|
Ceremony Overview
1.)
Presentation of the
Bride – The bride walks up
to the minister and groom. If a father of the bride is
involved this is when he “gives her away.”
I then tell the groom that he may go get his bride. As they
approach me I say,
"We are gathered here today to join in holy matrimony
_____________ and _____________. And as we do, let us begin
with prayer.."
2.)
Prayer of
Blessing
– A brief prayer is an ideal transition into the vows. Some
ministers or couples prefer to have a prayer of blessing after
the vows and rings are exchanged.
Most
ministers pray extemporaneously or they use a standard
liturgical prayer.
Here is
my own prayer of blessing:
“Our
Father in Heaven,
We are here to join together
this man and women in the sacred estate of holy matrimony.
Bless this union of husband and wife, as we seal this bond of
bride and groom in this ceremony, we ask,
Because
of the love of Jesus Christ,
Amen.”
3.)
Ceremony
Charge
– When the bride and groom stand before me, I will say a
few words to call the ceremony to order and "charge" the couple to
a life-long journey of encouragement, love, and
hope .
For a simple
ceremony I usually begin with something like this:
We are gathered here today to
join in holy matrimony _____________ and
_____________.
[Joe Groom and Jane Bride have
come along way since… (This is good place to interject a word
or two about how the couple met or share a personal insight
about the couple.)]
When God created Adam he said,
that it was not good that man should dwell alone. Therefore He
created Eve from his side, to be by his side, as his helpmate,
not subservient to, but together with.
Thus it
was said by the Lord Jesus Christ, “For this cause
shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his
wife: and they twain shall be one flesh? Wherefore they are no
more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined
together, let not man put asunder.” (Matthew 19:5-6,
K.J.V.)
(I share
some examples of what it means to merge without losing your
individual identities, and I share a story about my
grandparents' 64 year marriage after a one time
meeting.)
4.)
Exchange of Wedding
Vows
- I usually ask the couple to turn and face each
other. The bride, if she is carrying flowers will hand them
over to her Maid-of-Honor.
If the
couple is reciting vows, I will quietly direct the groom and
than the bride in repeating after me. If the couple is opting
for the less stressful two-word approach to wedding vows,
I will state the vows and the groom and than the bride
respond by saying, “I do.”
Here are
the traditional vows that I use:
“Do you
__________, take __________,
to be
your lawfully wedded
(wife/husband),
to have
and to hold from this day
forward,
for
better or for worse,
for
richer, for poorer,
in
health, in sickness,
to love
and to cherish;
to be
faithfully yours,
until
death do you part?”
5.)
Exchange of Wedding
Rings
–My own
personal preference is not to include the “With this ring, I
thy wed” but to present them as outward cymbals of inward
love.
I do say this to the groom
and then the bride:
“__________, will you accept
this ring as an expression of my love and a reminder of
ceremony, for the days and years of our lives together as
husband and wife?”
To which the receiver replies,
“I do.”
6.)
Pronouncement of
Marriage – After the vows,
ring exchange, or any added features such as sand ceremony,
unity candles, stone throwing, I make the public pronouncement of a newly
formed legal marriage. This is also the part where the groom
is told he may kiss the bride.
My
pronouncement of marriage is as follows:
“And now, by your pledge of
affection and vows of fidelity, as an ordained minister and
the authority placed in me by the state of Alabama, I now
pronounce you husband and wife!
____________, you may now kiss
the bride!”
7.)
Presentation of Newly
Weds
– This part has become customary and signals the conclusion of
the ceremony.
The newly weds turn to face
their guests and the minister says something like
this:
“Friends and Family, I now
present you, Mr. & Mrs. ___________.”
To which
everyone responds with a round of applause. The newly weds,
depending on the setting, would then exit or remain in place
to greet well-wishers.
|
