My first memory of a fancy wedding is drawn from the Zion Lutheran Church in Hummelstown, PA, a lovely edifice with stained glass windows, a pipe organ, and a bell tower. I was nine years old when I attended Mary and Howard Landis’ wedding there.
Howard & Mary Landis Wedding Day: June 4, 1950
My dad’s cousin, Mary Martin, married Howard Landis in this sanctuary in June 1950. A fuzzy snap (from Aunt Ruthie’s movie camera) after the service shows my grandma Fannie Martin Longenecker happily chatting with Mary’s older sister, Evelyn. “Honey” was her nickname, a sobriquet which matched her heart-shaped hat brim. Plain and fancy together here. What a contrast!
Before the exchange of vows, a soloist probably sang “I Love You Truly,” a wedding song my dad echoed in a wobbly falsetto, an octave or two higher than his naturally bass voice— mimicking this popular melody. Believe it or not, I do recall Daddy reflecting on the wedding of his second cousin singing this tune in our home days later.
In contrast to what I viewed at a fanciful wedding, nuptials at Bossler Mennonite Church were far more simple.
First of all, the building was plain, rectangular in shape. Not even shutters adorned the clear-paned windows. A barn with silo in the field beyond the cemetery reflects the church’s rural location.
Likewise, the interior was simple. Back then, not even a back-lit cross adorned the area behind the pulpit as it does in recent days. And certainly not a tapestry on the wall, even a religious one.
The brides that walked down the aisle probably looked similar to Ruth Longenecker Weaver. Ruth married John Weaver in the 1950s, Wearing a white taffeta dress in this photo, she looks lovingly at her groom after the ceremony.
Church rules would have forbidden a floral bouquet back then. Ruth carried a white Bible accessorized with ribbons and perhaps a lace handkerchief.
Wedding of Ruth Longenecker and John Weaver, 1950s
Songs popular at Mennonite weddings in the 1950s included “O Perfect Love” . . .
. . . and “Tread Softly, Tread Softly, the Master is Here.”
Couples sometimes selected “Tread Softly” for the bride’s short walk down the aisle toward the pulpit. I can picture a shy but smiling bride walking softly—and slowly—down the aisle to meet her groom at the altar. (You can find this song scribed with shaped notes on page 185 in the 1953 edition of The Mennonite Church Hymnal.)
Incidentally, the musical notation uses the word “gently” to describe the mood of the piece,
We may have tried to tread softly during our own wedding recessional, but we absolutely did not tread slowly after our marriage service on August 5, 1967, at Calvary Presbyterian Church in Charlotte, NC.
Fifty-nine years ago this month!
Walking down the aisle, we are glowing, but in the years to come, like others, we experienced lights and darks, peaks and valleys, as told in my memoir
My second memoir, My Checkered Life Find it HERE
I am thankful for my family and the social history that goes with it—both the plain and the fancy. Each has enriched my life in ways I cannot always imagine.
Welcome! Your thoughts about weddings in any decade
Good morning, Marian! Lovely wedding photos. You and Cliff look very happy! Your dress is beautiful. I don’t think I ever attended any church weddings until after Doug and I were married, or around that time.
We look happy because this is such a joyful occasion. . . and we don’t know what’s ahead except dreaming of rainbows and roses. Ha!
Thanks for your observations, Merril, starting us off this morning. 😊
You’re welcome, Marian! Of course you’re happy at your wedding, but sometimes it doesn’t always show in a photo. 😊
Very true.
You two look adorable and haven’t really changed that much. Happy 59th Anniversary!! We will celebrate our 50th in January. Hard to fathom. I sang O Perfect Love at my aunts wedding in 1962! Such a wonderful memory you evoked. Thanks.
Thanks for the compliments and the good wishes, Darlene. Happy (early) congratulations to you and Paul as well.
So, you are familiar with O Perfect Love also–popular in the 1950s and apparently in the sixties. too. 😁
What a beautiful couple, Marian! You truly were glowing! 😊 Happy Anniversary!
I went to a lovely outdoor wedding last year. The groom’s sister sang a hymn. The groom’s niece was a junior bridesmaid.
