LGBT Same Sex Ceremonies

joeycraigceremony

Below are samples of Same Sex Ceremonies, the first non-traditional, and the second more Traditional. Please note that you are not restricted to one or the other but rather you can cut, paste, mix and match to your hearts’ content

Non-Traditional Ceremony

Welcome to this celebration of love. Name and Name, may this XXrd day of MONTH in the year 2018, be a moment in time to be remembered and cherished. Today, we celebrate your love. Love is the foundation, the very essence of life. It must be cared for, tended to, and nourished if it is to grow, become strong, and endure.

We say in Hawaii:

Aloha ika ho’o manawanui, Aloha ika loko maika’i, Aloha ike kahi, ike kahi

Love is patient. Love is kind. Love begets love.

We have in Hawaii the tradition of sharing leis as a sign of our love and respect. Just as all the Kukui nuts have been searched for, hand-chosen and woven together to create even more beauty than each holds on its own, so too, you have found each other, chosen each other and are now weaving your lives together to create a life even greater.

Marriage is a very special spiritual connection of two people united on a common path, bringing together love and trust into a single focus. At the same time, your love should give you the strength to stand apart, to seek out your unique destinies, and to grow as individuals.

Reading from Kahlil Gibran

“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.

Let there be spaces in your togetherness,

And let the winds of the heavens dance between you.”

Marriage requires the faith and commitment of two people to love, to stand by each other, and to support one another through both the good times and the difficult. This commitment is the alignment of your words, which speak boldly of your intentions, and your actions, which speak louder than your words. This requires making the time when there is none, listening not only with your ears—but also with your heart, and taking responsibility for your choices. Coming through for each other, time after time.

So, welcome, NAME and NAME, to this moment in your lives, to this place you have come to in each other’s hearts. And, may this shining hour be an open door through which you go now to build the dearest of all human relationships: that of two best friends growing old together in marriage, always fathoming deeper depths, and discovering richer facets of one another’s soul.

NAME and NAME, you are here today to declare and to strengthen your love, and to pledge to each other the beginning of a new life together.

NAME, do you receive NAME as your wedded husband to love, comfort, respect, and to share your life with from this day forward?

And, NAME, do you receive NAME as your wedded husband to love, comfort, respect, and to share your life with from this day forward?

ringblessingWe will now seal this promise of marriage with these wedding rings. These rings are symbols of the unbroken unity of love, now to be continued in your married life. The circle has no beginning and no end, it is eternal and everlasting.

Made in the form of the circle, these rings represent the truth of the law of life:

‘As we give to each other, we receive from each other.’

So, as you give and receive these rings, let your hearts be joined together in one unbroken circle.

As you place the ring on your beloved’s hand and as you receive the ring from the hand of your beloved, remember that this will be the first hand extended to pick you up when you have fallen down and it will be the first hand raised to toast all of your joys and all of your successes from this day forward and forevermore.

Bless this ring, bless NAME who gives it and NAME who receives it. Bless their union with patience, understanding and eternal joy.

VOWS

NAME, holding the ring on NAME ’s hand and looking into his eyes, say these words:

With this ring, I marry you,

and promise my faithful love.

I have chosen you above all others

for my partner and companion.

I shall love you,

and honor you,

and share with you life’s joys

and life’s difficulties.

In sorrow, I shall comfort you,

In times of need, I shall be there for you,

In good times, I shall rejoice with you,

From this day forward and forevermore.

Bless this ring, bless NAME who gives it and NAME who receives it. Bless their union with kindness, friendship and unconditional love.

NAME, holding the ring on NAME’s hand and looking into his eyes, say these words:

With this ring, I marry you,

and promise my faithful love.

I have chosen you above all others

for my partner and companion.

I shall love you,

and honor you,

and share with you life’s joys

and life’s difficulties.

In sorrow, I shall comfort you,

In times of need, I shall be there for you,

In good times, I shall rejoice with you,

From this day forward and forevermore.

As you look upon these rings throughout the years, let them be symbols of the unconditional love that you have for one another, a love that can overcome all obstacles. And when times call for you to be apart, may you always return to your togetherness in the same spirit of love that you have felt here today.

