We Believe All People Regardless Of Race, Gender, Or Sexual Orientation
Have The Right To Marry.
Every Couple United In Marriage Has The Right To Choose Ceremonial
Observations & Who Will Conduct That Sacred Right.
Customized Ceremony Scripts For Every Couple
Have The Right To Marry.
Every Couple United In Marriage Has The Right To Choose Ceremonial
Observations & Who Will Conduct That Sacred Right.
Customized Ceremony Scripts For Every Couple
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choose your officiant, script, and ceremony music
~Traditional Vows Or Personalized & Unique Like You~
~Traditional Vows Or Personalized & Unique Like You~
CEREMONY OPENER
Marriage is a supreme sharing, perhaps the greatest and most challenging adventure in the most intimate of human relationships. It is the joyful uniting of a man and a woman whose care and affection have flowered into a deep and abiding love. Those who take its sacred vows have their lives blended into one, just as the waters of two rivers are joined, they come together to form an even greater one. It is not a giving up or losing oneself, but rather a giving into something greater-a transformation of self in which each can say, "I am no longer I but also We." It is a process in which each can be challenged to discover new possibilities in themselves and each other. For the lives the two of you have lived up until this moment are, in some sense, now completed and over.
Together you now live within the creation of something new, something which has never existed before - your miraculous marriage-an expression that is at once public and private, precious, sacred, and truly unique to the two of you.
No ceremony can create your marriage. Only you can do that-through love, patience, dedication, perseverance-through talking and listening and trying to understand-through helping and supporting and believing in each other-through learning to forgive, learning to respect and appreciate your differences, and learning to make the important things matter and letting go of the rest. What this ceremony can do is to witness and affirm the choice you have made to begin a new life today as husband and wife.
Together you now live within the creation of something new, something which has never existed before - your miraculous marriage-an expression that is at once public and private, precious, sacred, and truly unique to the two of you.
No ceremony can create your marriage. Only you can do that-through love, patience, dedication, perseverance-through talking and listening and trying to understand-through helping and supporting and believing in each other-through learning to forgive, learning to respect and appreciate your differences, and learning to make the important things matter and letting go of the rest. What this ceremony can do is to witness and affirm the choice you have made to begin a new life today as husband and wife.
TRADITIONAL CEREMONY
We are gathered here to celebrate one of life's greatest moments, the joining of two hearts, to give recognition to the worth and beauty of love, and to add our best wishes to the words which shall unite this couple in marriage.
Who Gives This Woman To Be Married? (optional)
Today we have come together to witness the joining of these two lives. For them, out of the routine of ordinary life, the extraordinary has happened. They met each other, fell in love, and are finalizing it with their wedding. A good marriage must be created. It is never being too old to hold hands. It's remembering to say I love you every day. It's not just marrying the right person, it's being the right partner.
REPEAT AFTER ME
I, ________ take you ________ to be my wife, my partner in life, and my one true love. I will cherish our friendship and love you today, tomorrow, and forever.
I, ________ take you ________ to be my husband, my partner in life, and my one true love. I will cherish our friendship and love you today, tomorrow, and forever.
________ do you take ________ to be your lawfully wedded wife? I DO
Do you promise to love, honor, cherish, and protect her, forsaking all others and holding only unto her as long as you both shall live? I DO
________ do you take ________ to be your lawfully wedded husband? I DO
Do you promise to love, honor, cherish, and protect him, forsaking all others and holding only unto him as long as you both shall live? I DO
Wedding rings are an unbroken circle of love, signifying to all the union of this couple in marriage.
GROOM: This ring is my promise that I will love, honor, and cherish you all the days of my life. With this ring, I thee wed.
BRIDE: This ring is my promise that I will love, honor, and cherish you all the days of my life. With this ring, I thee wed.
By the power vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife.
You may kiss your bride.
LADIES & GENTLEMEN, I PRESENT TO YOU MR. AND MRS. __________
Who Gives This Woman To Be Married? (optional)
Today we have come together to witness the joining of these two lives. For them, out of the routine of ordinary life, the extraordinary has happened. They met each other, fell in love, and are finalizing it with their wedding. A good marriage must be created. It is never being too old to hold hands. It's remembering to say I love you every day. It's not just marrying the right person, it's being the right partner.
