Fifteen or more couples, across Anguilla, volunteered to serve as “object lessons” of enduring love when, in the presence of a large and appreciative congregation, they renewed their marital vows. The occasion, dubbed “Love at Home”, was organised by the Adventist Youth Society.
The colourful event was held on Valentine’s Day, Saturday, February 14, 2015, at the Mount Fortune Seventh-day Adventist Church. The other two established congregations (at Jireh Tabernacle at South Hill, and Shemei Tabernacle at Long Bay), the New Life Company at East End, and the Spanish Group, came together at Mount Fortune Church for the event.
The special service was conducted by the District Minister, Pastor Trent Berg. He stressed the importance of “Love at Home”, the theme for the event, from Christian and religious points of view, only using the secular traditional Valentine’s Day observance as one of the avenues through which there are age-old expressions and acts of love.
“I want our community to know that when Valentine’s Day comes around, it catches the attention of our young people, and I want to send a message to them,” Pastor Berg stated in speaking about the reason for the renewing of marital vows.
“We want to let our community know that we believe that God is love and that He wants to be the centre of every relationship to make it wholesome and lasting. And so we wanted to illustrate that to our young people today, and we are so happy that these couples chose to do that.”
Only one couple – Shanasha and Bernel Richardson – stood or sat at the altar area of the Church during the service. The other couples were invited to come forward later on to renew their vows. They were presented with tokens of appreciation on the church’s veranda.
