Christian with Scriptural Readings

(After they process into the church, and before they take their seats, the parents of the Couple light two candles on either side of the Unity Candle to represent their families.)

 Scripture Readings

Officiant:

A reading from John 2, verses 1–11:

On the third day there was a wedding in Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there: Jesus also was invited to the wedding, with his disciples.

When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.”

And Jesus said to her, “O woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.”  His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”

Now there were six stone water jars there, for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons.

Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water.”

And they filled them up to the brim.

And he said to them, “Now draw some out, and take it to the master of the feast.” So they took it.

When the master of the feast tasted the water now become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the Bridegroom and said to him, “Everyone serves the good wine first; and when people have drunk freely, then the poor wine; but you have kept the good wine until now.”

This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory; and his disciples believed in him.

In Matthew, chapter 18, verse 20, Jesus says:

“Where two or three are gathered together in  my name, there am I in the midst of them.”

As represented here today, in this union of Bride and Groom, Christ is among us.

It is through their love and among those who have gathered here today to witness this union, that our loving God reveals himself to us.

When we come together in God’s name, we put down our petty and powerful weapons of  judgment  and rejection, and all the ways that we have learned to withhold ourselves from one another and we reach together into that which patiently awaits our choice to turn away from the multitude of our illusions— to the presence of God.

To truly enter into this presence, we need to choose our oneness rather  than  our separateness.

Christ taught us that the pathway into the glory of our true selves is through our loving hearts.

And it is through choosing our loving that we truly worship God.

Our greatest blessing in life comes not from power or possessions but from the intimate  knowing and loving of another.

Bride and Groom are so  blessed.

So, today is a celebration of their love and how this love brings God’s presence into their lives, for indeed, a true marriage such as this one is the highest form of knowing and worshiping the Beloved.

Marriage Address

Bride and Groom, this bond you share is a true miracle and a blessing from God. Treasure it and carefully tend it each day. You breathe life into each other and provide a safe and sacred harbor where you are able to shed all of your worldly illusions while witnessing, receiving, and cherishing the precious truth of one another. Generously shower each other with the gifts of your faith, strength, honesty, beauty, and  complexity.

In the hardest of times, always remember to reach for the Goodness — the goodness inside of yourselves and each other— to the Oneness of our Lord’s most loving message of “When two or more are gathered in my name, there I am also.”

May you always honor the sanctity of your union and thus be blessed beyond your wildest dreams. God bless you.

Reading

Now, Groom’s sister,           , will share a reading from the first letter of John, chapter 4, verses 7–16, followed by an excerpt from First Corinthians, chapter 13.

Dear friends,

let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us:

He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.

This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.

Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.

No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in  us.

We know that we live in him and he in  us, because he has given us of his  Spirit.

And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world.

If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God.

And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.

God is love.

Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.

Love is patient, love is kind.

It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.

It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.

Love does not delight in evil, but rejoices with the truth.

It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Love never fails.

Candle Ceremony

Officiant:

The lighting of the Unity Candle is a ritual symbolizing the union of two people as they enter into marriage. The Unity Candle itself represents the oneness that is being created by the joining of their individual lives into a shared journey.

The individual candles symbolize the uniqueness of Bride and Groom as they walk side by side heading in the same direction. They are separate, yet one.

The lighting of the Unity Candle in the presence of God symbolizes the great mystery of the union of two becoming one. Bride and Groom, always remember that as you join together in marriage, you are still two separate beings,each with your own unique needs, dreams, and desires, and that in marriage, you are creating a covenant of loving, caring, and sharing between you.

Now, Bride and Groom, as you bring these lights which symbolize your individual selves closer and closer  together, your flames merge into the greater light of your union.

As you light the Unity Candle to symbolize the enduring flame of your marriage, let us each take a moment to silently express our prayerful wishes for your happiness and well-being in this marriage.

And let us remember that just as Bride and Groom are becoming one, so are we coming together into a circle of family and friends in loving support of this marriage.

