I don’t know that I had ever seen a more exquisite garment. It didn’t hurt that the bride wearing it exuded beauty even when she dressed casually; but in this attire, my lovely Muslim friend beamed like the moon. There she sat, poised beside her turban-topped prince, whose own regalia and calm confidence intensified my awareness that this event represented the culmination of an entire community’s regard for values, tradition and dignity.

Culmination because it was the third and final formal event my family and I would attend on this last day of festivities. I recall that at this point I had lost count of how many gorgeous dresses the bride had worn since she had first been presented to guests. In three days I had seen more gorgeousness than I could remember, enjoyed festivities I hadn’t dreamed of, and banked heaps of wonderful memories, which I recall even now.

The last day’s celebration (following the consummation of the marriage) is called the walima. It is when the bride and groom host their first meal as a married couple. It is fancy, festive, and food abounds. Once again, celebrants enjoy community and have opportunity to usher the newlyweds into their new life together. 

My own post-walima thoughts were first, relief for the family, who I knew needed a chance to enjoy the afterglow of their efforts and investments. A successful wedding means that community had been well-served. It means that tradition has maintained strong footing, and that important values are being passed forward. It is a rite from which families emerge tried, tested, tired, but true to what they hope will live on in the legacies they nurture and sustain. 

The marriages that emerge soon face the realities forced upon them by faith, culture and personal choices. In that way, they aren’t much different from marriages anywhere. Fine weddings don’t always yield great marriages, but weddings for what they are grant great opportunity for reflection and learning.

What’s the take-away? First, our Muslim friends’ weddings will in full color remind us that God uses humankind’s best-yet-imperfect perceptions of marriage everywhere to compel us into the unfathomable fullness of relationship with Him, our Bridegroom Christ. Second, sharing our Muslim friends’ life-events draws us closer to each other. God means for us to invest in our friendships what He, our Groom who loves perfectly, invests in us. It’s life everlasting, as the Bride of Christ. Every encounter with a Muslim friend counts; let’s be about making the most of each one, in Godly friendship, for the sake of this Heavenly marriage message.