WELCOME:

We are here today to share a very important moment in your lives.  Today is a celebration because today you embark on one of life’s greatest adventures—marrying your best friend. Your love, laughter, and understanding have brought you to this moment, and today you’ve decided to make it official: a lifetime together as partners in love, life, and plenty of adventures to come.

Optional Thank You to guests:

(Partner 1) and (Partner 2) thank you for your presence here today, and now ask for your encouragement and lifelong support in their decision to become husband and wife or life partners.

THE MARRIAGE CEREMONY:

The marriage ceremony has been an important feature across nearly every culture, religion, generation, and society. We have thousands of important moments that happen throughout our lives, but this one is regarded as one so important, we acknowledge its special status by solidifying it with this ceremony. Why this moment? Because despite all of our differences, love is what we all share. It's the great unifier — our one universal truth. That no matter who we are, where we've come from, what we believe, we know this one thing: love is what we're doing right.

We all have our own love stories. Some are short, others long. Some are yet unwritten, while others are just getting to the good part. There are chapters in all of our stories that are challenging or disappointing — and others that are exciting and full of adventure. And this is what brings you boths standing here today. You are writing the next chapter of your love story. 

Trying to describe love is one of our favorite pastimes.  We use the words we have to write stories, and poems, and songs, and movies about love.  And even though we describe love in different ways – and love is so incredible, words fail us when we try to explain it.  That is just the way it is with love – it’s meant to be felt, not described. 

Love isn’t happily ever after, love is the experience of living your story.  

(Partner 1) and (Partner 2) you are here today because you have chosen to be with someone who enhances you, who makes you think, makes you smile, and makes every day brighter.  In a moment you will make promises to each other that you intend to keep.  You are going to vow to take care of each other, to stand up for one another, and find happiness in each other.  There’s a simple premise to each of these promises: you are vowing to be there.  You are teaming up and saying to the other, “Every experience I am going to have, I want you to be a part of.”

Optional: Personal Vows here

OFFICIAL VOWS:

Partner 1:

Will you, (Partner 1), keep (Partner 2) as your favorite person – to laugh with her, go on adventures with her, support her through life’s tough moments, be proud of her, grow old with her, and find new reasons to love her every day?   (Partner 2): “I will”

Partner 2:

Will you, (Partner 2), keep (Partner 1) as your favorite person – to laugh with him, go on adventures with him, support him through life’s tough moments, be proud of him, grow old with him, and find new reasons to love him every day?  (Partner 1): “I will”

RINGS: 

You have both chosen to wear rings as a reminder of your promises.  The wedding ring is the outward and visible sign of an inward bond which unites your two loyal hearts in endless love. These rings symbolize your new life together, for they are never ending and always beginning. They stand as a seal of the vows that you have made to one another. Therefore, honor these rings for what they represent and protect these rings in the same way you protect the commitments you have made to one another today.

Partner 1: 

Please take (Partner 2’s) left hand, and as you place the ring on her finger, repeat after me. 

I give you this ring as a symbol of our vows. As you wear it, may it remind you that I will love you, forever.

Optional: May you never steal, lie, or cheat. But if you must steal, then steal away my sorrows. If you must lie, lie with me all the nights of my life. And if you must cheat, then please cheat death, because I couldn't live a day without you.

Partner 2:

Please take (Partner 1’s) left hand, and as you place the ring on her finger, repeat after me. 

I give you this ring as a symbol of our vows. As you wear it, may it remind you that I will love you forever.

Optional: May you never steal, lie, or cheat. But if you must steal, then steal away my sorrows. If you must lie, lie with me all the nights of my life. And if you must cheat, then please cheat death, because I couldn't live a day without you.

CLOSING:

Today you have pledged yourselves to a lifetime of caring for one another. May this be a commitment made in love, kept in faith, lived in hope and eternally renewed. As you stand before us, it is our hope that you will go through life loving, trusting, and caring for one another, completely and forever.

