I covered the downside and the upside of a commencement ceremony I attended over the weekend. So, what else is there to talk about?
I spoke vaguely of the festive atmosphere, with many of the graduates decorating their caps, only to be outdone by the colorful hoods and such of those obtaining graduate degrees, but who were further outdone by the colorful robes and such of the trustees, faculty and staff. It brought one word to mind: pageantry.
One definition on Dictionary.com for pageantry is “spectacular display; pomp: the pageantry of a coronation.”
As I stated before, graduation is a type of rite of passage in our culture. In previous cultures, though, a wedding was more of a rite of passage. Getting married was expected. I remember a Focus on the Family episode where the guest stated that since Jesus was already 30 years old when He started His ministry, there would have been a lot of pressure for Him to marry.
It should come as no surprise then that many of His parables were about a marriage ceremony. It should come as no surprise that He alluded to the joy of a wedding in comparison to the joy of His return.
The Book of Revelation takes it all the way and states that Christ’s bride has prepared herself for the wedding.
The pomp and pageantry of a commencement ceremony cannot touch what will occur at the Wedding Supper of the Lamb.