Words For Your Wedding

At the beginning of a wedding, the address to the people is a short statement to your wedding guests about marriage.

What {Name 1} and {Name 2} mean to each other is obvious in their lives, but not easily expressed in the language of a ceremony. Marriage, and the union it symbolizes, can be the most intriguing of human experiences, for love in its many forms is what life is all about. To share their lives, to encourage creativity and inspire each other to reach beyond the limits of the ordinary - not at the expense of each partner's individuality, but rather, by the strength of the common bond - that is the hope in which {Name 1} and {Name 2} come to be married. For the Christian, this occasion is not a spectacle, but worship; it is not a mere formal observance, but a participation in the will of God for life. A wedding is the celebration of the highest we know in human love, the pledging of the deepest human fidelity, the expression of the highest human aspiration. A relationship so sacred must not be entered into casually, but thoughtfully, deliberately and freely.

Marriage is a joyful covenanting in which two very independent beings proclaim, before God and human witnesses, their commitment to live together in Spiritual, physical and material unity. In this covenant they acknowledge that the great love God has shown for each of them enables them to love each other. They affirm that God's gracious presence and abiding power are needed for them to keep their vows, to continue to live in love, and to be faithful to God and each other in this world. We all affirm that the promise of God is eternal and the love of God is what brings strength to human love. Therefore marriage must not be entered into lightly or thoughtlessly, but with mutual respect and with reverence for God

Let us remember that marriage has been established and sanctified for the welfare and happiness of people individually and of society as a whole. It is a commitment of two people to each other; a commitment that sees the establishment of a new home. But because our whole future as a society depends on the quality of home life, this is not just a notable event in the lives of these two individuals, but also in the larger life of humanity. It is a private commitment, to be sure, but it is one celebrated before witnesses and before God. Because we believe this, we continue this service with reverence, joy and praise, believing that the great heights of sharing and fulfillment can be experienced by these two loving persons and by all of us as a caring community

Marriage is God's graceful gift; entered into with responsibility, sustained through open sharing and mutual encouragement. Marriage is God's graceful gift; a mark of commitment, a pledge of faithfulness, and a symbol of enduring friendship. Marriage is God's graceful gift; within the context of family, which has sustained each partner in the past, the families whose love they will share in the days ahead. Marriage is God's graceful gift; a treasure to be received joyfully and with never-ending wonder even as it changes, grows, and ages with time. Marriage is God's graceful gift.

In marriage two individuals enter into a spiritual and physical union, cherishing a mutual esteem and love, bearing with each other's infirmities and weaknesses, comforting each other in trouble, providing in honesty and industry for each other and for their household, and living together the length of their days as heirs of the grace of God.

Marriage, therefore, is not a state to be entered into lightly or unadvisedly, but reverently, and with due contemplation of the deep commitments and tender emotions which help keep love alive.

This brief and outward ceremony is a symbol of that which is already inner and real - a sacred union of hearts and lives which love can create, God may bless, and conscientious commitment sustain and fulfill.

Into this sacred relationship these two persons come now to be joined. {Name 1} and {Name 2}, such a union can be created only by your loving purpose, be sustained by your abiding will, and be renewed by your faith in one another.

Marriage is a commitment to life, the best that two people can find and bring out in each other. It offers opportunities for sharing and growth that no other relationship can equal. It is a physical and an emotional joining that is promised for a lifetime.

Within the circle of its love, marriage encompasses all of life's most important relationships. A married couple are each other's best friend, confidant, lover, teacher, listener, and critic. And there may come times when one partner is heartbroken or ailing, and the love of the other may resemble the tender caring of a parent or child.

Marriage deepens and enriches every facet of life. Happiness is fuller, memories are fresher, commitment is stronger, even anger is felt more strongly, and passes away more quickly.

Marriage understands and forgives the mistakes life is unable to avoid. It encourages and nurtures new life, new experiences, new ways of expressing a love that is deeper than life.

When two people pledge their love and care for each other in marriage, they create a spirit unique unto themselves which binds them closer than any spoken or written words.

Marriage is a promise, a potential made in the hearts of two people who love each other and takes a lifetime to fulfill.

(Edmund O'Neill)