Spiritual Ceremony
By Marianne Williamson (Revised by The Simply Chic Bride)
GREETINGS
Julia and Daniel, I extend to you greetings and affirmation on this momentous day of love and confirmation. To our assembled guests, on behalf of Julia, Daniel, and their families, I extend to all of you a very warm welcome.
Julia and Daniel, on behalf of those assembled here, we acknowledge and honor you at this most special and sacred sequence of your lives.
We welcome you to this moment in your lives and to the place you have come to in each other’s hearts. We join with you on this day, as you commit before God and humanity that from this point forward you shall live as one. I remind all of your guests that they have been invited here for a holy purpose, not just to witness, but to participate fully with your thoughts and prayers, asking God to bless this couple and their married life. As special guests, you are here because this couple feels close to you and asks that you join with them in this dedication of sacred purpose. You represent symbolically all the people in the world who will be touched in any way by the life of this couple. They have chosen this act of marriage and this public, holy ceremony in which to proclaim it. Together we all thank God who brought them together and ask God always to guide their way.
Opening Prayer
(Let us Pray)
Our Father, love has been Your richest and greatest gift to the world. Love between a man and woman which matures into marriage is one of Your most beautiful types of loves. Today we celebrate that love. May your blessing be on this wedding service. Protect, guide, and bless Julia and Daniel in their marriage. Surround them and us with Your love now and always. Amen.
READING: Sarah Johannsen
The Art Of A Good Marriage – Wilferd Arlan Peterson
A good marriage must be created.
In the art of 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 common objectives.
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 can grow.
It is finding room for the things of the spirit.
It is a common search for the good and the beautiful.
It is not only marrying the right partner…
It is being the right partner.
MESSAGE ON MARRIAGE (To the couple)
________________ and ______________,
This day we celebrate a sacred agreement, a covenant between the two of you.
I congratulate you on the journey of your lives, the love and the bond between you that has brought you here today.
(Sample text below. Fill in your own message to speak to all in attendance why you two have chosen each other as husband and wife)
(Bride_____) and (Groom_____) have told me that it is their shared values, their shared faith, their intense love for one another that has brought them here today. This couple knows that because of each other their lives have been changed for the better, forever.
Just one of the many things (Bride_____) says about (Groom_____) is that he has a wonderful sense of humor. He is a man of integrity and a man of his word. If _____ says he’s going to do something you know you can count on him without a doubt. Most importantly, _____ says _____ is personally responsible for bringing her into a closer relationship with Christ and helping her become the woman she is today.
Just one of the many things (Groom_____) says about (Bride____) is that she has helped make him a better man and has shown him the importance of embracing family, friend and life relationships above all else. He says he loves ______ commitment of helping someone else in some way each and every day and inspires _____ and others to do the same.
This is the beauty of what happens when two soul mates unite and work as one living as God calls all of us to do. For we live in times that are constant with challenges. This marriage is not to be an escape from the world, but indeed it is to be a commitment to greater service to the world. For as one completes the other, the two of you working together as a team in the sanctity of marriage can accomplish incredible things.
__________________ (her name), ________________ (his name), is God’s gift to you. It is God’s will that in your love, this man might find within himself a greater sense of who he is meant to be. You are asked by God to so love this man, that the entire world might be blessed by the presence of a man who so shines. May he relax in your arms as he has never relaxed before. May he know, from now on, that there is one on whose love he can depend on forever.
And so it is with you also, __________________ (his name), __________________ (her name) is God’s gift to you. It is God’s will that in your love, this woman might find within herself a greater sense of who she is meant to be. You are asked by God to so love this woman, that the entire world might be blessed by the presence of a woman who so shines. May she relax in your arms as she has never relaxed before. May she know, from now on, that there is one on whose love she can depend on forever.
From this point forward, ___________________ (her name), ___________________’s (his name) needs will carry the same priority as your own. Likewise, _________________ (his name), from this point forward, _________________’s (her name) needs will be seen to be as important as your own. Your lives shall blend into harmony and oneness through the grace of God.
You commit to a compelling future for yourselves, (for your children). Receive fully God’s gifts on this day.
BIBLE READING Option #2 (Insert Reader’s name )
“And so, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you. And beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful. And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.”
READING Option #3 (Insert Reader’s name )
“The Magic of Love,” by Helen Steiner Rice
Love is like magic, and it always will be,
For love still remains life’s sweet mystery.
