Wedding Vows 1

Who presents this woman to be married to this man?

We are gathered here today to witness the coming together of two people. Groom
and Bride, whose hearts and spirits are entwined as one. They now desire to
profess before the entire world their intention henceforth to walk the road of life
together.

To these two people, this marriage signifies the birth of a new spirit, a spirit which is
a part of each of us, yet not of any one of us alone. This “birth of Spirit” reminds us
of how the seasons signify that all life is reborn and looms again. It is appropriate,
that this wedding of Groom and Bride, be in the late summer – for a love as great as
theirs >> (harvests) or  (manifests)<< a union, and that it be under the opens sky,
where we are close to the Earth and to the unity of life, the totality of living things of
which we are part.

Officiant shares to couple:

The beliefs and thought about love which motivate these two people are perhaps
best expressed in the words of poet Kahlil Gibran:

“You were born to be together, and together you shall be forevermore. You shall be
together when the wings of death scatter days. Ay, you shall be together even in
your silent memory.

But let there be spaces in your togetherness, and let the winds of the heaven dance
between you.

Love one another, but make not a bondage of love. Let it rather be a moving sea
between the shores of your souls.

Fill each other’s cup, but drink now from one cup. Give one another of your bread,
but eat not of the same loaf.

Sing and dance together and be joyous, but let each of you be alone, Even as the
strings of a lute are alone, though they quiver with same music.

Give your hearts, but not into each other’s keeping, For only the hand of life can
contain your hearts.

And stand together, yet not too near together, for the pillars of the temple stand
apart and the oak tree and cypress grow not in the shadow.”

Rings

Do you Bride, knowing this man’s love for you and returning it, realizing his
strengths and learning form them, recognizing his weaknesses and helping him to
overcome them, take Groom to be your lawfully wedded husband?

Bride: I do.

Place the ring on his finger.

Do you Groom, knowing this woman’s love for you and returning it, realizing her
strengths and learning form them, recognizing her weaknesses and helping her to
overcome them, take Bride to be your lawfully wedded wife?

Groom: I do.

Place the ring on her finger.

Let these rings serve as locks not binding you together, but as keys, unlocking the
secrets of our hearts for each other to know, and thus bringing you closer together
forever.

Unity candle

As Officiant hands each a candle, says:

May you always share the gifts of love and be one heart and always beautiful of
mind. Through our individuality today your lighting the Unity candle represents your
partnership for yours to come.

Officiant lights your candles and you then light the Unity candle.

Then facing each other, Officiant shares:

And now Groom and Bride, seeking the fulfillment of love and marriage, find again
that the poet Gibran speaks for them:

“Love has no other desire but to fulfill itself. To wake at dawn with a winged heart
and give thanks to another day of loving.

To rest at the noon hour and meditate love’s ecstasy;

To return home eventide with gratitude, and then sleep with a prayer for the beloved
in our heart and a song of praise upon your lips.”

I now pronounce you husband and wife.

You may kiss your bride

Ladies and Gentlemen: Mr. & Mrs. ___________________