Bride and Groom, tend the light of your loving union with great devotion and kindness.

May you be blessed with a lifelong  partnership of loving and learning through God’s grace.

Wedding Vows

Please join hands and share your Wedding Vows.

Groom:

In the name of God, I,        , take you,       , to be my partner in marriage.

It is you, above all others, who has awakened my soul and enthused me with the possibility of becoming all that I am capable of being in  this world. I am so grateful to you for these blessings.

I want you to know how much I cherish your friendship and how much I appreciate your belief in me. Your love is my greatest treasure.

I will be at your side through all of life’s challenges and joys as we become one in spirit before God. I promise to give of myself to you in every way I can, to care for you and protect you as I would my own self.

I promise to be faithful to you in this life, and to be honest and true to our union until God, in his perfect wisdom and timing, calls one of us to death.

Bride, I promise to carry the flame of your love with me forever in this world and the  next, so that the light of our love, now one light drawn from the mingling of two souls, will always prevail.

Bride, I will forever thank God for your presence in my  life and you will always be surrounded by my love.

May God always keep us and watch over our love and our home.

Bride:

Groom, I strongly believe that our union is God’s will. Therefore, through his grace, I, Bride, take you, Groom, to be my beloved partner in marriage. And, with all the sincerity in my heart, I promise to love you dearly, to confide in you honestly, to respect you proudly, and to always be kind.

I have learned, through  you, the importance of being true to myself, and as your partner, I will strive to be fair and true to you. I look forward to our life together, enriched by our friendship and the encouragement we give to one  another.

And I am comforted to know you have promised to be by my side in times of fear and  sorrow.

Groom, from this moment forward, I offer to you all that I am and all that I hope to  be.

I will be faithful to you and grateful to God for our love all the days of my life.

Ring Exchange

Officiant:

May I have the rings, please? Let us pray.

Bless, O Lord, the giving of these rings, that they who wear them may abide in thy peace and continue in thy favor; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

May Bride and Groom abide in thy  peace and grow in their knowledge of your presence through their loving union.

May the seamless circle of these rings become the symbol of their endless love and serve to remind them of the covenant they have entered into today to be faithful, loving, and kind to each other.

Beloved God, may they abide in your grace and be forever true to this union.

Amen.

Groom, place this ring on Bride’s finger.

Groom:

Bride, I give you this ring in token and pledge of my abiding love for you. Bride, with this ring, I thee wed, in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Amen.

Officiant:

Bride, place this ring on Groom’s finger.

Bride:

Groom, I give you this ring in token and pledge of my abiding love for you. Groom, with this ring, I thee wed, in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Amen.

Musical Interlude

“Ave Maria”

The Pronouncement of Marriage

Officiant:

Beloved Father, Mother, God, we ask you to bless Bride and Groom with the strength to keep the vows they have made, and to cherish the love they share, that they may be faithful and devoted to each other.

Help them to support each other with patience, understanding, and honesty.

Enable them to have a home that is a place of blessings and of peace.

We seek your love and grace for all who are witnesses of this holy marriage.

May all who share the marriage covenant be renewed through their witnessing this union.

Bride and Groom, may your life together be joyful; may you both be enriched and made better people for living in this blessed union. May the grace and wisdom of God be always with you.

May the love of God always fill you, surround you, and protect you.

Amen.

Now, because you have chosen one another and pledged to love each other for all the days of your lives, before God and before this loving community of family and friends, By virtue of the authority vested in me by the First Nation Church and the Knights of St. Valentine and in accordance with the laws of the State of the Maryland, it gives me great joy to pronounce you Partners in Marriage. You may now kiss.

Benediction

Beloved God, source of love and light and  sound, pour your grace down upon Bride and Groom, that they may fulfill the vows that they have made today through their love and faithfulness to each other.

Bride and Groom, go in peace and love, seeing in each other the face of God smiling upon you and blessing you each and every day.