Mothers are seated.

Musician’s play Processional: Romanze, from Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, Mozart

Opening Prayer:

Dearly beloved, we have come together in the presence of God to witness and bless the joining together of this man and woman in Holy Matrimony.

Let us lift our hearts together as one in jubilant celebration of the marriage union we are about to witness between Bride and Groom.

As they enter into the sacred and joyous covenant of marriage, we are blessed to witness the magnificence of their love, their open hearts, and their vibrant and willing spirits.

Inspired by their love, let each of us rededicate ourselves to the loving relationships in our own lives. May we all be enriched for having shared this day together.

Remembrances and Acknowledgements:

Bride and Groom have asked that we take a moment to honor the many special people who are unable to be here with us today for one reason or another. So let us call them forward in our hearts.

(Moment of Silence)

Gathering words:

Love has gathered us here today. We are here to celebrate the love that Bride and Groom have for each other as well as the love that each of you has given them throughout their lives. As friends and family, you are the ones who have taught Bride and Groom how to love. You have shown them the blessings that come through loving one another.

Having planted this seed of love in them, we are now gathered to support them as they embark upon their voyage of discovery as husband and wife. We are here to see them off on this journey. Let us also be there to see them through.

Our first reading will be by Gabriela Arredondo, who will be reading from The Prophet, by Kahlil Gibran:

On Marriage

Then Almitra spoke again and said, "And what of Marriage, master?"

And he answered saying:

You were born together, and together you shall be forevermore.

You shall be together when white wings of death scatter your days.

Aye, you shall be together even in the silent memory of God.

But let there be spaces in your togetherness,

And let the winds of the heavens dance between you.

Love one another but make not a bond of love:

Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls.

Fill each other's cup but drink not from one cup.

Give one another of your bread but eat not from the same loaf.

Sing and dance together and be joyous, but let each one of you be alone,

Even as the strings of a lute are alone though they quiver with the 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 the cypress grow not in each other's shadow.

There is a gentleness to the presence of love that softens life’s rough edges. It makes us somehow braver to go forth into the world knowing that the shelter of someone’s love awaits us at days end.

We are most vulnerable when we love. We place our trust in another to honor us and to care for us, to treasure us and to receive our love.

The truth is that each one of us is a powerful creator in the dance of love and marriage. Each one of us, each moment of every day, has the choice to rededicate ourselves to one another or to withhold our love and caring.

Our next reading is from Leon Russell, who will be reading First Corinthians:

1 Corinthians 13

If I speak with the languages of men and of angels, but don't have love, I have become sounding brass, or a clanging cymbal.

If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but don't have love, I am nothing.

If I dole out all my goods to feed the poor, and if I give my body to be burned, but don't have love, it profits me nothing.

Love is patient and is kind; love doesn't envy. Love doesn't brag, is not proud, doesn't behave itself inappropriately, doesn't seek its own way, is not provoked, takes no account of evil; doesn't rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will be done away with. Where there are various languages, they will cease. Where there is knowledge, it will be done away with.

For we know in part, and we prophesy in part; but when that which is complete has come, then that which is partial will be done away with.

When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I felt as a child, I thought as a child. Now that I have become a man, I have put away childish things.

For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I will know fully, even as I was also fully known.

But now faith, hope, and love remain-these three. The greatest of these is love.

It is love that gives the deepest meaning to our lives. It is our highest calling, our greatest purpose, and our finest achievement.

Vows:

Groom, what would you like to say to Bride?

Groom’s vows:

Insert Groom’s vows here

Bride, what would you like to say to Groom?

Bride’s vows:

Insert Bride’s vows here

Ring Exchange:

Reverend Schulte:Groom, do you take Bride to be your lawfully wedded wife, to love and to cherish from this day forward?

Groom: I do.

Reverend:Bride, do you take Groom to be your lawfully wedded husband, to love and to cherish from this day forward?

Bride: I do.

Final Blessing, Pronouncement, and Kiss:

Bride and Groom, you have declared your intention and vows before God and this gathering of your family and friends.

May the grace of this day carry forward with you all the days of your lives. May you find delight in each other and may your love continue to grow and to nurture you throughout your lives.

I wish you the strength to be true to the vows you have made here today. May you always have the wisdom to cherish the precious love you share. May you abide by the laws of spirit nurturing yourselves and this marriage with acceptance, understanding, cooperation, and loving.

May the life you share be peaceful, healthy, and filled with blessings and joy.

As the Apache Wedding Blessing declares:

Now you will feel no rain, for each of you will be shelter to the other; now you will feel no cold, for each of you will be warmth to the other; now there will be no loneliness, for each of you will be companion to the other. Now you are two persons, but there is one life before you. Go now to your dwelling place to enter into the days of your togetherness, and may your days be good and long upon the earth.

And now, by the power vested in me by the State of Georgia, I witness and affirm your union of love and now pronounce you husband and wife.

You may now kiss as husband and wife for the first time.

Benediction:

Bride and Groom, may the road rise to meet you. May the wind be always at your back. May the sun shine warm upon your face, the rains fall soft upon your fields. And until we meet again, may God hold you in the hollow of His hand.

Recessional: musicians play Handel, La Rejoussance from the Royal Fireworks Music

Savannah Georgia Wedding Officiant, Rev. Steven Schulte E-mail (912) 354-6815