How many bridesmaids did you have at your wedding?
Yes, weddings can be family affairs, sometimes feel like a reunion.
The bridal party included my two younger sisters, one already married and Cliff’s sister. As I recall, the flower girl was the pastor’s young daughter.
Congratulations on your anniversary, Marian and Cliff. I love the picture of the two of you walking out of the church. This post sent me back to two videos produced by our nephew Clay Showalter for our family. You probably watched them both, so this may be more for your readers. You can hear “O Perfect Love” on this one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pRXHxRYLwrs. The second one was done for our 50th anniversary. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5fzOe4h3uIY There is a lot of social history in the differences of two Mennonite weddings, but what really matters is the joy on the faces.
Yes, the JOY!
Clay Showalter does a fantastic job on both videos. Thanks for posting them; I recall snippets from both but not the entire videos. In the first video, I was touched by singing of “The Love of God,” Mother’s favorite hymn and sung at her funeral. (Kate certainly favors her Grandma Barbara.)
I believe Betty Mumma, who introduced me to Cliff, sang “Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us,” which suits so many occasions. Thank you for all this with links, Shirley. 😊
https://joynealkidney.com/2026/05/29/married-60-years/
Thanks for the link, Joy. It helps me get to know you better. (Yes, we too have health challenges now.)
I believe you mentioned a movie you and your “boyfriend” fell in love together. Ours was “The Sound of Music,” forbidden in Mennonite circles back then. But we enjoyed it in thrilling Cinerama–saw it three times! By the way, I left another comment on your website.
Congratulations on celebrating 60 years–rare and wonderful! 😍
I don’t think I ever attended a wedding as a child. A bit of wedding trivia about my dad is that he wouldn’t allow cameras in the church during the wedding because it was a marriage is a Sacrament.
I like learning trivia about you and your family. Interesting about your dad and cameras in the church–or, not! Love–and all the emotions in between–makes the world go ’round.
Thanks, Liz! 😁
You’re welcome, Marian!
You made a very lovely bride, Marian. Life is full of ups and downs and marriage must follow those same patterns. It is a credit to you and Cliff that you overcame the obstacles together.
Thank you, Robbie. We were so young and hopeful back then. No aches and pains either.
Yes, plenty of obstacles over the years, but we’ve usually tried to go in the same direction–together. 😊
Of course you were a gorgeous (as well as glowing) bride. All that light and love inside you shone through beautifully. I enjoyed this post so much, and the photos highlight the tale you tell. And the brides’ dresses – for so many decades they didn’t look that different, but these days, some brides look like they’re wearing their negligee at their wedding (oops, sorry, but reallly). :–)
For my first wedding (to my high school sweetheart, a week after we graduated from college) I wore a beautiful ivory wedding gown that my mom and I found “on discount” a few months before the wedding. The veil didn’t look that different from Mary Landis’. The setting was the Episcopal church that I grew up in with lovely stained-glass windows.
My second wedding, 10 years later, was high on a grassy hill in an old, decommissioned chapel plainer than the Bossler Mennonite Church (except when the wood door was opened, the view was of the S.F. Bay below us). I wore a soft gray two-piece with lace collar, and the soft music was played with guitar and violin. We had an audience of 20, and it seemed more glorious than a cathedral. We just celebrated our 42nd anniversary. So many congrats to you and Cliff on your 59th anniversary. Loving like this, through pain and tears as well as joy and deep affection, is a true blessing.
I enjoy your detailed comments so very much, Pam. Yes, I agree, many wedding gowns these days lack the fairy-tale aura of enchantment. No mystery about what’s inside.
Thanks for describing your wedding outfits; I can picture them both. You and your husband seem so very happy together. Maybe it’s the afterglow of the S.F. Bay. Congratulations on your 42nd anniversary–yay! 😀
Ha, yes, no mystery and really, a good marriage needs some mystery. 🙂 xo
:-/
Happy 59th anniversary, Marian! Next year will be a big one!!! You have such a good memory. I think the first wedding I ever attended was the one of my oldest cousin. I was a teenager then and hated the dancing ritual, where people multiply on the dance floor. I remember hiding in the toilet until that moment had passed, since I dreaded being dragged onto the dancefloor.
