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~12 minute ceremony
When friends are getting married, you want to be there for them to help make their relationship stronger in any way you can. One of the most exciting ways to do this is by serving as their wedding officiant. The task can be daunting, though… particularly when it comes to finding a great script for officiating a wedding.
Being asked to guide your friends' marriage ceremony is a great honor and a big responsibility. The first step is becoming ordained, which you can do online with the ULC. That’s the easy part! Next comes the true test: figuring out what to say.
As a friend performing the wedding ceremony, you work with the couple to ensure that the tone you set for the day is what they want it to be. With this simple wedding officiant script for a friend, you can be confident that the service will be memorable and meaningful.
Welcome and Sermon
Officiant (to congregation):
Friends, family, and loved ones, we are gathered here today to witness the next chapter of a great love story. I have known _________ and _________ and watched their relationship grow, and it's an honor to help them take that next step toward forever. I know you all feel the same.
In preparation for this special day, I discovered a quote from a sonnet by Pablo Neruda:
"I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where
I love you simply, without problems or pride:
I love you like this because I don't know any other way to love,
except in this form in which I am not nor are you,
so close that your hand upon my chest is mine,
so close that your eyes close with my dreams."
When _________ and _________ met, they were each walking their own paths. _________ was working toward _________, and _________ was busy _________. The plans that seemed so certain before changed the day they met.
It has been a joy to watch _________ and _________ fall in love and realize they wanted to alter their destinations and make a life together. They entered into this relationship as two whole but separate people, and now the days before they were together seem like a whole other lifetime.
Already they live and move and act as if they are of one mind and one body. Already they are bound together. Today, we just make it official.
Exchange of Vows
Officiant (to couple):
You have made your intentions toward one another clear to me and to those who know you best. Now it is your chance to share the promises you make to each other with all who have gathered here.
Officiant (to Partner 1):
_________, what do you vow?
Partner 1:
_________, I love you with all my heart. I vow to listen to you and support your dreams. I will share responsibilities, joys, and heartaches with you, leaving you no burden to shoulder alone. I promise that no matter what life sends our way, I will be right there, walking through it beside you. I will cherish you and I will love you until the day I die.
Officiant (to Partner 2):
_________, what do you vow?
Partner 2:
_________, I love you with all my heart. I vow to listen to you and support your dreams. I will share responsibilities, joys, and heartaches with you, leaving you no burden to shoulder alone. I promise that no matter what life sends our way, I will be right there, walking through it beside you. I will cherish you and I will love you until the day I die.
Declaration of Intent and Ring Exchange
Officiant (to the congregation):
A marriage is only as strong as each partner's consent. Now we will take the beautiful promises _________ and _________ have made and seal them with a declaration of their intent.
Officiant (to Partner 1):
_________, do you take _________ as your partner in marriage and in life?
Partner 1:
I do.
Officiant (to Partner 1):
Then as a token of your commitment, please place the ring on _________'s left ring finger and say, "With this ring, I marry you."
Partner 1 (placing the ring on Partner 2's finger):
_________, with this ring, I marry you.
Officiant (to Partner 2):
_________, do you take _________ as your partner in marriage and in life?
Partner 2:
I do.
Officiant (to Partner 2):
Then as a token of your commitment, please place the ring on _________'s left ring finger and say, "With this ring, I marry you."
Partner 2 (placing the ring on Partner 2's finger):
_________, with this ring, I marry you.
Pronouncement
Officiant (to couple):
In light of your commitment and promises to each other, by the power vested in me by the Universal Life Church, I now pronounce you married. You may kiss your beloved.
Officiant (to congregation):
Please join me in welcoming _________ and _________ to their new life together!
