Choosing Love Before War
Jarina and Sviatoslav have been making headlines for their rushed wedding ceremony the night before taking up arms in Ukraine. Their wedding was originally scheduled for May, but the young couple decided to get married immediately as events unfolded in their homeland. Jarina, the bride, stated that if they must face death, they want to be together.
Jarina wore a vinók, the traditional Ukrainian floral wreath worn by young unmarried women. Eventually throughout the Eastern Orthodox ceremony, the wreath is replaced by a ochipok, an embroidered headress. The Crowning is the most solemn moment and climax of the service. The couple is crowned as signs of the glory and honor with which God crowns them during the Mystery. They are crowned as the king and queen of their own little kingdom, the home – domestic church, which they will rule with wisdom, justice, integrity, love, peace and harmony. To stress the equality of the partnership and unity, the wreathes are exchanged three times over the heads of the young couple.
The groom, Sviatoslav, wrote on his facebook, “There was a truly feeling when God was with us, and the bond between our souls became even stronger.”
The next day, the young couple took up arms.
Her father, Volodymyr Ariev, is a member of the Verkhovna Rada (the unicameral parliament of Ukraine) and undoubtedly one of the early sources of her patriotism. He shared,
"My daughter, I knew that you would grow up to be a patriot and a fighter, and that you would choose a husband who was the same."
“While on a mission,” Sviatoslav wrote, “I looked at my own [ring], and moved my thoughts to my wife, feeling that we are close to my soul. Yaryno, I will keep you, you are me, and we are together - Ukraine.”
After completing a task, he added, “As soon as I arrived, I called my wife, she ran to meet me. I just cried tears of joy. I know that standing my land, I have a reliable friend who cares about me. I love you.”
Jarina and Sviatoslav have become emblems of the Ukrainian millennials taking up arms against Russia, and they remind us of the reality of marital vows: til death do us part.