Liesbet, even not-so-fun memories make for a good story. I imagine the dancing ritual seemed silly to you then, as your memory of it does now.
Thanks for the good wishes too! 😀
Marian, great stories and even fascinating pictures. You Cliff looked great back then and still do 59 years later. If you have time, give a call. I will DM you with the phone number.
God bless,
Jerry
Psalm 51…the last part!
Thanks so much for all this. For those who are curious, Psalm 51:18, 19 says this in the King James Version: “Do good in thy good pleasure unto Zion:
Build thou the walls of Jerusalem.
19Then shalt thou be pleased with the sacrifices of righteousness.
Even in retirement, you remember our anniversary. How wonderful, Jerry! 😀
I love the song “Tread Softly“. So beautiful and so relaxing after a weary day of sorting and packing! Hardy and I were married almost 56 years. Joy and sorrow, love and heartache…wonderful years…
Elfrieda, I thought of you when I finished this post. The text and photos are part of my family history for sure, but someone who lost the love of his/her life will read this and feel sad. That makes me feel sad too. Your Hardy was your soul-mate, I know. Hugs to you! ((( )))
I enjoy the reflections of your heritage, especially as they mix with mine. I grew up on the farm across from the cemetery of Bossler’s Mennonite Church. My father was married to Anna Mae Longenecker, a sister of Ruth Longenecker Weaver. Anna Mae passed away a few years into their marriage. My father later married my mother. I am the oldest of their children. Also, Ruth Longenecker was my 1st and 6th grade teacher.
I am so thankful for the strong work ethic I received from growing up in this Mennonite community. The concern for neighbors and friends was always an encouragement. Reaching out to community has continued to be a large part of my life as I have served at a children’s camp/ministry in South Alabama, Camp Victory for over 40 years. I am so thankful to my Lord Jesus Christ who weaves together our lives so that in turn we can share with others.
Hi, Jan. I do remember your family and checked your Facebook page just now. My, my we do share quite a heritage. Yes, I even wrote about your dad’s marriage to Anna Mae Longenecker. You can find photos and a video on my blog here” https://marianbeaman.com/2014/06/21/anna-mae-and-hiram-a-mennonite-wedding/
I agree that we learned so many strong family values and probably didn’t realize it at the time. I wrote about it in my first memoir, which you may know about: Mennonite Daughter: https://www.amazon.com/Mennonite-Daughter-Story-Plain-Girl/dp/1733585206/ It includes both the bitter and the sweet, just like real life. Next to my relationship with Jesus, I value my family then and now.
My sisters (Janice and Jean) and I ZOOM every two weeks. We’ll do so Monday and I will mention you to them. THANKS SO MUCH for checking in here and leaving such a heartfelt comment. 😀
A lovely sequence of weddings Marian. Your picture of you both walking down the aisle is beautiful. Life can’t help but rock our lives sometimes, but if the good foundation is built and love is always there then we can endure the rough spots. 🥰
You said IT, Debby! We are having some medical issues right now, but as you say, with love “we can endure the rough spots.” Thanks for always showing up here! 😀
Marian, I always enjoy reading your blogs…and this one highlighting my parent’s “Fancy” wedding is especially meaningful. My parents were married the day after my Mom’s graduation from Hershey High School. She was 17, my Dad was 21. I was born fourteen months later on the second of August. I’m thankful that God chose them to be my parents. We sorta “grew up” together. They were fun, had lots of energy, and always considered my sister Sandi and my interests when planning family activities…vacations and other things we did as a family. They loved God and built a strong faith foundation for us as we grew up in their home. We were deeply loved by them.
Your heritage shines through your family life today: thriving and eventful! I was born exactly 9 months after my parents’ marriage in October 1940. Yes, I was a honeymoon baby. 😀
Thanks for furnishing the wedding photo and giving me a tip on church location. I would not have guessed “Lutheran,” but this church in Hummelstown is very beautiful. Always good to hear from you, Howard!