Interfaith Officiants template

Sample Filipino Wedding Ceremony

There are normally four sets of sponsors in a Filiipino wedding, in addition to the regular wedding party. Sponsors are married couples, like mentors, who offer their wisdom to the couple. The Primary Sponsors are usually Godparents of the Bride or Groom.

Procession

Bride is excorted down the aisle by her Father. Bride’s Mother joins them.

Officiant: Who offers their blessing for the union of this man and this woman?

Bride’s Father says, "Her Mother and I do”. Bride and Groom honor Bride's parents by touching the backs of the parent's hands to their foreheads.

Welcoming Words

Officiant: It is with great pleasure that we gather today to witness the joining of two hands, and two hearts in holy matrimony. These two people, ________ and __________, have fallen in love so deeply, so completely, that today, they make a bond, a sacred covenant before God, whereby their hearts, their bodies, and their souls shall be united as one in marriage for the rest of their days.

Bride and Groom’s families, together with their friends, each represent a circle of love. A circle of love where members care for, and nurture each other, in times of joy and in times of sorrow. Today, Bride and Groom join their lives together to make a new circle of love, one that overlaps with, and is made stronger by those from which it has emerged. You have been invited here because of their special relationship with you, to witness the creation of this sacred bond.

Passing of the Peace

Bride and Groom join me in welcoming all of you to their wedding. Many of you have come a long way to witness and share in their joy on this day, and together we offer all of you a heartfelt thank-you for being here. We ask our honored guests assembled here to take a moment to exchange a greeting of peace. (Guests turn to each other and say, “Peace be with you” and “And also with you.”)

Call to Prayer

Loving Father,

We gather to celebrate your gift of love and its presence among us. We rejoice that two people have chosen to commit themselves to a life of loving faithfulness to one another. We give thanks that we have experienced your love through the care and affection of these people. We ask your blessing for a Bride and Groom as they share their vows that will unite them in marriage. To this moment they bring the fullness of their hearts as a treasure to share with one another. They bring dreams which bind them together. We rejoice with them as the outward symbol of an inward union of hearts…a union created by friendship, respect and love.

Amen

(Wait for response.)

Declaration of Intent to Marry

Officiant: The covenant of marriage is one that can be entered into only by persons who are both legally and spiritually free to offer themselves to each other. Therefore, in the presence of God and in the presence of all of the witnesses here, I will ask Bride and Groom to state their intention. Bride and Groom, have you come here freely and without reservation to give yourselves to each other in the holy state of matrimony?

They respond: “Yes” or “We have.”

Community Vow of Support

Today, we will blend some elements of Bride’s Filipino heritage with Groom’s American heritage. In the Filipino tradition, support for the Bride and Groom from their community is a very important feature. As honored guests, we ask for your participation in their marriage. Bride and Groom’s family and friends, do you promise from this day forward, to encourage them and love them, and to help guide and support them in being steadfast in the promises they are making today?” If you agree, please say, “We do.”

Wait for response.

Traditional Vows

Officiant: Please face each other and join your hands, and in so doing, join your hearts.

Groom, please repeat after me:

I, Groom, take you Bride, to be my lawfully wedded wife,

to have and to hold, to love and to cherish, from this day forward,

for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer,

in sickness and in health, until death do us part.

Bride, please repeat after me:

I, Bride, take you Grom, to be my lawfully wedded husband,

to have and to hold, to love and to cherish, from this day forward,

for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer,

in sickness and in health, until death do us part.

Blessing of Rings

Officiant: Do we have the rings? (Bride and Groom each hold their rings.)

Officiant: Lord, Please bless these rings that Bride and Groom are about to exchange. May these rings forever remind them of their covenant with one another, as well as the circle of love they have publicly created here today. May their compassion and kindness for one another always be like these rings, with no beginning and no end. May the precious metal remind them of their precious commitment, and if it begins to tarnish, may they joyfully undertake the sacred duty to make it shine brightly again. May their relationship always be like these rings, separate but close, simple but beautiful. May these rings always belong to their hands, and their love to each other’s hearts. Amen.

Exchange of Rings

Officiant says to Groom: Please look into the eyes of your beloved, and place the ring, a symbol of your love for Bride on her hand, and say, “With this ring, I thee wed”. The Groom does this.

To Bride - Please look into the eyes of your beloved, and place the ring, a symbol of your love for Rick on his hand, and say, “With this ring, I thee wed”.

The Bride does this.

Unity Candle

Sponsors come up to light the side candles.

Bride and Groom approach candles.

Bride and Groom, your relationship is symbolized through the pouring of these two side candles. These candles symbolize both of the places where you born, the generations who came before you, the homes you have lived in and the friends you have made, the hopes and dreams of the families who’ve raised you, and all that you bring to offer to your beloved. The first candle represents you, Groom: and all that you were, all that you are, and all that you will be. The other represents you, Bride: all that you were, all that you are, and all that you will be. As these two candles light the center candle, the individual flames will no longer exist, but will be joined together as one. Just as these flames can never be separated, so your marriage marks your permanent union in the eyes of God.

