PLANNING THE WEDDING LITURGY
In planning your wedding liturgy, you will be choosing certain prayers and Scripture readings. You will also be meeting with the Director of Liturgy and Music, who will guide you in selecting music for your wedding liturgy. You will be given a MASTER WEDDING WORKSHEET (or you can download it or complete the online form) to use in planning your wedding liturgy CHOOSING PRAYERS On the following pages of the handbook, you will find options for Wedding Prayers. You will need to select and indicate each prayer and reading choices on the Master Wedding Worksheet by checking the corresponding numbered box.:
Prelude 1: 5 minutes before the wedding start time
Prelude 2: Procession of the Wedding Party
Prelude 3: Procession of the Bride
(See page 44 of the Handbook for the procession options)
The Glory to God is sung at a Wedding Mass
Collect (Opening Prayer) select one
A1 Be attentive to our prayers, O Lord, and in your kindness uphold what you have established for the increase of the human race, so that the union you have created may be kept safe by your assistance. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever.
A2 O God, who in creating the human race willed that man and wife should be one, join, we pray, in a bond of inseparable love these your servants who are to be united in the covenant of Marriage, so that, as you make their love fruitful, they may become, by your grace, witnesses to charity itself. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you
in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever.
B1 Be attentive to our prayers, O Lord, and in your kindness pour out your grace on these your servants (Bride and Groom), that, coming together before your altar, they may be confirmed in love for one another. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever.
B2 O God, who consecrated the bond of Marriage by so great a mystery that in the wedding covenant you foreshadow the Sacrament of Christ and his Church, grant, we pray, to these your servants, that what they receive in faith they may live out in deeds. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever.
C1 Grant, we pray, almighty God, that these your servants, now to be joined by the Sacrament of Matrimony, may grow in the faith they profess and enrich your Church with faithful offspring. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever.
C2 O God, who since the beginning of the world have blessed the increase of offspring, show favor to our supplications and pour forth the help of your blessing on these your servants (Bride and Groom), so that in the union of Marriage they may be bound together in mutual affection, in likeness of mind, and in shared holiness. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever.
FIRST READING (select one)
OT-1 Then God said: “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and the cattle, and over all the wild animals
and all the creatures that crawl on the ground.” God created man in his image; in the image of God he created them. male and female he created them. God blessed them, saying: “Be fertile and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and all the living things that move on the earth.” God looked at everything he had made, and he found it very good. (GENESIS 1:26-28, 31a)
OT-2 The LORD God said: “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a suitable partner for him.” So the LORD God formed out of the ground various wild animals and various birds of the air, and he brought them to the man to see what he would call them; whatever the man called each of them would be its name. The man gave names to all the cattle,
all the birds of the air, and all wild animals; but none proved to be the suitable partner for the man. So the LORD God cast a deep sleep on the man, and while he was asleep, he took out one of the ribs and closed up its place with flesh. The LORD God then built up into a woman the rib that he had taken from the man. When he brought her to the man, the man said: “This one, at last, is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; This one shall be called ‘woman,’ for out of ‘her man’ this one has been taken.” That is why a man leaves his father and mother
and clings to his wife, and the two of them become one body. (GENESIS 2:18-24)
OT-3 The servant of Abraham said to Laban: “I bowed down in worship to the Lord, blessing the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who had led me on the right road to obtain the daughter of my master’s kinsman for his son. If, therefore, you have in mind to show true loyalty to my master, let me know; but if not, let me know that, too. I can proceed accordingly.”
Laban and his household said in reply: “This thing comes from the LORD, we can say nothing to you either for or against it. Here is Rebekah, ready for you; take her with you, that she may become the wife of your master’s son, as the LORD has said.” So they called Rebekah and asked for her, “Do you wish to go with this man?” She answered, “I do.” At this they allowed their sister Rebekah and her nurse to take leave, along with Abraham’s servant and his men. Invoking a blessing on Rebekah, they said: “Sister, may you grow into thousands of myriads; And may your descendants gain possession of the gates of their enemies!” Then Rebekah and her maids started out; they mounted their camels and followed the man. So the servant took Rebekah and went on his way. Meanwhile Isaac had gone from Beer-lahai-roi and was living in the region of the Negeb. One day toward evening he went out in the field, and as he looked around, he noticed that camels were approaching. Rebekah, too, was looking about, and when she saw him, she alighted from her camel and asked the servant, “Who is the man out there, walking through the fields toward us?” “That is my master,” replied the servant. Then she covered herself with her veil. The servant recounted to Isaac all the things
he had done. Then Isaac took Rebekah into his tent; he married her, and thus she became his wife. In his love for her Isaac found solace after the death of his mother Sarah.
