Congratulations! You’ve set the date and now you are looking for a meaningful ceremony. The four ceremonies below are available for location weddings, or at The Little Wedding Chapel. Each ceremony can be customized to suit your desires and situation. Your officiant or our wedding consultant will be happy to discuss with you. Please see our packages for all-inclusive options.
Customization can include Sand or Unity Candle ceremonies, hand fasting, cultural traditions, etc. Discuss a hand-crafted ceremony with us today!
We can also design a Renewal of Vows ceremony for couples celebrating their first, all the way to your fiftieth anniversary and beyond or a Commitment Ceremony for those couples who are entering into a committed relationship but not quite ready to take the leap into marriage. Our wedding planner will refer you to one of our officiants to answer all your questions!
The Partnership in Life Ceremony
The Gathering of the Community
Dear friends, we are gathered here today to witness and to celebrate the marriage of _______ and _______ and to be with them as they pledge themselves to each other. Theirs is a partnership freely chosen and founded on love, friendship, trust and respect. A partnership that encourages not only self expression, understanding and the development of wisdom through the sharing of knowledge, but also an enthusiasm for life and living. It must be done with respect, consideration and a deep and gentle caring for one another.
You are the people with whom they want to share their joy as they enter into marriage and they hope that, in the years ahead, your love will be a continuous source of strength for them. Let us celebrate this of _______ and _______, bless them and their bond of love.
Charge to the Couple
You are here today to publicly declare your love for one another. Do you pledge to treat each other with kindness, respect and compassion; to listen to each other, and to speak to each other with honesty always? R: We do.
Marriage is a way of life that all should revere and none should lightly undertake. _______ and _______, if either of you knows a reason why you may not lawfully marry, you must also declare it now.
Words of Wisdom
Your marriage is an act of faith, which must not be entered into lightly, nor must it be based on the vain hope of what the other will do or not do, might become, or not become.
It must be based on the firm belief in your individual worth and in that of the other, remembering that the pledge you make today will only remain valid as long as you look upon it, not as a license to control, but as an expression of your devotion and freedom.
Today you are dedicating yourselves to that most fragile of all endeavours; a human relationship. The words spoken in this ceremony will not validate your marriage unless your love and your commitment to one another are strong enough to sustain it.
The Betrothal
_______, will you give yourself to ______ to be her husband: to laugh with her, comfort her, honour and protect her; forsaking all others, to be faithful to her till death do you part? R: I will.
_______, will you give yourself to _______ to be his wife? To love him comfort him, honour and protect him; and forsaking all others, to be faithful till death do you part? R: I will.
The Wedding Vows
I, _______, take you _______, to be my wife/husband, to have and to hold from this day forward; for better for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish till death do we part. This is my solemn vow.
The Exchanging of Rings
The perfect circle of a ring symbolizes eternity. In the years to come these rings should remind you of the overwhelming joy of this special occasion when you were united in marriage.
Bride/Groom: With all my love I give you this ring, an everlasting symbol of the vows we have made to each other. In the presence of these witnesses, I honour you with all that I am and all that I have.
The Declaration of Marriage
From this day on, may you always communicate openly and honestly with each other and live these days of joy. May you live in each other’s company in peace and trust and may your days be filled with the rewards that all you have experienced to bring you to this place. May you endlessly delight in each other and love and fulfill each other always.
Love is more than a feeling, it’s a commitment.
It’s a commitment to work things out and to resolve the issues;
to communicate when it’s hard to and to forgive each other
and start fresh each day.
Good marriages take time and effort to build.
They don’t just happen.
_______ and _______, you have chosen each other in love and freedom. You have declared your purpose before this gathering and you have made your pledges one to the other. Go now together as husband and wife.