Gold Coast newlyweds Ari Dannenberger and Rachel Nancarrow tell Jo Knowlsey about the chastity promise that meant they didn’t even kiss until they married.
As they read their vows aloud, there was one thing both Rachel Nancarrow and Ari Dannenberger were anticipating more eagerly than anything else: the moment they were named husband and wife and could share their very first kiss.
“It was like a fairytale,” Rachel, 22, from the Gold Coast, said after the wedding.
“Once Ari lifted my veil and our lips locked, everything else disappeared. I was so glad we had waited because it made that kiss very, very special.”
Ari, 30, agrees: “I know some people might be critical and think it was a silly arrangement. But I’m glad we made the commitment we did. It added to the purity of our marriage. It meant our relationship has been built on more than just physical attraction.”
The couple, both committed Christians, first met just over three years ago at the Surfcity Christian Church in Surfers Paradise. And at first glance, they would not have appeared an obvious match. Rachel, then 18, came from a devout church-going family, while Ari had just abandoned a life he says was dominated by his recreational drug and sex addictions.
But when they worked together as social workers at Transformation Ministries, a Surfers Paradise drug and alcohol rehabilitation centre, they began developing a very close friendship.
And two years ago, during “a serious talk” when they were both at Bible College, they realised they held the same values and decided they would commit to a future together…
For the full story see this week’s Woman’s Day, on sale June 29, 2009
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