(GENESIS 24:48-51, 58-67)
OT-4 Raphael and Tobiah entered the house of Raguel and greeted him. Raguel sprang up and kissed Tobiah, shedding tears of joy. But when he heard that Tobit had lost his eyesight, he was grieved and wept aloud. He said to Tobiah: “My child, God bless you! You are the son of a noble and good father. But what a terrible misfortune that such a righteous and charitable man should be afflicted with blindness!” He continued to weep in the arms of his kinsman Tobiah. His wife Edna also wept for Tobit; and even their daughter Sarah began to weep. Afterward, Raguel slaughtered a ram from the flock and gave them a cordial reception. When they had bathed and reclined to eat, Tobiah said to Raphael, “Brother Azariah,
ask Raguel to let me marry my kinswoman Sarah.” Raguel overheard the words; so he said to the boy: “Eat and drink and be merry tonight, for no man is more entitled to marry my
daughter Sarah than you, brother. Besides, not even I have the right to give her to anyone but you, because you are my closest relative. But I will explain the situation to you very frankly I have given her in marriage to seven men, all of whom were kinsmen of ours, and all died on the very night they approached her. But now, son, eat and drink. I am sure the Lord will look after you both.” Tobiah answered, “I will eat or drink nothing until you set aside what belongs to me.” Raguel said to him: “I will do it.” She is yours according to the decree of the Book of Moses. Your marriage to her has been decided in heaven. Take your kinswoman from now on you are her love, and she is your beloved. She is yours today and ever after. And tonight, son, may the Lord of heaven prosper you both. May he grant you mercy and peace.” Then Raguel called his daughter Sarah, and she came to him. He took her by the hand and gave her to Tobiah with the words: “Take her according to the law. According to the decree written in the Book of Moses she is your wife. Take her and bring her back safely to your father and may the God of heaven grant both of you peace and prosperity.” He then called her mother and told her to bring a scroll, so that he might draw up a marriage contract stating the he gave Sarah to Tobiah as his wife according to the decree of the Mosaic law. Her mother brought the scroll, and he drew up the contract, to which they affixed their seals. Afterward they began to eat and drink. (TOBIT 7:6-14)
OT-5 On their wedding night Tobiah arose from bed and said to his wife, “Sister, get up. Let us pray and beg our Lord to have mercy on us and to grant us deliverance.” Sarah got up, and they started to pray and beg that deliverance might be theirs. They began with these words: “Blessed are you, O God of our fathers; praised be your name forever and ever. Let the heavens and all your creation praise you forever. You made Adam and you gave him his wife Eve to be his help and support; and from these two the human race descended. You said, ‘It is not good for the man to be alone; let us make him a partner like himself.’ Now, Lord, you know that I take this wife of mine not because of lust, but for a noble purpose. Call down your mercy on me and on her, and allow us to live together to a happy old age.” They said together, “Amen, amen.” (TOBIT 8:4b-8)
OT-6 When one finds a worthy wife, her value is far beyond pearls. Her husband, entrusting his heart to her, has an unfailing prize. She brings him good, and not evil, all the days of her life. She obtains wool and flax and makes cloth with skillful hands. She puts her hands to the distaff, and her fingers ply the spindle. She reaches out her hands to the poor, and extends her arms to the needy. Charm is deceptive and beauty fleeting; the woman who fears the LORD is to be praised. Give her a reward for her labors, and let her works praise her at the city gates. (PROVERBS 31:10-13, 19-20, 30-31)
OT-7 Hark! my lover – here he comes springing across the mountains, leaping across the hills. My lover is like a gazelle or a young stag. Here he stands behind our wall, gazing through the windows, peering through the lattices. My lover speaks; he says to me, “Arise, my beloved, my dove, my beautiful one, and come!” “O my dove in the clefts of the rock, in the secret recesses of the cliff, Let me see you, let me hear your voice, For your voice is sweet, and you are lovely.” My lover belongs to me and I to him. He says to me: “Set me as a seal on your heart, as a seal on your arm; For stern as death is love, relentless as the nether-world is devotion; its flames are a blazing fire. Deep waters cannot quench love, nor floods sweep it away.” (SONG OF SONGS 2:8-10, 14, 16a; 8:6-7a)
OT-8 Blessed the husband of a good wife, twice-lengthened are his days; A worthy wife brings joy to her husband, peaceful and full is his life. A good wife is a generous gift bestowed upon him who fears the LORD; Be he rich or poor, his heart is content, and a smile is ever on his face. A gracious wife delights her husband, her thoughtfulness puts flesh on his bones;