Love works in ways that are wondrous and strange,
And there’s nothing in life that love cannot change!
Love can transform the most commonplace
Into beauty and splendor and sweetness and grace.
Love is unselfish, understanding and kind,
For it sees with its heart, and not with its mind.
Love is the answer that everyone seeks;
Love is the language that every heart speaks.
Love can’t be bought, it is priceless and free.
Love, like pure magic, is life’s sweet mystery
THE CHARGE AND PREPARATION TO VOWS
______________ and ____________, I charge you with the creative challenge to keep alive the wonder of marriage. May you have the capacity to grow and to change together. May you maintain spontaneity, flexibility and humor. I challenge you to give fully, to show your real feelings, always communicate and speak in the truth, to save time for each other, no matter what demands are made upon your day and to joyfully put the needs of one another before your own.
VOWS OF MARRIAGE AND EXCHANGE OF RINGS
And so now we come, _____________ and ______________, to the exchange of vows and the exchange of rings which symbolize and bind your love to each other.
(Groom to Bride)
With this ring, I give you my promise that from this day forward you shall not walk alone. May my heart be your shelter and my arms be your home. May God bless you always. May we walk together through all things. May you feel deeply loved, for indeed you are. With this ring, I give you my heart. I feel so honored to call you wife. I feel so blessed to call you mine. May we feel this joy forever. Amen.
(Bride to Groom).
With this ring, I give to you my promise that from this day forward you shall not walk alone. May my heart be your shelter and my arms be your home. May God bless you always. May we walk together through all things. May you feel deeply loved, for indeed you are. With this ring, I give you my heart. I feel so honored to call you husband. I feel so blessed to call you mine. May we feel this joy forever. Amen.
STATEMENT OF COMMITMENT
____________________ and _____________________, I remind you that the God who brought you together and nurtured this relationship is the key to your success as a married couple. The presence of God shall guide your thinking and bless your home. Call on the guidance of God’s Spirit first above all else. We bring to mind as well the lives of (Name any children you have___________) and bless their part in this family union. May this marriage be your sanctuary, a united family, your place of peace.
QUESTION OF COMMITMENT
(To the Groom)
_______________, do you take this woman, _______________, to be your lawful and spiritually wedded wife, to love her and cherish her, honor and sustain her, through times of darkness as well as light, henceforth and forevermore? Do you promise that times of trouble will not deter you, or tempt you to forsake this love? Do you commit before God to honor this vow unto all your days?
(Groom) I do.
(Question to the Bride)
______________, do you take this man, ____________, to be your lawful and spiritually wedded husband, to love him and cherish him, honor and sustain him, through times of darkness as well as light, henceforth and forevermore? Do you promise that times of trouble will not deter you, or tempt you to forsake this love? Do you commit before God to honor this vow unto all your days?
(Bride) I do.
VIOLIN SONG (playing while lighting of the unity candle)
LIGHTING OF THE UNITY CANDLE (Bride/Groom and children of both bride and groom)
If you are second time around bride and groom with children, you can symbolize uniting all the children and yourselves as one newly united family unit. After the bride and groom light the Unity candle have separate candles for each of the children to come up and light a candle off your Unity candle. (Important note: You will need separate candle holders for the children to stand their candles in once lit). You may decide to have the new family unit consisting of bride, groom and the children to join hands and say a quick prayer before the children return to their seats. (The love that washes over the wedding party as well as the wedding guests in attendance is amazing.) We had many people come up to us after the wedding and state this was their favorite part of the ceremony.
PRAYER
(Let us pray)
Dear God, Please bless this couple, please bless this newly formed family. May their love be nurtured by You, always and forever. May this marriage be held in Your hands. We dedicate this love to You. May it serve Your purposes; may it increase Your dominion. May this man grow strong in the arms of this woman. May this woman grow strong in the arms this man. Thank you Lord. Amen.
PROCLAMATION
_____________ and ____________, by the authority vested in me by the church of God,
the state of __________, by the fact that I believe in the power of your love and by the seriousness with which you make this commitment. It is my honor and my delight to welcome these children into a new family union and to pronounce you husband and wife, now and forever more. Amen. (You may kiss your bride)
PRESENTATION OF THE COUPLE
It gives me great pleasure to be the first to announce (Groom_____) and (Bride_____)(Last name) as husband and wife.