A PRIEST paused the marriage service he was conducting to take his first ever “selfie” with the bride and groom.

The Priest-in-Charge of St John the Baptist’s, Corby, the Revd Paul Frost, pulled out a selfie stick and surprised the bride and groom by asking them to wait while he took a photo of the wedding party.

Mr Frost said that he had been asked to take the photo by one of the best men, and by the groom’s brother, Ryan Scarborough, but he admitted that he had never taken a selfie before, and was a bit of a techno-phobe.

“About 20 minutes before the service was due to start, Ryan produced a selfie stick and asked if I could take a shot of everyone at the start of the service. I was happy to help.

“Funnily enough, I’ve never taken a selfie before in my life, but the best men gave me clear instructions. Unfortunately, my phone isn’t advanced enough to take proper selfies — I’m not as tech-savvy as has been suggested.”

He said that the taking of the selfie “broke the ice” with the congregation. “The service consequently had a great balance of wonderful joy and meaningful solemnity.”

St John’s advertises its services as having a “traditional feel”. Mr Frost said, however: “Our church does have a traditional feel, but is very down-to-earth, which connects well with the community. I aim to take God and his work seriously, but myself less so.”

The bride, Emma Scarborough, told the Northants Herald and Post: “I walked down the aisle to meet my husband, and, when I got to the end, the Vicar started speaking to us.

“He said: ‘We are gathered here today to join Emma and Jamie in holy matrimony, but first — let me take a selfie.’

“It was so funny, and I loved it! Everyone else was laughing, too. He is so cool and down-to-earth, and he made us feel calm.”

Letters

Question of the week: Are wedding ceremonies becoming too frivolous?