A gift from the LORD is her governed speech, and her firm virtue is of surpassing worth. Choicest of blessings is a modest wife, priceless her chaste soul. A holy and decent woman adds grace upon grace; indeed, no price is worthy of her temperate soul. Like the sun rising in the LORD’s heavens, the beauty of a virtuous (SIRACH 26:1-4, 13-16)
OT-9 The days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I made with their fathers:
the day I took them by the hand to lead them forth from the land of Egypt. But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD. I will place my law within them, and write it upon their hearts; I will be their God, and they shall be my people. No longer will they have need to teach their friends and relatives how to know the LORD. All, from least to greatest, shall know me, says the LORD. (JEREMIAH 31:31-32a, 33-34a)
RESPONSORIAL PSALM (see music section)
SECOND READING (select one)
NT-1 Brothers and sisters: If God is for us, who can be against us? He did not spare his own Son but handed him over for us all, will he not also give us everything else along with him? Who will bring a charge against God’s chosen ones? It is God who acquits us. Who will condemn? It is Christ Jesus who died, rather, was raised, who also is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us. What will separate us from the love of Christ? Will anguish, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or the sword? No, in all these things, we conquer overwhelmingly through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor present things, nor future things, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (ROMANS 8:31b-35, 37-39)
The Consent (Vows) select one
#1 I, Groom, take you, Bride, to be my wife. I promise to be faithful to you in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health, to love you and honor you all the days of my life.
I, Bride, take you, Groom, to be my husband. I promise to be faithful to you in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health, to love you and honor you all the days of my life.
#2 I, Groom, take you, Bride, for my lawful wife, 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 us part.
I, Bride, take you, Groom, for my lawful 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 us part.
The Blessing and Giving of Rings select one
#1 May the Lord bless + these rings which you will give to each other as a sign of love and fidelity.
#2 Bless, O Lord, these rings, which we bless + in your name, so that those who wear them may remain entirely faithful to each other, abide in peace and in your will, and live always in mutual charity, Through Christ our Lord.
#3 Bless + and sanctify your servants in their love, O Lord, and let these rings, a sign of their faithfulness, remind them of their love for one another. Through Christ our Lord.
Options for the Universal Prayer
The Universal Prayer or (Prayer of the Faithful) are a set of prayers specifically directed to the needs of the world and the Church. Please see pages 20 and 21 of the Marriage Handbook and indicate your choices on the Master Wedding Worksheet
If your wedding will take place within a Mass, you will also need to select:
Prayer Over the Offerings select one
A Receive, we pray, O Lord, the offering made on the occasion of this sealing of the sacred bond of Marriage, and, just as your goodness is its origin, may your providence guide its course. Through Christ our Lord.
B Receive in your kindness, Lord, the offerings we bring in gladness before you, and in your fatherly love watch over those you have joined in a sacramental covenant. Through Christ our Lord.
C Show favor to our supplications, O Lord, and receive with a kindly countenance the oblations we offer for these your servants, joined now in a holy covenant, that through these mysteries they may be strengthened in love for one another and for you. Through Christ our Lord.
Prayer After Communion (select one)
A By the power of this sacrifice, O Lord, accompany with your loving favor what in your providence you have instituted, so as to make of one heart in love those you have already joined in this holy union (and replenished with the one Bread and the one Chalice). Through Christ our Lord.
B Having been partakers at your table, we pray, O Lord, that those who are united by the Sacrament of Marriage may always hold fast to you and proclaim your name to the world.
Through Christ our Lord.
C Grant, we pray, almighty God, that the power of the Sacrament we have received may find growth in these your servants and that the effects of the sacrifice we have offered
may be felt by us all. Through Christ our Lord.
