Marriage is a public sign that one gives oneself totally to this other person. It is also a public statement about God: the loving union of husband and wife speaks of family values and also God’s values. God is active in our lives and joins a man and a woman in a relationship of mutual love. Through this Sacrament, a man and a woman are publicly joined as husband and wife. They enter into a new relationship with each other, God, and the Church. In Orthodox teachings, Marriage is not simply a social institution, it is an eternal vocation of the kingdom. A husband and wife are called by the Holy Spirit not only to live together, but also to share their Christian life together so that each, with the aid of the other, may grow closer to God and become the persons they are meant to be. In the Orthodox Marriage Service, after the couple have been betrothed and exchanged rings, they are crowned with “crowns of glory and honor” signifying the establishment of a new family under God.