Write vows

[CarolynT2017]

• write first draft EARLY
• Agree on shared word length of the vows, so no one is talking much longer than the other

[CarolynT2017]

@azoff

Ceremony script segments that I like:

Memorial

Let us take a moment at this time to remember special loved ones, who although no longer here in body, have joined us today in spirit, with a moment of silence.

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Different backgrounds come together As we begin this ceremony this evening, it is important that you all know that Bruce and Staci have created this ceremony, completely. From the moment we began planning, it was important for them to choose just the right words that would appropriately pay tribute to each of them as individuals, now coming together as one couple. Bruce and Staci have woven threads of two traditions, faiths, and cultures, into a magnificent tapestry that represent who they are together. They wish to share this ceremony with you, so you share every bit of their joy in coming together, and their hopes for their future together.

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Breaking the Glass – I will provide light bulb

In concluding our ceremony, I remind you that like glass, life is fragile and you must treat your relationship with special care, for like glass, it is strong enough to hold your love, yet fragile enough to break. And when the glass is now shattered, it is a cue for all of those present to make your joy felt-as a great wave of exultation, by shouting “Mazel Tov”. (break glass)

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GENERAL

Officiant: Marriage is perhaps the greatest and most challenging adventure of human relationships. No ceremony can create your marriage; only you can do that – through love and patience; through dedication and perseverance; through talking and listening, helping and supporting and believing in each other; through tenderness and laughter; through learning to forgive, learning to appreciate your differences, and by learning to make the important things matter, and to let go of the rest.

What this ceremony can do is to witness and affirm the choice you make to stand together as lifemates and partners.

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Support of Community Officiant: Two people in love do not live in isolation. Their love is a source of strength with which they may nourish not only each other but also the world around them. And in turn, we, their community of friends and family, have a responsibility to this couple. By our steadfast care, respect, and love, we can support their marriage and the new family they are creating today.

Will everyone please rise.

Officiant: Will you who are present here today, surround Casey and Serena in love, offering them the joys of your friendship, and supporting them in their marriage?

All: We will

Officiant You may be seated.

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UNITY CANDLE

[CarolynT2017]

General approach:

Text Size:AAA New York Weddings > PLANNER Multi-Faith Ceremonies How do you celebrate your union when you don't share the same religion? Three couples mixed his and hers to come up with ceremonies that were distinctly their own.

By Sarah Bernard Published 2002 Jewish & Catholic Marc Bergen knew he wanted to propose to Laurie a month after they met. But actually doing it took seven months of preparation. "Laurie is very musical," he says, "but I'm not musical at all." Four times a week, he took voice lessons with Gina, the chorus teacher at the Long Island middle school where he taught math, so he could pop the question by singing "Forever I Do" at their favorite restaurant. Laurie cried — as did just about everyone else.

But the work wasn't over: Getting engaged the hard way was effortless compared with the Bergens' next hurdle — finding someone to officiate at their interfaith wedding. Marc is Jewish and Laurie is a divorced Catholic. "I knew being married in a church was going to be out," says Laurie, "but we wanted to get a priest and a rabbi to marry us together." The Catholic priests they approached wouldn't perform a second wedding. Rabbis rejected them because Giorgio's, the restaurant they'd had their hearts set on, only had a Friday night — the Sabbath — available.

It is a problem many couples of different faiths experience when they try to plan a ceremony that incorporates both of their denominations. But a secular ceremony is not the only alterative. In Marc and Laurie's case, it was Marc's mom who found a solution when she came across an article about Reverend MarciaGrace Tropin, an interfaith minister for the past seven years (www.interfaithservices.com). "We see beyond the small things that make up the differences: skin color, sexual preference, religious beliefs," says Tropin. "We see beyond that to the heart of a person."

The Bergens worked with Tropin to construct a ceremony that would acknowledge both their faiths. At the wedding, each one's parents walked them down the aisle, a Jewish tradition. "My dad thought it was kind of strange," confesses Laurie, "but he went with the flow." There was no huppah, but no mention of Jesus either. They had two readings, one from 1 Corinthians and a second of a Native American wedding chant. They lit a unity candle, a practice from Christian weddings, and ended by breaking a glass, a Jewish custom. During the reception, friends took over the dance floor and raised each member of both families up on chairs, as is customary in Jewish receptions. "I actually think my parents liked that more than Marc's did," says Laurie. "My mom was the one high-fiving people!"

[CarolynT2017]

Marriage mission statement

http://offbeatbride.com/marriage-mission-statement/

[CarolynT2017]

WAYS TO MAKE VOWS PERSONAL

Find your shared philosophies Have a discussion with your partner about your philosophies on love and building a life together. You'll likely find affirmations, promises, and vows to incorporate from the areas that overlap between you. Here are some question to discuss:

How will you adapt to changes in your life together? What small things does your partner do that you love? What is your most favorite memory of your relationship so far? What strengths does your partner bring to the relationship that you lack? What's a very realistic promise you can make to each other? What's the most important priority to each of you? How will we move forward as a blended family (if this applies)

[CarolynT2017]

"You may now kiss each other"

(Vs. "you may now kiss the bride")

[CarolynT2017]

Introduction What a truly special day today is! Only rarely do any of us take the time to travel far away to meet all of our closest friends and family for the sole purpose of celebrating.

We usually spend our time concerned with the routine of daily living. We wake up, go to work, eat lunch, watch television. We worry, plan, work, drive. But for a few moments every so often, we get to experience something transcendent. When we witness pure beauty, we pause, amazed. We revel in the feeling, deep and beyond words, indisputable and timeless. It leaves us breathless and fulfilled and amazed. No matter how much we think of ourselves as rational, logical human beings, we have an irresistible drive to forget reason and simply feel something spiritual. Those are moments to be cherished.

FOR THIS REASON: we ask all phones are turned off

[CarolynT2017]

Today, we take the time to celebrate sublime moments in our lives and to remember just how important love is to all of us.

[CarolynT2017]

I will honor you physically, emotionally, and spiritually.

[CarolynT2017]

ceremony: Invite 7 people to give 7 blessings

[CarolynT2017]

@azoff

Recommendation: Vows are 1-2 minutes each (average 125 words per minute)