In planning your wedding liturgy, you will be choosing certain prayers and Scripture readings. You will also be meeting with the Director of Liturgy and Music, who will guide you in selecting music for your wedding liturgy. You will be given a MASTER WEDDING WORKSHEET (or you can download it or complete the online form) to use in planning your wedding liturgy CHOOSING PRAYERS On the following pages of the handbook, you will find options for Wedding Prayers. You will need to select and indicate each prayer and reading choices on the Master Wedding Worksheet by checking the corresponding numbered box.:
Prelude 1: 5 minutes before the wedding start time
Prelude 2: Procession of the Wedding Party
Prelude 3: Procession of the Bride
(See page 44 of the Handbook for the procession options)
The Glory to God is sung at a Wedding Mass
Collect (Opening Prayer) select one
A1 Be attentive to our prayers, O Lord, and in your kindness uphold what you have established for the increase of the human race, so that the union you have created may be kept safe by your assistance. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever.
A2 O God, who in creating the human race willed that man and wife should be one, join, we pray, in a bond of inseparable love these your servants who are to be united in the covenant of Marriage, so that, as you make their love fruitful, they may become, by your grace, witnesses to charity itself. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you
in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever.
B1 Be attentive to our prayers, O Lord, and in your kindness pour out your grace on these your servants (Bride and Groom), that, coming together before your altar, they may be confirmed in love for one another. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever.
B2 O God, who consecrated the bond of Marriage by so great a mystery that in the wedding covenant you foreshadow the Sacrament of Christ and his Church, grant, we pray, to these your servants, that what they receive in faith they may live out in deeds. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever.
C1 Grant, we pray, almighty God, that these your servants, now to be joined by the Sacrament of Matrimony, may grow in the faith they profess and enrich your Church with faithful offspring. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever.
C2 O God, who since the beginning of the world have blessed the increase of offspring, show favor to our supplications and pour forth the help of your blessing on these your servants (Bride and Groom), so that in the union of Marriage they may be bound together in mutual affection, in likeness of mind, and in shared holiness. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever.
FIRST READING (select one)
OT-1 Then God said: “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and the cattle, and over all the wild animals
and all the creatures that crawl on the ground.” God created man in his image; in the image of God he created them. male and female he created them. God blessed them, saying: “Be fertile and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and all the living things that move on the earth.” God looked at everything he had made, and he found it very good. (GENESIS 1:26-28, 31a)
OT-2 The LORD God said: “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a suitable partner for him.” So the LORD God formed out of the ground various wild animals and various birds of the air, and he brought them to the man to see what he would call them; whatever the man called each of them would be its name. The man gave names to all the cattle,
all the birds of the air, and all wild animals; but none proved to be the suitable partner for the man. So the LORD God cast a deep sleep on the man, and while he was asleep, he took out one of the ribs and closed up its place with flesh. The LORD God then built up into a woman the rib that he had taken from the man. When he brought her to the man, the man said: “This one, at last, is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; This one shall be called ‘woman,’ for out of ‘her man’ this one has been taken.” That is why a man leaves his father and mother
and clings to his wife, and the two of them become one body. (GENESIS 2:18-24)
OT-3 The servant of Abraham said to Laban: “I bowed down in worship to the Lord, blessing the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who had led me on the right road to obtain the daughter of my master’s kinsman for his son. If, therefore, you have in mind to show true loyalty to my master, let me know; but if not, let me know that, too. I can proceed accordingly.”
Laban and his household said in reply: “This thing comes from the LORD, we can say nothing to you either for or against it. Here is Rebekah, ready for you; take her with you, that she may become the wife of your master’s son, as the LORD has said.” So they called Rebekah and asked for her, “Do you wish to go with this man?” She answered, “I do.” At this they allowed their sister Rebekah and her nurse to take leave, along with Abraham’s servant and his men. Invoking a blessing on Rebekah, they said: “Sister, may you grow into thousands of myriads; And may your descendants gain possession of the gates of their enemies!” Then Rebekah and her maids started out; they mounted their camels and followed the man. So the servant took Rebekah and went on his way. Meanwhile Isaac had gone from Beer-lahai-roi and was living in the region of the Negeb. One day toward evening he went out in the field, and as he looked around, he noticed that camels were approaching. Rebekah, too, was looking about, and when she saw him, she alighted from her camel and asked the servant, “Who is the man out there, walking through the fields toward us?” “That is my master,” replied the servant. Then she covered herself with her veil. The servant recounted to Isaac all the things
he had done. Then Isaac took Rebekah into his tent; he married her, and thus she became his wife. In his love for her Isaac found solace after the death of his mother Sarah.