REPEAT AFTER ME
I, ________ take you ________ to be my wife, my partner in life, and my one true love. I will cherish our friendship and love you today, tomorrow, and forever.
I, ________ take you ________ to be my husband, my partner in life, and my one true love. I will cherish our friendship and love you today, tomorrow, and forever.
________ do you take ________ to be your lawfully wedded wife? I DO
Do you promise to love, honor, cherish, and protect her, forsaking all others and holding only unto her as long as you both shall live? I DO
________ do you take ________ to be your lawfully wedded husband? I DO
Do you promise to love, honor, cherish, and protect him, forsaking all others and holding only unto him as long as you both shall live? I DO
Wedding rings are an unbroken circle of love, signifying to all the union of this couple in marriage.
GROOM: This ring is my promise that I will love, honor, and cherish you all the days of my life. With this ring, I thee wed.
BRIDE: This ring is my promise that I will love, honor, and cherish you all the days of my life. With this ring, I thee wed.
By the power vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife.
You may kiss your bride.
LADIES & GENTLEMEN, I PRESENT TO YOU MR. AND MRS. __________
SPECIAL READINGS
SOMEDAY IS NOW
You have known each other from the first glance to this point of commitment. At some point, you decided to marry. From that moment of YES to this moment of YES, you've been making promises and agreements in an informal way. All of those conversations while riding in a car, over a meal, or during long walks.....all those sentences that began with "When we're married" and continued with "I will, You will, and We will". The late night talks that included "Someday" "Somehow" "Maybe" and all the promises that are unspoken matters of the heart. All these things and more are the real process of a wedding. The symbolic vows you are about to make are a way of saying to one another, all those things we promised, hoped, and dreamed .... I meant it all, every word.
Look at one another and remember this moment in time. Before this moment you've been many things to each other: acquaintance, friend, companion, lover, dance partner, and even teacher; for you have learned much from each other in the last few years. Now you shall say a few words to take you across a threshold of life and things will never quite be the same. For after these vows, you will say to the world: This is my husband - This is my wife.
THESE HANDS
These are the hands of your partner. Young, strong, and full of love; holding hands as you promise to love each other today, tomorrow, and forever. These are the hands that will work alongside yours as together you build your future. These are the hands that will hold and comfort you in grief and uncertainty. These are the hands that will countless times, wipe tears of sorrow and joy from your eyes. These are the hands that will hold your family as one. These are the hands that will give you strength. These are the hands that, even when wrinkled and aged, will still reach for yours, still give you the same unspoken tenderness with just a touch.
THE VELVETEEN RABBIT
What is real? asked the Rabbit one day, as they were lying side by side near the nursery fender before Nana came to tidy the room. Does it mean having things buzz inside you and a stick-out handle?
Real isn't how you are made, said the Skin Horse. It's a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time .... not just to play with, but really loves you, then you become real.
Does it hurt? asked the Rabbit.
Sometimes, said the Skin Horse, for he was always truthful. When you are real, you don't mind being hurt.
Does it happen all at once?....Like being wound up? he asked, or bit by bit?
It doesn't happen all at once, said the Skin Horse. You become. It takes a long time. That's why it doesn't happen often to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are REAL, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don't matter at all. For once you are REAL, you can't be ugly, except to people who don't understand.
QUOTE BY ALBERT EINSTEIN
Gravitation cannot be held responsible for people falling in love. How on earth can you explain in terms of chemistry and physics so important a biological phenomenon as first love? Put your hand on a stove for a minute and it seems like an hour. Sit with that special girl for an hour and it seems like a minute.
That's Relativity.
You have known each other from the first glance to this point of commitment. At some point, you decided to marry. From that moment of YES to this moment of YES, you've been making promises and agreements in an informal way. All of those conversations while riding in a car, over a meal, or during long walks.....all those sentences that began with "When we're married" and continued with "I will, You will, and We will". The late night talks that included "Someday" "Somehow" "Maybe" and all the promises that are unspoken matters of the heart. All these things and more are the real process of a wedding. The symbolic vows you are about to make are a way of saying to one another, all those things we promised, hoped, and dreamed .... I meant it all, every word.
