Marriage in the West II

　　As the Minister or Judge announces, "You may kiss t he bride, Harry," and the groom lifts the veil and kiss es his bride, the ceremony is ended. Western brides hav e been kissed as part of the wedding ceremony since the days of the Roman Empire. Among engaged Roman couples, the kiss was a legal bond, the public certification tha t the union had taken place symbolically. If one of the contracting parties died before the formal ceremony, th e survivor could keep the wedding gifts if and only if, the two had kissed. The symbolic value of this kiss may depend on the deeply rooted idea that the kiss is a veh icle for the transference of power or souls.

　　The kiss as a binding symbol survives in the modern wedding ceremony. According to the church and the state s, a couple is one when the officiant (司仪牧师) pronounces them so, but that is never enough for the guests: the c ommunity sees the ceremony as completed, that is, as fo rmally "sealed", only when the bride and groom kiss.

　　The wedding kiss also symbolizes the change of stat e of the bride. When he lifts her veil to touch her lip s, the husband announces to the congregation (人群) that he defines and accepts her new identity—his wife. Just as the kiss of the Prince awakens Sleeping Beauty, so t he kiss of her own Prince Charming (白马王子) breaks the br ide's slumber of maidenhood, and initiates her into adu lt life.

　　The custom of having the guests kiss the bride may seem to strengthen this initiation, and it often follow s the ceremony. Everybody can kiss the bride, and it sh ould be seen as a communal welcoming rite. The guests' kissing fortifies (加强) and endorses the husband's.

　　by Huang Yi