(GENESIS 24:48-51, 58-67)
OT-4 Raphael and Tobiah entered the house of Raguel and greeted him. Raguel sprang up and kissed Tobiah, shedding tears of joy. But when he heard that Tobit had lost his eyesight, he was grieved and wept aloud. He said to Tobiah: “My child, God bless you! You are the son of a noble and good father. But what a terrible misfortune that such a righteous and charitable man should be afflicted with blindness!” He continued to weep in the arms of his kinsman Tobiah. His wife Edna also wept for Tobit; and even their daughter Sarah began to weep. Afterward, Raguel slaughtered a ram from the flock and gave them a cordial reception. When they had bathed and reclined to eat, Tobiah said to Raphael, “Brother Azariah,
ask Raguel to let me marry my kinswoman Sarah.” Raguel overheard the words; so he said to the boy: “Eat and drink and be merry tonight, for no man is more entitled to marry my
daughter Sarah than you, brother. Besides, not even I have the right to give her to anyone but you, because you are my closest relative. But I will explain the situation to you very frankly I have given her in marriage to seven men, all of whom were kinsmen of ours, and all died on the very night they approached her. But now, son, eat and drink. I am sure the Lord will look after you both.” Tobiah answered, “I will eat or drink nothing until you set aside what belongs to me.” Raguel said to him: “I will do it.” She is yours according to the decree of the Book of Moses. Your marriage to her has been decided in heaven. Take your kinswoman from now on you are her love, and she is your beloved. She is yours today and ever after. And tonight, son, may the Lord of heaven prosper you both. May he grant you mercy and peace.” Then Raguel called his daughter Sarah, and she came to him. He took her by the hand and gave her to Tobiah with the words: “Take her according to the law. According to the decree written in the Book of Moses she is your wife. Take her and bring her back safely to your father and may the God of heaven grant both of you peace and prosperity.” He then called her mother and told her to bring a scroll, so that he might draw up a marriage contract stating the he gave Sarah to Tobiah as his wife according to the decree of the Mosaic law. Her mother brought the scroll, and he drew up the contract, to which they affixed their seals. Afterward they began to eat and drink. (TOBIT 7:6-14)
OT-5 On their wedding night Tobiah arose from bed and said to his wife, “Sister, get up. Let us pray and beg our Lord to have mercy on us and to grant us deliverance.” Sarah got up, and they started to pray and beg that deliverance might be theirs. They began with these words: “Blessed are you, O God of our fathers; praised be your name forever and ever. Let the heavens and all your creation praise you forever. You made Adam and you gave him his wife Eve to be his help and support; and from these two the human race descended. You said, ‘It is not good for the man to be alone; let us make him a partner like himself.’ Now, Lord, you know that I take this wife of mine not because of lust, but for a noble purpose. Call down your mercy on me and on her, and allow us to live together to a happy old age.” They said together, “Amen, amen.” (TOBIT 8:4b-8)
OT-6 When one finds a worthy wife, her value is far beyond pearls. Her husband, entrusting his heart to her, has an unfailing prize. She brings him good, and not evil, all the days of her life. She obtains wool and flax and makes cloth with skillful hands. She puts her hands to the distaff, and her fingers ply the spindle. She reaches out her hands to the poor, and extends her arms to the needy. Charm is deceptive and beauty fleeting; the woman who fears the LORD is to be praised. Give her a reward for her labors, and let her works praise her at the city gates. (PROVERBS 31:10-13, 19-20, 30-31)
OT-7 Hark! my lover – here he comes springing across the mountains, leaping across the hills. My lover is like a gazelle or a young stag. Here he stands behind our wall, gazing through the windows, peering through the lattices. My lover speaks; he says to me, “Arise, my beloved, my dove, my beautiful one, and come!” “O my dove in the clefts of the rock, in the secret recesses of the cliff, Let me see you, let me hear your voice, For your voice is sweet, and you are lovely.” My lover belongs to me and I to him. He says to me: “Set me as a seal on your heart, as a seal on your arm; For stern as death is love, relentless as the nether-world is devotion; its flames are a blazing fire. Deep waters cannot quench love, nor floods sweep it away.” (SONG OF SONGS 2:8-10, 14, 16a; 8:6-7a)
OT-8 Blessed the husband of a good wife, twice-lengthened are his days; A worthy wife brings joy to her husband, peaceful and full is his life. A good wife is a generous gift bestowed upon him who fears the LORD; Be he rich or poor, his heart is content, and a smile is ever on his face. A gracious wife delights her husband, her thoughtfulness puts flesh on his bones;
