Wedding Vows

(Serving the Amicalola Falls area in the North Georgia Mountains)

The wedding vows make up the ceremony and this is one of the most important parts of the beginning of any marriage . These vows are what you are going to say to each other and have read in front of everyone attending your wedding. Even if it is only the two of you, what you vow is significant.

I give every one of my couples a personalized, printed copy of the wedding vows that they put together. It is a reminder of this very momentous occasion in their lives and a special keepsake.

You can choose from any of the ready-made wedding ceremonies that are already put together and you can mix and match the parts of them in any way that you like. Alternatively, you can take the parts of the ceremonies that you like from the list below and put them together however you want. The choice is up to you and your future spouse.

Here is the basic makeup of any wedding ceremony:

Opening words or Welcome

Who gives (or presents) this woman to be married? (optional)

Exchange of Vows

Wedding Vow Wording and Readings

Optional Wedding Poems or Scripture

Exchange of Rings

Optional Unity Candle or Sand Ceremony

Pronouncement and Declaration

Optional Benediction

The Kiss - Sealing the Marriage

Presentation of newly married couple

You may look at the ready-made wedding ceremonies for examples of how the procedure should progress. You can put readings or poems in other places too if you have more than one that you would like to use.

If it is a big wedding and you are having a song or special recording played, you need to advise the minister of this so that it can be put in the ceremony too. If you choose any ready-made wedding vows that do not have “Who gives this woman” then you should make sure that the minister knows that those words need to be added in.

There are also special wordings that you can add in to a wedding that involves children from a former marriage or blended families, including a sand ceremony or unity candle. Children who are old enough can participate in the sand ceremony as well and this can be very meaningful.

The above listing can also be written up in the wedding program that you hand out for the wedding. You can list the scripture, reading, poem or songs that you are including in your wedding service, along with the bridal couple’s individual parents’ names.

In addition, you can write in the names of the bridal party (bridesmaids and groomsmen) and their relationship to the couple getting married. This allows guests who are not familiar with the “other side” of the bridal couple to get to know them better.

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