Mini Ceremonies (Unity Candle, Hands, Rose, etc)

[Aramelle]

What "mini" ceremonies are you planning to use? Please share your reading/wording for each ceremony. :)

[Aramelle]

We will be doing two ceremonies.

The first will be a candle lighting ceremony. It's along the lines of a unity candle, but we've made some changes to make it work for our renewal. I haven't figured out the wording for the ceremony yet, though. :dontknow:

We will also be doing the Hands Ceremony. This is the wording we've selected:

These are the hands of your best friend, young and strong and full of love for you, that are holding yours today as you renew your promise to love each other today, tomorrow, and forever.

These are the hands that will continue to work alongside yours as together you build your future.

These are the hands that will passionately love you and cherish you through the years, and with the slightest touch will comfort you like no other.

These are the hands that will hold you when fear or grief wracks your mind.

These are the hands that will countless times wipe the tears from your eyes, tears of sorrow and tears of joy.

These are the hands that will tenderly hold your children.

These are the hands that will help you to hold your family as one.

These are the hands that will give you strength when you need it.

These are the hands that even when wrinkled and aged will still be reaching for yours, still giving you the same unspoken tenderness with just a touch.

These four hands will give you support as you build your life and future. Reaching first out to each other, then united towards the world, these hands will be your strength, your shield, your shelter, and your guide.

[carolinalady67]

We are using the rose ceremony

"Your gift to each other for your wedding today has been your wedding rings - which shall always be an outward demonstration of your vows of love and respect; and a public showing of your commitment to each other.

You now have what remains the most honorable title which may exist between a man and a woman - the title of "husband" and "wife." For your first gift as husband and wife, that gift will be a single rose.

In the past, the rose was considered a symbol of love and a single rose always meant only one thing - it meant the words "I love you." So it is appropriate that for your first gift - as husband and wife - that gift would be a single rose.

Please exchange your first gift as husband and wife. In someways it seems like you have not done anything at all. Just a moment ago you were holding one small rose - and now you are holding one small rose. In some ways, a marriage ceremony is like this. In some ways, tomorrow is going to seem no different than yesterday. But in fact today, just now, you both have given and received one of the most valuable and precious gifts of life - one I hope you always remember - the gift of true and abiding love within the devotion of marriage.

Lisa and Chris, I would ask that where ever you make your home in the future - whether it be a large and elegant home - or a small and graceful one - that you both pick one very special location for roses; so that on each anniversary of this truly wonderful occasion you both may take a rose to that spot both as a recommitment to your marriage - and a recommitment that THIS will be a marriage based upon love.

In every marriage there are times where it is difficult to find the right words. It is easiest to hurt who we most love. It is easiest to be most hurt by who we most love. It might be difficult some time to words to say "I am sorry" or "I forgive you"; "I need you" or "I am hurting". If this should happen, if you simply can not find these words, leave a rose at that spot which both of you have selected - for that rose than says what matters most of all and should overpower all other things and all other words.

That rose says the words: "I still love you." The other should accept this rose for the words which can not be found, and remember the love and hope that you both share today.

Lisa and Chris, if there is anything you remember of this marriage ceremony, it is that it was love that brought you here today, it is only love which can make it a glorious union, and it is by love which your marriage shall endure."

[KathyandJer]

I love both of those ceremonies :)

Jer and I are doing a sand ceremony - haven't figured out the wording yet - we're writing our own and asking a bunch of people to participate (because so many people have had an influence in the people we are today). This way we can have both of Jer's parents (divorced and remarried) take part, without putting them in a situation where they have to appear 'together'. And well, both of us fell in love with the idea of the sand ceremony from the first example we read. :)

[Christa]

We will be doing the Hands Ceremony

[smiles]

We did the unity candle and after that we went down and gave each of our mothers a rose.

[Angela]

We're doing the unity candle. Our soloist will be singing "The Unity Candle Song" during it. I swear, there is such a song! I was shocked. :lol2:

[Rebecca]

We are doing both the hand and unity candle ceremony. Fell in love with teh hand ceremony and the pastor had never heard it and loved it! Made him promise to not spread it around to anyone till after our wedding! (very small community where we are getting married and am hoping no one has heard it before)

[PurpleFlower]

We are doing the unity candle, we are going to give each of our mothers roses after we light the candle.

[Jaci]

We are having a handfasting encorporated into our ceremony.

Here is our wording for it:

[Officiant] Chris and Jaci, know now before you go further, that since your lives have crossed in this life, you have formed eternal and sacred bonds. As you seek to enter this state of matrimony you should strive to make real the ideals that give meaning to this ceremony and to the institution of marriage. The promises made today and the ties that are bound here greatly strengthen your union and will cross the years and lives of each soul's growth.


