getting started - choosing traditions - finding officiants - involving family - planning tips

STACIA RAGOLIA
AND JASON JESNER
WEDDING DATE:
MAY 18, 1996
UPPER SADDLE RIVER, NEW JERSEY

How does one couple combine two faiths from two families for one wedding? According to Stacia (who is Catholic) and Jason (who is Jewish), the secret to pulling off an interfaith ceremony is simply blending the best of both worlds. Here's how they did it.

Getting Started
The basics came together beautifully. Once the bride and groom agreed on a church wedding, they started planning a formal affair for 200. For their afternoon reception, they booked a nearby Tudor-style private club with a stone porch overlooking a lake. The elegant -- and surprisingly affordable -- mansion also housed the mirror under which Abraham Lincoln proposed to Mary Todd (how romantic!). Although Stacia and Jason were thrilled with their venue decisions, their main focus was on creating a ceremony that was personal to them as a couple but also reflective of the religions they grew up in.