The Civil Ceremony
The civil ceremony is held in the klub on Saturday. During the Soviet era, the civil ceremony was the only possible wedding ritual. While not legally banned, church weddings were rare because most churches were destroyed and having a church wedding was likely to ruin job prospects. Because the civil wedding was the central event, it acquired many ritual trappings, including a speech read by the klub head or other civil servant, songs, and the breaking of a bread, usually a korovai, over the heads of the couple. The couple stood on a ritual towel and the person conducting the ritual would tie their hands together with another ritual towel or rushnyk.
While most weddings now have a church service as well as a civil one, the civil service has retained its importance. After the civil service, the couple visits the village monument to soldiers fallen in battle and lays a wreath or bouquet there. There is typically a banquet following the civil service.
