| This ceremony was written for a traditional, semi-formal, "spiritual but
not religious" beach wedding. It includes adaptations from the Handbook
of Religious Services published by the Church
of the Larger Fellowship.
- Presentation of the Bride
- Opening Words
- Blessing of the Parents
- Exchange of Vows
- Exchange of Rings
- Sand Ceremony
- Marriage Blessing
- Declaration of Marriage
PRESENTATION OF THE BRIDE
Who brings this woman to be married?
OPENING
WORDS
Please gather around as we come
together in the presence of this company to join these two in marriage. If life
has meaning to us at all, it possesses it because of love. It is that which
enshrines and ennobles our human experience. It is the basis for the peace of
family and the peace of all humanity. The greatest gift bestowed upon humans is
the gift not of demanding…but of giving love between two persons.
(Bride) and (Groom), your wedding
today is the public and legal joining of your souls that have already been
united as one in your hearts. Marriage will allow you a new environment to share
your lives together, to face life and the world, hand-in-hand. Your union will
expand you as individuals, define you as a couple, and deepen your love for one
another.
Out setting at the beach today
serves as a beautiful metaphor for marriage. Just as the conditions on the sea
range from a blissful calm to a raging storm, so our relationships change
through time. The shore absorbs the pounding of the surf as our love endures the
pressures of change and growth. It is a strength that binds yet ennobles our
human experience.
BLESSING
OF THE PARENTS
From time immemorial, weddings
such as this one have been public occasions where family and friends gather to
express the joy and approval they feel for the new couple. Let me therefore ask
the parents:
Do you, _________________ and
_________________, who have raised and nurtured these two, give your blessings
to them as they enter into this new relationship, and do you aspire in the days
and years ahead to give them your deepest love, understanding, and support
during both good times and bad? If so, please say, “We do.”
EXCHANGE
OF VOWS
(Bride) and (Groom), it is a great joy for me to be
standing here with you on this day, sharing in you marriage ceremony and
witnessing to the commitment you make to one another.
I remind you that the vows you are about to exchange
belong entirely to you. The words I speak have no magical powers and nothing I
say or do on this day can ultimately make your marriage endure with beauty,
fidelity and joy. Only you, by the integrity and diligence of your life, can
make these vows last.
So it is not to lofty words or institutions that we
appeal at this hour of commitment, but to the resources which you draw from deep
within yourselves…the deep well of human need, the need to live united and
loving and complete in an imperfect world. So will you now please (join
hands/turn to one another) and repeat your vows after me?
(Groom)/(Bride), you are
my one true love,
my best friend, my soul
mate.
You complete my
spirit
and compliment my
soul.
Today, before our
family, friends and the heavens,
I pledge my love to
you
and promise to share the
rest of my life with you.
Officiant: Do you
(Bride)/(Groom), take (Groom)/(Bride) to be your husband/wife? Do you promise to
stand by his side in both times of loss as well as times of gain? Trust, respect
and celebrate him/her? Grow together by unselfishly encouraging, appreciating,
nurturing and supporting him/her? Laugh, play and enjoy the simple pleasures
together? Be there and comfort him/her always? And pledge your fidelity as long
as you both shall live?
Bride (repeat for
Groom): I do.
RING
EXCHANGE
Marriage is a state in which
two people come together and create a union greater than the sum of its parts.
It is difficult to express in words the profound relationship that is love. The
ring has long been a symbol of the sincerity and permanence of a couple's love
for one another and regard for their marriage. As the circle can begin anew at
any point, so a good marriage can pick any point to renew itself. These rings
are symbols of your eternal love. Please repeat after me as you place the ring
on your beloved’s left hand.
I give you this ring
as a symbol
of my love and faithfulness.
As I place it on your finger,
I commit my heart and
soul to you.
I ask you to wear this ring
as a reminder of the vows
we have spoken today, our wedding day.
SAND CEREMONY
(Bride)
and (Groom), you have just sealed your relationship by the giving and receiving
of rings. Today this relationship is further symbolized through the pouring of
these two individual containers of sand.
One,
representing you, (Groom) and all that you were, all that you are and all that
you will ever be. The other, representing you, (Bride) and all that you
were, all that you are and all that you will ever be.
As
these two containers of sand are poured into the third container, the individual
containers of sand will no longer exist, but will be joined together as one. Our
prayer for you today is that your lives together would be longer than the time
it would take to separate the individual grains of sand.
BLESSING
May that glory which rests on all who love,
rest upon you, and bless you and keep you,
and fill you with happiness and a gracious spirit.
Despite all changes of time and fortune,
may all that is noble and lovely and true
abound in your hearts and abide with you,
and give you strength in all your days together.
DECLARATION
OF MARRIAGE
What love has brought together, let no one break
asunder. For as much as you, (Bride) and (Groom), have consented to live
together in marriage and have pledged yourselves to one another, have declared
the same by the giving and receiving of rings, with great pleasure and by the
authority vested in me as a Officiant in the state of Florida I pronounce
you husband and wife.
Rev.
Ann Fuller, 2006
|
On The Beach
