Marriage. With a capital ‘M’, the word has become so charged. It is locked in as the legal definition of union between a two people. With a small ‘m’ , the word is bandied around much more liberally : it has come to mean a blending, a natural joining, a dovetailing –...
In my job sometimes I start communicating with a couple over a year before the wedding, we become friends on Facebook, and I get to share every step of their preparation. One of “my“ brides was beyond organised! My kind of girl! She shared with me the running sheet,...
Here is a design template for your wedding – too easy! The average civil ceremony will take just under half an hour – including a couple of readings and the signing of documents. It will print out on about two A4 pages. You will note there are only two sections which...
This reading would be beautifully placed at the beginning of the ceremony – maybe after the introduction and welcome to guests. It is a personal view on what the commitment to marriage means. The reading talks of a certain integrity, a quality which the bond of...
There are hundreds and hundreds of poems and formal words of wisdom that could be read at wedding ceremonies. I’ve chosen just a few that have proven to be popular over the years, and some which are my favourites that I wish people would choose. This last one I offer...
This anonymous reading is often used as a final blessing … the fact that it suggests that the success of your marriage should be based on gentle manipulation is beside the point I suppose! It’s humorous and realistic and talks of the balancing act that it sometimes...
These two blessings are not overly laden with philosophy but in their simplicity they appeal to the universe, like the original epithalamia, to look after the newly-weds as they embark on their new journey through the seasons and twists and turns of life. Both suggest...
James Dillet Freeman was an American minister of the Unity Church. Of Cherokee and English/Irish descent, Freeman identified with Native American culture and was a prolific poet who explored the human condition, not only in his writing, but as a speaker. He wrote of...
This is a blessing I’m often asked to include in a wedding ceremony. Its simplicity and naiveté make it appeal to couples who find neither modern nor classical poetry suitable for their wedding; its hint of spirituality substitutes warmly for religious invocations....
To protect you and make sure your celebrant knows what he or she is doing, the Commonwealth Attorney General has devised a code of conduct for its agents, so: A marriage celebrant must maintain a high standard of service – basically be professional, A marriage...
” I take you to be my lawful wife, my lawful husband, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, in good times and adversity, in sickness and in health, to love and cherish till death do us part… ” In the nursing home where my...
The experience of love, when it hits you that you have found “ the one”, can change your life in an instant. “ What a difference a day makes” says the song – and it’s true: it is the feeling that gets you first; it is certainly the heart, not the head processing this....
