Service #1

 

Welcoming Words

 

Officiant:  It is with great pleasure that we gather today to witness the joining of two hands, and two hearts in holy matrimony.  These two people, ____________ and ____________, have fallen in love so deeply, so completely, that today, they make a bond, a sacred covenant before God, whereby their hearts, their bodies, and their souls shall be united as one in marriage for the rest of their days. 

 

__________ and __________’s respective families, together with their friends, each represent a circle of love.  A circle of love where members care for, and nurture each other, in times of joy and in times of sorrow.  Today, __________ and __________ join their lives together to make a new circle of love, one that overlaps with, and is made stronger by those from which it has emerged.  You have been invited here because of their special relationship with you, to witness the creation of this sacred bond.

 

From The Art Of Marriage

by William A Petersen

 

A good marriage must be created.

In the marriage, the little things are the big things.

It is never being too old to hold hands.

It is remembering to say "I love you" at least once each day,

It is never going to sleep angry.

It is having a mutual sense of values and objectives.

It is standing together and facing the world.

It is forming a circle of love that gathers in the whole family.

It is speaking words of appreciation and demonstrating gratitude in thoughtful ways.

It is having the capacity to forgive and forget.

It is giving each other an atmosphere in which each person can grow.

It is a common search for the good and the beautiful.

It is not only marrying the right person

It is being the right partner.

 

Traditional Vows

 

Officiant:  __________ and __________, please face each other and join your hands, and in so doing, join your hearts.

 

(To Groom) Please repeat after me:

I, _________, take you __________, to be my lawfully wedded wife,

to have and to hold, to love and to cherish,

for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer,

in sickness and in health,

from this day forward, until death do us part.

 

(To Bride) Please repeat after me:

I, ___________, take you __________, to be my lawfully wedded husband,

to have and to hold, to love and to cherish,

for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer,

in sickness and in health,

from this day forward, until death do us part.

 

Exchange of Rings

 

Officiant:  Do we have the rings? 

 

(Officiant says to Groom)  Please look into the eyes of your beloved, and place the ring, a symbol of your love for ____________ on her hand, and say, “With this ring, I thee wed”.  The Groom does this.

 

(To Bride) Please look into_________’s eyes, and place the ring on his hand, and repeat after me, “With this ring, I thee wed”.

The Bride does this. 

 

Pronouncement

 

___________ and __________,

with the support of your families and friends,

by the vows you have made to one another,

by the strength of your covenant,

and in the presence of God,

it is my pleasure to pronounce you “Husband and Wife.”

You may seal your marriage with a kiss.

 

Presentation of the Married Couple

 

Ladies and gentleman, it is my great honor and privilege to present to you for the very first time, Mr. and Mrs.___________________!

 

Recessional

 

Bride and Groom first, then Officiant, then wedding party in reverse order of processional.