Becky M.and Allen S.Wedding
May 14th, 2011 at 3:00pm
Invocation
We have gathered here together to witness, affirm and celebrate the marriage between Rebecca Lee McClellan and Loran Allen Smith. We call upon the love between Becky and Allen to bless this sacred space. We call upon the great love of the Holy which brings us alltogether to bless this sacred relationship. We call upon the love for Becky and Allenof those gathered here to bless this moment in time for all time. Amen.
Welcome
Welcome!
To Becky and Allen who gather to pledge their love and join their lives: May theirs always be a shared adventure, rich with moments of serenity as well as excitement; vital with problems that test as well as successes that lift; marked by a sense of personal freedom as well as mutual responsibility.
May they find in each other companionship as well as love; understanding as well as compassion; challenge as well as agreement.
May the home they establish be an island where the pressures of a cluttered world can be sorted out and brought into focus; where accumulated tensions can be released and understood; where personal needs do not tower over concern for others; and where the immediate does not blur more distant goals; where the warmth of humor and love puts both crisis and dullness into perspective.
And above all, may they find an ever richer meaning and joy in the high adventure of lifelong loving and learning together. This is our wish for them.
Intention
Becky and Allen, knowing that the commitment between you is already strong, I ask if you are ready to be married.
Response: We are
Reading – e.e. cummings, I Carry Your Heart With Me
i carry your heart with me(i carry it in
my heart)i am never without it(anywhere
i go you go,my dear; and whatever is done
by only me is your doing,my darling)
i fear
no fate(for you are my fate,my sweet)i want
no world(for beautiful you are my world,my true)
and it’s you are whatever a moon has always meant
and whatever a sun will always sing is you
here is the deepest secret nobody knows
(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud
and the sky of the sky of a tree called life;which grows
higher than the soul can hope or mind can hide)
and this is the wonder that’s keeping the stars apart
i carry your heart(i carry it in my heart)
Homily
Prayer
Let us pray: Blessed are you, O God, Creator of the universe. Grant that the love which unites these two people may grow in aiding happiness. May there be peace in their home, quietness and confidence in their hearts. May they be sustained by finding their place in the midst of all people and by the hope of peace and justice for all people. Amen.
Presentation
Will the parents of the couple please stand? Parents stand.
Who presents these two in marriage?
Parents: We do
Your presence symbolizes the many generations that stand behind both this bride and this groom.
Parents sit.
Introduction to Marriage Vows
Becky and Allen, you have freely given voice to your desire to be united in marriage.
What vows do you bring to this occasion?
Becky and Allen exchange vows.
Do you, Becky, take Allen as your husband in laughter and tears, in health and illness, in success and failure, in conflict and tranquility, in doubt and trust?
Becky: I do
Do you, Allen, take Becky as your wife in laughter and tears, in health and illness, in success and failure, in conflict and tranquility, in doubt and trust?
Allen: I do
Communal Blessings
Let us join together in blessing the promises that Allen and Becky have just made and will live out, day by day, with you, for you are their people.
Each one of us has struggled with commitment, one way or another. We've all felt hope and disillusionment, faith and fear, love and disappointment. Our joys and struggles have differed, as have the lessons we've learned, the wisdom we've gained, the blessings we've received. These blessings are like gifts from the holy spirit of love, gifts that allow us, each in our own way, to support Becky and Allen’s marriage.
I invite you to look inward and find the gift you have to bless this marriage with. It may be that you have sustained a long relationship and you have a gift of faith.
Or you have felt blessed by a relationship and you wish that for Becky and Allen’s future life together, and you have a gift of hope.
Or you empathize with a joy or sorrow they have shared and you have a gift of love.
Each with our own gift, we offer them to Becky and Allen: We have looked upon these vows of commitment and we say yes to this marriage (Will you say yes with me to this marriage?).
All: Yes!
Allen and Becky, we Bless you and with this blessing comes our vow to support you through the years ahead in Faith and Hope and Love. Amen.
Introduction to Ring Vows
The metal in these rings has little real value except in its use today. These words are gone as I say them, but as I say them your lives are changed forever. You are man and woman, born to trouble and to joy; and this is your great opportunity – that the greatest of gifts are yours for the risk of asking. We are to witness now the sealing of your promise with these rings, sign and token before the world of the world you will create – single, whole and quiet – within the world.
Ring Vows
- Allen, please repeat after me: With this ring I marry you and join my life with yours.
Allen repeats
- Becky, please repeat after me: With this ring I marry you and join my life with yours.
Becky repeats
Pronouncement
Forasmuch as Becky and Allen have pledged themselves to each other in the presence of these witnesses, I do now, by virtue of the authority vested in me by theFirst Unitarian Universalist Church of Nashville and the State of Tennessee, pronounce that they are husband and wife. You may now kiss.
Becky and Allen kiss, then stand facing the congregation.
Benediction
May these two people, now married, keep this promise which they have made. May they be a blessing and a comfort to each other, sharers of each other’s joys, consolers in each other’s sorrows, helpers to each other in all the vicissitudes of life. May they encourage each other in whatever they set out to achieve. May they, trusting each other, trust life and not be afraid. Yet may they not only accept and give affection between themselves, but also together have affection and consideration for others. We who are here present and those who are absent thinking of these two people, hope that the inspiration of this hour will not be forgotten. May they continue to love one another forever. Amen.
Recessional
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