Optional: Washoe Tribe Blessing

Today we stand on land that once was originally inhabited by the Washoe tribe, the native Indians who gave Lake Tahoe it’s name. To add to this moment, I would like to share a blessing said to be taken from the Washoe tribe:

Now you will feel no rain,
For each of you will be shelter to the other.
Now you will feel no cold,
For each of you will be warmth to each other.
Now you will feel no loneliness,
For you will be a companion to the other.
Now you are two bodies,
But with only one life before you.
May your days be good and long upon the earth.

PRONOUNCEMENT:

(Partner 1) and (Partner 2) you have joined hands and made vows and exchanged rings to remind you of those vows, and pledged to be united in marriage. According to the powers vested in me and the highest power of the land and the sea, I have the honor to pronounce that your wedding vows are sealed and you may henceforth be known to all as husband and wife.

You may now seal your vows with a kiss.

Congratulations!!!

WELCOME:

(Partner 1) & (Partner 2), You stand here today to celebrate a special bond between the two of you.  You have decided to proclaim to the world your decision to become Husband and Wife (or Life Partners). This ceremony is a step for you to deepen your commitment so you may move forward in life together.  May your love continue to grow stronger from this day onward.  

Before this moment you have been many things to one another – acquaintance, friend, companion, lover, even teacher, you have learned much from one another these past few years. Shortly you shall say a few words that take you across a threshold of life, and things will never quite be the same between you.

You are here to make commitments to each other that you intend to keep.  You are vowing to take care of each other, to stand up for one another, and find happiness in each other.  You are teaming up and saying to the other, “Every experience I am going to have, I want you to be a part of.  After today your will proclaim to the world: “This is my Husband, This is my Wife!”

Marriage brings both pleasures and challenges.  Together, you will experience the distinct delights of marriage such as the feeling that you are never alone, laughter at inside jokes, and the joy of living each day with the love of your life.

(Partner 1) and (Partner 2), you fell in love by chance, but you are here today because you are making a choice.  You both are choosing each other.  You have chosen to be with someone who enhances you, who makes you think, makes you smile, and makes every day brighter.

Neither I, nor all society, can join the two of you today.  Only you can choose to promise your union today and pledge its future.  By your participation in this celebration you honor and recognize your intention to live together as husband and wife. 

Optional: Personal Vows here

OFFICIAL VOWS:

(Partner 1), Do you take (Partner 2) to be your Wife? ("I do") Do you promise to love, honor, cherish and be truthful to her as you go forward in life together?  ("I do") 

(Partner 2), Do you take (Partner 1) to be your Husband? ("I do") Do you promise to love, honor, cherish and be truthful to him as you go forward in life together? (“I do”)

RINGS:

In keeping with the promises you have made, you will give and you receive these rings.  They are a token of your union, a symbol of enduring loyalty.  May they ever remind of your marriage vows.

(Partner 1), please place (Partner 2’s) ring on her finger and repeat after me:

(Partner 1), I give you this ring as a reminder that I will love and respect you, in all times, in all places, and in all ways, forever.

(Partner 2), please place (Partner 1’s) ring on his finger and repeat after me:

(Partner 2), I give you this ring as a reminder that I will love and respect you, in all times, in all places, and in all ways, forever.

CLOSING:

(Partner 1) & (Partner 2) As you go forward in life together, may joy pervade your lives.  May compassion, kindness, patience, and forgiveness be your guide.  May you discover tremendous delight and joy in each other.  May your love always inspire you to be kind in your words, considerate of each other’s feelings, and concerned for each other’s needs and wishes.  Be quick to forgive, quick to laugh, quick to enjoy. And I hope your love grow beyond anything you have yet to imagine.

Optional: Washoe Tribe Blessing

Today we stand on land that once was originally inhabited by the Washoe triBe, the native Indians who gave Lake Tahoe it’s name. To add to this moment, I would like to share a blessing said to be taken from the Washoe tribe:

Now you will feel no rain,
For each of you will be shelter to the other.
Now you will feel no cold,
For each of you will be warmth to each other.
Now you will feel no loneliness,
For you will be a companion to the other.
Now you are two bodies,
But with only one life before you.
May your days be good and long upon the earth.

