Your Ceremony
As stated, this is your ceremony and it can be designed according to your dreams and wishes with the inclusion of some basic legal requirements. Your ceremony can be as romantic, traditional, contemporary and adventurous as you like. You can draw on traditional and spiritual elements and/or from other cultural customs – limited only by your imagination.
In the most legal form, getting married may take only five minutes and only the Monitum, Exchange of Vows and Signing of the Certificates are legally required. However, most couples prefer a ceremony which you and your guests will remember forever as typifying your uniqueness as a couple and as celebrating the joyous occasion when you join together as husband and wife.
The following is a somewhat traditional and typical format, and is offered as a template upon which you may draw:
- The introduction – a welcome to your guests on your behalf. This is also an opportunity to say something about how you both met, your romance, your hopes and dreams for your life together.
- A optional Reading – poem/reading/music and lyrics which have special meaning to you both reflecting the theme of your love for each other.
- Celebrant Authority (Monitum) this is a legal requirement that your Celebrant remind you that you are entering into a legally binding contract to marry in front of witnesses.
- Presentation of the Bride - the bride can be presented by father/family or choose to be already present with her groom.
- The Asking – The Celebrant asks the Bride and Groom if they take each other as Husband and Wife.
- The Pledge – The couple may choose to make a special pledge to each other.
- Exchange of Vows – this is a legal requirement. The Bride and Groom separately call upon the people present to witnesses that they take each other as their lawfully wedded husband/wife
- Ring Ceremony and/or other special ceremony, eg handfasting
- Declaration of Marriage by Celebrant
- Kiss/Embrace (optional)
- Blessing by Celebrant/ Family member - poem/special words/music/lyrics.
- Signing of the Register
- Presentation of married couple
When you contact me to book your ceremony, I can send you some scripts, you can use these directly, or mix and match and use them as a basis to create your own special ceremony or write your own entirely original unique ceremony.