Beginning from the day my husband proposed, Our Lady of Guadalupe has been a big part of our journey and continues to show up leading, loving, and protecting us. She has helped us through trials as a couple and individually, bringing us closer and closer to Christ at every step of the way. “How can we bring our faith into our wedding day? Particularly, how can we honor Our Lady who is so close to us, always bringing us to Christ?” This was a big question we continued asking ourselves as we planned such an important day. We didn’t want it to be all about spending money, nor did we desire to do things that were ‘normal’ if it had no meaning to us as a couple. Jesus, Mama Mary,  and the Catholic faith are the center of our relationship, and we wanted that to be the case for our wedding day as well.

 

 

So how did we do this?

 

 

1.  We prayed at the side Chapel with Our Lady of Guadalupe’s mosaic in the Church! We were so grateful to have such a stunning image of her and a special little side alter where my husband and I could privately thank her for all she has done, thus far, in bringing us closer to Christ and ask for her continued prayers.

 

2. Images of Our Lady of Guadalupe showed up all over our wedding! We aimed to do this in a classy but clear way, showing that Mama is a part of our lives and yearns to be a part of everyone’s life.  One way we did this was, my bridesmaids and I created Guadalupe flower planters for the center pieces. They were white with a golden stencil of her image and were filled with fresh flowers. We also obtained a large print of OLG and had her framed. With the desire to have her image be present at the celebration, we placed her where all could see her. Lastly, the name tags were another opportunity to add a little Mama, so I designed a simple visual of her image that gently framed everyone’s name.

 

3. All the bridesmaids were given Guadalupe rosaries for the car and the groomsmen rocked OLG on their socks. This was in hopes to have them pray for us as we prepared for marriage and a fun way to keep her with us at every step (pun intended). With delight, fun socks that had a great image of Mama were found, the perfect way to walk down the aisle.

 

4. We carved her into our rings! Special rings that were unique to us and meaningful, were what we sought out. While in prayer one day, we had the wonderful idea to place her image on our rings and to have it split between our rings. When you place the two rings together Our Lady’s image becomes clear to see, reminding us of the value of Our Faith and the union of the Sacrament. Particularly, having her on our rings speaks about the great union she had with Christ, born in her very womb. This is what we desire to live out as a couple, a life fully filled with Christ always saying yes to God as his mother did.

 

5. Our First dance began with her. When thinking of our first dance as husband and wife, we struggled. My husband and I don’t love to do what most people do , if you didn’t guess this by now, and as artists of faith (he’s a musician and I am a painter and dancer.) we enjoy being creative with spiritual intentionality. So while chatting about it one day, we came to the conclusion that we desired our first dance to be one of prayer and delight, honoring Guadalupe and asking for prayers from all our family and friends for the journey ahead. Soon we came up with a mix of our talents as a way to praise God, and thank Mary. I danced while my husband played guitar and sang, and our wedding party brought up candles as a prayer offering to the image of OLG. As the song came to it’s end, we joined together in a slow dance symbolizing what had taken place that day, two becoming one with Our Lord and Mary’s blessing. From there, we totally busted into a fun swing dance enjoying every bit of those prayed for graces!

 

Today, her image is the center of our home, something you see as soon as you walk in the door. On the days we struggle with life, just as much as on the days we delight in life, we get to look to her for her continued help and prayers. Hearing her say, “Am I not your Mother?” We are honored she desires to play such an intimate role in our lives teaching us how to be more unified as a couple and with Christ. We wouldn’t have had our wedding day any other way, or our marriage.

 

Photos and Video of dance below:

Photo Credit : Emma Dallman

 

Video Clips By Nick DeRose

http://https://vimeo.com/378891071

 

 

 

__________________________________________________

 

 

Kate Capato is an adventurous creative who seeks all things beautiful. She married a dreamy music man, and often travels and serves in mission sharing God’s love through her artistic creations of Sacred Art, Dance, and Photography. When she is not creating or traveling, Kate loves spending time with friends and family while drinking a good glass of wine and consuming extra dark chocolate. To see her work, visit her portfolio below and share in this mission of spreading truth and goodness.