Bride and Groom slowly pour the sand into the vase.

Coin Ceremony – Blessing and Exchange of Arras (Coins)

Officiant: The Arras, derived from the Spanish term “earnest money”, symbolizes a pledge to care for one another. The groom gives 13 coins to the bride, symbolizing his ability to support and care for her. It is a complete and unrestricted offering of his dedication for her welfare and their welfare as husband and wife. In return, the bride gives the coins back to the groom, symbolizing her partnership in supporting and caring for him, as well. (As reader is reading, coin bearer, stands up and walks to the center aisle with coins. Groom walks over to meet him/her and takes the coins. Groom then walks and gives coins to Bride, dropping them slowly in her hands.)

Officiant: Groom, please repeat after me:

“Bride, I offer these coins as a pledge of my dedication to you, the care of our home and the welfare of our family.” (Bride pauses momentarily, and then places her hands on Groom's, letting the coins fall into his hands.)

Officiant: Bride, please repeat after me:

“Groom, I offer these coins as a pledge of my dedication to you, the care of our home and the welfare of our family.”

(Groom then returns them to the Bride, who hands them to the Maid of Honor. Then Bride and Groom face the Officiant.)

Officiant: Lord, bless Bride and Groom with sufficient material possessions and abundant spiritual strength, which these Arras symbolize. May they use your gifts wisely for their family’s welfare in their married life. Amen

Veil Ceremony – To Clothe Us As One

Officiant: A white veil is draped over the head of the bride and across the shoulders of the groom. This symbolizes the purity of their new life and the grace that God has infused into their souls. The white veil represents the purity of love and the command to preserve and keep their hearts chaste, directing them to a life of fidelity.

(As reader is reading, veil sponsors, stand up. First Sponsor drapes & pins veil over and around Bride’s head, while second Sponsor drapes veil across Groom’s shoulders and pins it to Groom’s right shoulder.)

Officiant:

Bride and Groom, at baptism, you were clothed with the white garment symbolizing the purity of new life. We clothe you now with this veil to symbolize the purity of love. Through the passing of the years, let the veil remind you of the love you have for each other and no one else. Wear it and keep it unstained all the days of your life together.

Cord Ceremony – To Bind Together

Officiant: The Cord, or nuptial tie, is placed around the shoulders of the bride and groom and is shaped in the form of a loose figure eight to signify infinity. This shows the strong binding power of the Sacrament of Matrimony. It is an intimate union to remind them to face their life together courageously and to be in mutual support of one another in fulfilling their duties and responsibilities as man and wife. From this point, they are bound to a lifelong commitment to be one in mind, one in heart, and one in affection.

(As reader reads, cord sponsors place the cord, in the form of an “8” around Rick and Sarita’s shoulders.)

Officiant:

Bride and Groom, the vesting of the cord binds you together and is a symbol of your intimate union. Keep it strong always by your sincere and lasting interest in each other so that you may be one in mind, one in heart, and one in affection every moment of your married life.

LORD’S PRAYER:

Let us pray in the words the Lord has taught us:

“Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be they name; Thy kingdom come; thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.”

MARRIAGE BLESSING

Bride and Groom, may your marriage bring you all the exquisite excitements a marriage should bring, and may life grant you also patience, tolerance and understanding. May you always need one another not so much to fulfill your emptiness as to help you know your fullness. May you need one another, but not out of weakness. May you want one another, but not out of lack. May you entice one another, but not compel one another. May you embrace one another, but not smother one another. May you succeed in all of the important ways with one another, and not fail in the little graces. May you look for things to praise, often say, “I love you” and take no notice of small faults. May you have happiness, and may you find it making one another happy. May you have love, and may you find it while loving one another. May you always remember that marriage is not about finding the right partner, but in being the right partner. Amen!

(Officiant prompts cord sponsors to remove cord. Then the veil sponsors remove the veil.)

FINAL PRAYER

Eternal God, creator and preserver of all life, giver of all grace: Bless this union of hearts and souls. Keep Bride and Groom faithful to each other and to you. Fill them with love and joy that they may build a home of peace. May everyone here married or single who have witnessed these vows today find their lives strengthened and their loyalties confirmed. In your loving arms, we pray, Amen

ANNOUNCEMENT OF MARRIAGE

Before God, your family and friends you have declared your love for one another and have made your solemn vows to each other. You have confirmed your promises by joining your hands and by exchanging rings. Therefore, I now pronounce you husband and wife.

Rick, you may kiss your bride.

INTRODUCTION

It is my great honor and privilege to introduce for the very first time, Mr. and Mrs. ________ and ____________ ______________!

The Recessional begins with Bride and Groom, then Officiant, then Principal Sponsors, Secondary Sponsors and other attendants, then parents, grandparents and others, first row to back.

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