Or Optional: Irish Blessing

May you both never steal, lie, or cheat. But if you must steal, then steal away each others sorrows. If you must lie, lie with each other all the nights of your life. And if you must cheat, then please cheat death, because you can’t live a day without each other.

PRONOUNCEMENT:

You stand here before us today to proclaim your love to the world.  You have shared your vows of love and given and received your rings.  In the honesty and sincerity of what you have done and said it is indeed my honor to pronounce that your wedding vows are sealed and you may henceforth be known as husband and wife.

WELCOME:

We are gathered here today not only to celebrate the beauty of love, but to recognize the sacred covenant that (Partner 1) and (Partner 2) are entering into before God. Marriage is not simply a contract, but a complete and binding union of two souls—a holy covenant designed by the Creator.

Wedding celebrations are also the merging of two families, a beautiful combination of love and values. While (Bride) remains deeply connected to the family who raised her, nurtured her, and taught her how to love, she is now called to take what she has learned and join with (Groom) in building the foundation of a new family—one made strong because it is rooted in God’s design.

(Partner 1) and (Partner 2), it is your intention to share with each other all of the laughter and tears that the years ahead will bring. You do so today in the presence of God and of those gathered here, acknowledging the permanence and seriousness of the vows you are about to make. These vows will bind you together as husband and wife, a covenant meant to remain undivided, reflecting the everlasting love of God.y.

A READING:

To remind us all of the gravity that love carries, (Partner 1) and (Partner 2) have requested a reading from Corinthians 13:

“If I speak in the tongues of men and angels, but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give away all my possessions, and if I hand over my body so that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.

Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends.

But as for prophecies, they will come to an end; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will come to an end. For we know only in part, and we prophesy only in part; but when the complete comes, the partial will come to an end. When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child; when I became an adult, I put an end to childish ways. For now, we see in a mirror, dimly, but then we will see face to face. Now I know only in part; then I will know fully, even as I have been fully known. And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love.”

This passage reminds us that love is not fleeting emotion, but the very nature of God. When you love one another, you reflect His image. To be fully known and loved is one of the greatest ways we can experience the presence of God in our lives.

Optional Personal Vows here

OFFICIAL VOWS:

Do you (Partner 1) take this woman to be your wife, acknowledging her as the one created for you by your Creator, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health; to love her faithfully as Christ loves the church, as long as you both shall live? (“I do”)

Do you (Partner 2) take this man to be your husband, acknowledging him as the one created for you by your Creator, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health; to love him faithfully as Christ loves the church, as long as you both shall live? (“I do”)

RINGS:

Now it is time to exchange rings—symbols of your covenant with one another. These circles, with no beginning and no end, reflect the eternal nature of the promises you are making today before God.

Partner 1, repeat after me: I give you this ring as a sign of my covenant with you. With it, I commit to be your loving and faithful partner, for as long as God gives us life together. I am honored to call you my wife.

Partner 2, repeat after me: I give you this ring as a sign of my covenant with you. With it, I commit to be your loving and faithful partner, for as long as God gives us life together. I am honored to call you my husband.

Optional: Washoe Tribe Blessing

Today we stand on land that once was originally inhabited by the Washoe trive, the native Indians who gave Lake Tahoe it’s name. To add to this moment, I would like to share a blessing said to be taken from the Washoe tribe:

Now you will feel no rain,
For each of you will be shelter to the other.
Now you will feel no cold,
For each of you will be warmth to each other.
Now you will feel no loneliness,
For you will be a companion to the other.
Now you are two bodies,
But with only one life before you.
May your days be good and long upon the earth.

Or OPTIONAL IRISH BLESSING:

May you both never steal, lie, or cheat. But if you must steal, then steal away each others sorrows. If you must lie, lie with each other all the nights of your life. And if you must cheat, then please cheat death, because you can’t live a day without each other.

PRONOUNCEMENT:

It is my great honor, with the authority vested in me by the State of California, and under the witness of God and those gathered here, to now pronounce you husband and wife—joined in a holy covenant, never to be separated.

(Partner 1), you may now kiss your bride.

Ladies and gentlemen, it is my joy to introduce for the very first time, Mr. and Mrs.___________.