-white garments intended to only be worn for a wedding, which many plain groups have adopted, but not at all. Amish traditionally don't do this and people are surprised if my wife mentions she is wearing her wedding dress on a particular day since they are surprised it is not white, and also that it would ever be worn on any day other than the wedding.)

[Soloist]

Do you have any idea how many traditions have their origins as pagan practices?

keeping cats as pets

I always knew there was a reason I don’t like cats.

[Ken]

Do you have any idea how many traditions have their origins as pagan practices?

keeping cats as pets

I always knew there was a reason I don’t like cats.

Cats were domesticated and kept by ancient Egyptians as sacred animals and were associated with the Egyptian goddesses Bast and Sekhmet. In ancient Egypt, the penalty for harming a cat was death. Later during the middle ages they came to be associated with wicca and witches which is why today you see black cats associated with witches on Halloween.

[Ernie]

Back to the OP please...