(Okay. This is real. Let’s get started. Take this moment in, let it fill you with joy. We breathe in love and we breathe out peace.)
Will you please stand for our beautiful bride (or couple)?
Thank you, and please be seated.
Welcome. Here we are!
My name is (Cynthia Wooten/Kenna Covington), and I am thrilled to be with you on this gorgeous afternoon. Today, we join one another to witness and celebrate the marriage of _____ and ______ We are here to share in this formal commitment they make to one another, to offer our love and encouragement, and to allow them to begin their married life surrounded by unconditional love and support.
_____and _____, this is it!
Every bit of dreaming, struggling, decision making, and planning - it’s here and you are getting married! Your dress is beautiful and you look very handsome. It’s perfect!
You are here today to marry your best friend. You are holding the hands of the person who is most comfortable to you, the person you can just BE with – and that you can’t imagine being without.
For sometime now, you’ve been growing up and growing your roots. You’ve built a strong foundation for your relationship based on honesty and respect. You have found joy in each other’s company, and you have become better, more fulfilled people because of your connection. You have experienced more life through the other’s eyes and found a deeper meaning to your own. You’ve learned that love isn’t always like fireworks, because those who truly love, have roots that grow towards each other underground, in the spaces no one else will ever see. And, when all the pretty blossoms have fallen from their branches, they find that they are one tree and not two.
That’s why we are here today; every person here is a witness to you as you publicly tell the world that you choose to stand together as equal partners - each complimenting the other. You’ve found that your love – and the life you’ve created from love – it’s something neither of you wants to live without. Your beautiful friendship, has been earned, offered, and shared. You HAVE earned this special day through years of support, compromise and respect for one another as you’ve made the commitment to not just grow and evolve as individuals, but also -together. You’ve laughed more than you can recall. You’ve struggled and overcome more adversity than you thought you ever could. And you’ve learned more than your younger selves could have ever imagined.
All this time, you’ve been making commitments in an informal way. All of those conversations that were held on long car trips, over dinners, and secret moments alone – all those conversations that began with, “when we’re married” – and continued with I will, and you will, and we will…
Today, as you marry each other, remember those conversations – because what you are really telling each other is, “Hey, you remember all of those things we talked about, and dreamed about?
Well. I meant it all. Every word.”
(Declaration of Intent)
_____and _____, you are here today to share the depth of your love, friendship, appreciation and respect for each other, and your desire to be together for all of your days
_____, do you take _____ to be your husband/wife?
Do you promise to love( him/her), comfort (him/her), honor and protect (him/her), and be faithful to (him/her) for as long as you both shall live?
______: I do
______, do you take ____to be your wife/husband?
Do you promise to love (her/him), comfort (her/him), honor and protect (her/him), and be faithful to (her/him) for as long as you both shall live?
_____: I do
(Vows)
So, we’ve come to the vows. Vows are promises, values, and ideas that shape our shared lives. Now it is time for you to share your vows with each other.
_____, please repeat after me:
I, _____, take you, _____, to be my wife/husband, my constant friend and partner and my love.
I vow to honor and respect you for all that you are, all that you have ever been, and all that you will become.
I promise to be true to you always in my thoughts and in my words. Above all, I will give you my love freely and unconditionally.
I pledge this to you from the depths of my soul, today and for all the days of our lives.
_____, please repeat after me:
I, _____, take you, _____ to be my husband/wife, my constant friend and partner and my love.
I vow to honor and respect you for all that you are all that you have ever been and all that you will become.
I promise to be true to you always in my thoughts and in my words. Above all, I will give you my love freely and unconditionally.
I pledge this to you from the depths of my soul, today and for all the days of our lives.
(Ring Exchange)
May we please have the rings?
Traditionally, the passage to the status of husband(s) and/or wife(wives) is marked by the exchange of rings. These rings are a symbol of the unbroken circle of love. Love freely given has no beginning and no end, no giver and no receiver, for each is the giver and each is the receiver. May these rings always remind you of the vows you have taken.
_____, as you place the ring on _____’s finger, please repeat after me: I give you this ring to wear as a symbol of our love.
_____, as you place the ring on _____’s finger, please repeat after me: I give you this ring to wear as a symbol of our love.
_____ and _____, May you have many joys, and be the light of each other's days. May you always see and encourage the best in each other. May the challenges that life brings your way make your marriage grow stronger. and may you always be each other's best friend and greatest love.
Now, by the power vested in me by the American Humanist Society and the state of North Carolina, I pronounce you married, as (Husband and Wife, Wife and Wife, or Husband and Husband)!
_____, you may now kiss your bride (or your husband)!
(Alternately: You may share your first wedded kiss!)
After kiss, presentation of the newly wedded couple to family & friends (as desired).
Instructions to the guests about regarding the remainder of the celebration.
