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)