A gift from the LORD is her governed speech, and her firm virtue is of surpassing worth. Choicest of blessings is a modest wife, priceless her chaste soul. A holy and decent woman adds grace upon grace; indeed, no price is worthy of her temperate soul. Like the sun rising in the LORD’s heavens, the beauty of a virtuous (SIRACH 26:1-4, 13-16)
OT-9 The days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I made with their fathers:
the day I took them by the hand to lead them forth from the land of Egypt. But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD. I will place my law within them, and write it upon their hearts; I will be their God, and they shall be my people. No longer will they have need to teach their friends and relatives how to know the LORD. All, from least to greatest, shall know me, says the LORD. (JEREMIAH 31:31-32a, 33-34a)
RESPONSORIAL PSALM (see music section)
SECOND READING (select one)
NT-1 Brothers and sisters: If God is for us, who can be against us? He did not spare his own Son but handed him over for us all, will he not also give us everything else along with him? Who will bring a charge against God’s chosen ones? It is God who acquits us. Who will condemn? It is Christ Jesus who died, rather, was raised, who also is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us. What will separate us from the love of Christ? Will anguish, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or the sword? No, in all these things, we conquer overwhelmingly through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor present things, nor future things, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (ROMANS 8:31b-35, 37-39)
The Consent (Vows) select one
#1 I, Groom, take you, Bride, to be my wife. I promise to be faithful to you in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health, to love you and honor you all the days of my life.
I, Bride, take you, Groom, to be my husband. I promise to be faithful to you in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health, to love you and honor you all the days of my life.
#2 I, Groom, take you, Bride, for my lawful wife, 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 us part.
I, Bride, take you, Groom, for my lawful 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 us part.
The Blessing and Giving of Rings select one
#1 May the Lord bless + these rings which you will give to each other as a sign of love and fidelity.
#2 Bless, O Lord, these rings, which we bless + in your name, so that those who wear them may remain entirely faithful to each other, abide in peace and in your will, and live always in mutual charity, Through Christ our Lord.
#3 Bless + and sanctify your servants in their love, O Lord, and let these rings, a sign of their faithfulness, remind them of their love for one another. Through Christ our Lord.
Options for the Universal Prayer
The Universal Prayer or (Prayer of the Faithful) are a set of prayers specifically directed to the needs of the world and the Church. Please see pages 20 and 21 of the Marriage Handbook and indicate your choices on the Master Wedding Worksheet
If your wedding will take place within a Mass, you will also need to select:
Prayer Over the Offerings select one
A Receive, we pray, O Lord, the offering made on the occasion of this sealing of the sacred bond of Marriage, and, just as your goodness is its origin, may your providence guide its course. Through Christ our Lord.
B Receive in your kindness, Lord, the offerings we bring in gladness before you, and in your fatherly love watch over those you have joined in a sacramental covenant. Through Christ our Lord.
C Show favor to our supplications, O Lord, and receive with a kindly countenance the oblations we offer for these your servants, joined now in a holy covenant, that through these mysteries they may be strengthened in love for one another and for you. Through Christ our Lord.
Prayer After Communion (select one)
A By the power of this sacrifice, O Lord, accompany with your loving favor what in your providence you have instituted, so as to make of one heart in love those you have already joined in this holy union (and replenished with the one Bread and the one Chalice). Through Christ our Lord.
B Having been partakers at your table, we pray, O Lord, that those who are united by the Sacrament of Marriage may always hold fast to you and proclaim your name to the world.
Through Christ our Lord.
C Grant, we pray, almighty God, that the power of the Sacrament we have received may find growth in these your servants and that the effects of the sacrifice we have offered
may be felt by us all. Through Christ our Lord.