May your love grow and bring you peace and joy on life’s path. From each other, may you always find communication, compassion, tolerance, understanding, and forgiveness. And, to each other, may you always be best friends, companions, lovers, partners, and teachers.

May your home always radiate an environment of love, happiness, and unity. And whoever enters your home, may they be blessed and inspired by the harmony and love that dwells there.

May the love of God be above you to overshadow you, beneath you to uphold you, before you to guide you, behind you to protect you, close beside you and within you to make you able for all things, and to reward your faithfulness with the joy and peace which the world cannot give — neither can it take away. Divine Spirit, we leave this marriage in your hands. Amen

By the power vested in me by the State of Hawaii, I now pronounce you husbands!

Those whom Spirit has joined together let no one separate.

You may seal this blessing with a kiss!

Congratulations!

I now pronounce you married! (Or husbands, or wives, or wording of your choice)

 

Traditional Ceremony

We are gathered together in the sight of God to witness and bless the joining together of NAME and NAME in marriage.

Two Women WeddingNAME and NAME, the vows you are about to take are not to be taken without careful thought and prayer. For in them you are committing yourselves exclusively, the one to the other for as long as you both shall live. This love is the foundation, the very essence of life and is not to be diminished by difficult circumstances. It must be cared for, tended to, and nourished if it is to grow, become strong, and thrive.

We say in Hawaii:

Aloha ika ho’o manawanui. Aloha ika loko maika’i.

Aloha ike kahi, ike kahi.

Love is patient. Love is kind. Love begets love.

Marriage is a very special spiritual connection of two people united on a common path, bringing together love and trust into a single focus. At the same time, your love should give you the strength to stand apart, to seek out your unique destinies, and to grow as individuals.

Marriage requires the faith and commitment of two people to love, to stand by each other, and to support one another through both the good times and the difficult. This commitment is the alignment of your words, which speak boldly of your intentions, and your actions, which speak louder than your words.

NAME and NAME you have come to give yourselves to one another in this holy covenant.

I ask you now, in the presence of God, to declare your intention to enter into union with one another.

NAME, will you have NAME to be your wife, to live together in holy marriage? Will you love her, comfort her, honor and keep her, in sickness and in health, and forsaking all others, be faithful to her as long as you both shall live?

(NAME, “I will”)

NAME, will you have NAME to be your wife, to live together in holy marriage? Will you love her, comfort her, honor and keep her, in sickness and in health, and forsaking all others, be faithful to her as long as you both shall live?

(NAME “I will”)

NAME and NAME face each other and join hands

Reading: Cor. 13: 4-7

Love is patient, love is kind and envies no one. Love is never boastful, nor conceited nor rude, never selfish, and not quick to take offense. Love keeps no score of wrongs, does not gloat over other man’s sins but delights in the truth. There is no thing love can not face, there is no limit to its faith, its hope, and its endurance. 

Sharing of personal vows

 Vows: (Look into each other’s eyes and repeat after me)

I NAME, take you, NAME, to be my wife (or husband)

to have and to hold from this day forward,

for better, for worse,

for richer, for poorer,

in sickness and in health,

to love and to cherish,

until death do we part.

This is my solemn vow.

 

I, NAME, take you, NAME, to be my wife (or husband),

to have and to hold from this day forward,

for better, for worse,

for richer, for poorer,

in sickness and in health,

to love and to cherish,

until death do we part.

This is my solemn vow.

 Ring Exchange

These rings are the outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual grace signifying to us the union of NAME and NAME. These rings are symbols of the unbroken unity of love, now to be continued in your married life. The circle has no beginning and no end; it is eternal and everlasting.

Bless, O Lord, the giving of these rings, that they who wear them may live in your peace and continue in your favor all the days of their lives. Amen

(Repeat after me)

NAME, I give you this ring as a sign of my vow, and with all that I am, and all that I have, I honor you.

NAME, I give you this ring as a sign of my vow, and with all that I am, and all that I have, I honor you.

Pronouncement

You have declared your consent and vows before God. May God confirm your covenant and fill you both with grace.

By the power vested in me by the State of Hawaii, I announce you wife and wife! Those whom God has joined together, let no one put asunder. Amen

You may each kiss your beautiful bride…(or husband)

 Congratulations!