Look at one another and remember this moment in time. Before this moment you've been many things to each other: acquaintance, friend, companion, lover, dance partner, and even teacher; for you have learned much from each other in the last few years. Now you shall say a few words to take you across a threshold of life and things will never quite be the same. For after these vows, you will say to the world: This is my husband - This is my wife.
THESE HANDS
These are the hands of your partner. Young, strong, and full of love; holding hands as you promise to love each other today, tomorrow, and forever. These are the hands that will work alongside yours as together you build your future. These are the hands that will hold and comfort you in grief and uncertainty. These are the hands that will countless times, wipe tears of sorrow and joy from your eyes. These are the hands that will hold your family as one. These are the hands that will give you strength. These are the hands that, even when wrinkled and aged, will still reach for yours, still give you the same unspoken tenderness with just a touch.
THE VELVETEEN RABBIT
What is real? asked the Rabbit one day, as they were lying side by side near the nursery fender before Nana came to tidy the room. Does it mean having things buzz inside you and a stick-out handle?
Real isn't how you are made, said the Skin Horse. It's a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time .... not just to play with, but really loves you, then you become real.
Does it hurt? asked the Rabbit.
Sometimes, said the Skin Horse, for he was always truthful. When you are real, you don't mind being hurt.
Does it happen all at once?....Like being wound up? he asked, or bit by bit?
It doesn't happen all at once, said the Skin Horse. You become. It takes a long time. That's why it doesn't happen often to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are REAL, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don't matter at all. For once you are REAL, you can't be ugly, except to people who don't understand.
QUOTE BY ALBERT EINSTEIN
Gravitation cannot be held responsible for people falling in love. How on earth can you explain in terms of chemistry and physics so important a biological phenomenon as first love? Put your hand on a stove for a minute and it seems like an hour. Sit with that special girl for an hour and it seems like a minute.
That's Relativity.
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IRISH POEM
God bless this man and wife and may their marriage be blessed. Bless the hearth, the table too, and bless each place of rest. Bless each door that opens wide to stranger, kith, and kin. Bless each shining window pane that lets the sun shine in. Bless the roof and tree up above. Bless every solid wall, the peace of man, the peace of love, the peace of God on all. |
Kristina & Keith Holten's Special Reading
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SCRIPTURE READING
ECCLESIASTES CHAPTER 4, VERSES 9-12
Two are better than one because they have a good return for their labor. If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up. Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves.
ECCLESIASTES CHAPTER 4, VERSES 9-12
Two are better than one because they have a good return for their labor. If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up. Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves.
ACTIVITIES
PARTNER'S PAINTING
This is a ceremony option we came up with that combines each person's creativity and becomes a true piece of art in your home. Use your wedding colors or your favorite colors and bring them together, to symbolize the act of you both coming together on your wedding day.
We suggest painting your newly shared last name or your combined initials. You could also each paint a word that signifies your individual sentiment of your relationship. Paint a basic shape such as a heart or a tree, for the more artistic.
This is a ceremony option we came up with that combines each person's creativity and becomes a true piece of art in your home. Use your wedding colors or your favorite colors and bring them together, to symbolize the act of you both coming together on your wedding day.
We suggest painting your newly shared last name or your combined initials. You could also each paint a word that signifies your individual sentiment of your relationship. Paint a basic shape such as a heart or a tree, for the more artistic.
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Blending Colors Together
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WARMING OF THE RINGS
Wedding rings are the most visible sign of the bond these two people are about to make. A commitment of life, to each other, and to the future. Before ________ and ________ say their vows and exchange rings, they have asked that the people before them participate in a warming of the rings ceremony.
Hold their rings for a moment, take the opportunity to wish them your love, making a silent wish for the future this couple will share. When returned, these rings will contain in their precious metals that which is all the more precious---your love and pledge of support for their union.
Wedding rings are the most visible sign of the bond these two people are about to make. A commitment of life, to each other, and to the future. Before ________ and ________ say their vows and exchange rings, they have asked that the people before them participate in a warming of the rings ceremony.
Hold their rings for a moment, take the opportunity to wish them your love, making a silent wish for the future this couple will share. When returned, these rings will contain in their precious metals that which is all the more precious---your love and pledge of support for their union.