[Officiant] Do you still seek to enter this ceremony?
[Chris and Jaci]Yes


[Officiant] Chris and Jaci, please look into each others eyes.
*Hold hands – Bride’s left hand, Groom’s right hand*


[Officiant] Will you honor and respect one another, and seek to never break that honor?
[Chris and Jaci]We will
*The first cord is draped over the couples' hands*

[Officiant] Will you share each other's pain and seek to ease it?
[Chris and Jaci]We will
*Second cord is draped over the couples' hands*

[Officiant] Will you share the burdens of each so that your spirits may grow in this union?
[Chris and Jaci] We will
*Third cord is draped over the couples' hands*

[Officiant] Will you share each other's laughter, and look for the brightness in life and the positive in each other?
[Chris and Jaci] We will
*Fourth cord is draped over the couples' hands* [Tie cords together]

[Renny]

we are doing the shorter Hands Ceremony at the begining of the ceremony as a way to have us facing each other for the consent and vows.

Shorter Hand Ceremony

Beth, please face Tom and hold his hands, palms up, so that you may see the gift that they are to you. These are the hands that will passionately love you and cherish you through the years, for a lifetime of happiness. These are the hands that will countless times wipe the tears from your eyes; tears of sorrow and tears of joy. These are the hands that will comfort you in illness and hold you when fear or grief fills you. These are the hands that will give you support and celebrate with you in your accomplishments.

Tom, please hold Beths hands, palms up, so that you may see the gift that they are to you.

These are the hands that will hold you tight as you struggle through difficult times. They are the hands that will comfort you when you are sick or console you when you are grieving. These are the hands that will passionately love you and cherish you through the year, for a lifetime of happiness. These are the hands that will give you support as she encourages you to fulfill your dreams.
Together, as a team, everything you wish for can be realized.

[theAmericanNtheSwede]

we are doing a hand ceremony and a flower/chuppah ceremony.
the hand ceremony is pretty similar to what i have seen posted here.

the chuppah ceremony goes as follows.
first step is we place one flower each in the chuppah.
while the guests are being seated they are given a flower and asked to place it in the chuppah and are then shown to their seats.
during the ceremony we are handed one final flower each and after we place it in the chuppah the officiant says:

Bride and Groom, your guests have placed flowers in this chuppah as a representative act to show their support of your marriage. Also, you two have twice placed flowers in the chuppah to show your commitment to each other. First, before your guests arrived and again just now.

That you have done so is important not only in that it signifies your intention to build your life together, but also because by placing flowers in this structure both before and after your guests, you have symbolized the most significant part of your relationship: that although the support of your friends and family is essential to the maintenance and growth of your marriage, the ultimate responsibility for its sustenance begins and ends with you.

[Mandy]

Here is what FH and I are using for our Unity Candle Ceremony:

"The two outside candles of the candelabra have been lighted to represent their lives to this moment. They are two distinct lights, each capable of going their separate ways. To bring bliss and happiness to their home there must be the merging of these two lights into one light. From now on their thoughts shall be for each other rather than for their individual selves. Their plans shall be mutual, their joys and sorrows shall be shared alike. As they each take a candle and together light the center candle, they do not extinguish the separate lights. They come into their marriage relationship as individuals and they do not lose their identity, rather they create one through their commitment the relationship of marriage. Therefore, three candles remain lighted, one for each of them and one for their marriage as symbols of their commitment to each other and to a lasting and loving marriage. May the radiance of this united light be a witness of their unity in Christ."

[Trinia]

We are doing a sand ceremony.

Here (http://www.ceremonies.socalofficiant.com/c_007.htm) is the wording.

[Winter_Bride]

We did a unity candle ceremony. I honestly can't remember if we had anything special said about it... (I'll have to listen to the ceremony later - we have a CD recording from the church!) During the unity candle ceremony we played "O Nata Lux" which was our favorite choir song (we met in choir) and means "Oh Light Born of Light" which we thought was fitting...

I'll listen to the CD tomorrow, and post anything special that was said :) Can you tell that I was really focusing on what the officiants were saying? ;)

[*Sarah*]

I am hoping to use the hand ceremony that Aramelle posted. If only we can stop playing phone tag with the officiant!!

[Aramelle]

Now that we've finally worked out the wording of our Candle Ceremony, I can post it here. We will use our unity candle as the beginning flame to light smaller candles that will be used for the passing of the light.

The unity candle represents the coming together of 2 separate lives and 2 unique families. On the day that they were married, James and Aramelle lit their unity candle. The candles from which they lit the larger unity candle represent each of them as individual people. They came into their relationship as individuals and they did not lose their identity, rather they created through their commitment the relationship of marriage. Therefore, three candles remain lit, one for each of them and one for their marriage as symbols of their commitment to each other.

Today, these candles are lit again as James and Aramelle renew their marriage vows. In symbolization of the coming together of their two families, the couple wishes to invite each of you to share in the light that was created through their union.

[Raychel]

My :heart: still hurts a little that we didn't get to do the Rose Ceremony at our wedding. I love what it stands for. Someday I think DH & I will do it in private, between ourselves and God :)

We just did the unity candle ceremony. And I have no idea what the wording was. I would have to watch my wedding DVD to know lol

[km]

:computer:

I love the tying of the hands.

:wavey: