Wedding Ceremonies: The Closing Words

The words you pick for the ending of the service, like all the service, depend on personal preference. There is no one right way to end. Here are some examples of what are variously called closing words, closing blessings, closing prayers, or benedictions.

Protestant

The people remain standing. The husband and wife kneel, and the Priest says one of the following prayers

Most gracious God, we give you thanks for your tender love in sending Jesus Christ to come among us, to be born of a human mother, and to make the way of the cross to be the way of life. We thank you, also, for consecrating the union of man and woman in his Name. By the power of your Holy Spirit, pour out the abundance of your blessing upon this man and woman. Defend them from every enemy. Lead them into all peace. Let their love for each other be a seal upon their hearts, a mantle about their shoulders, and a crown upon their foreheads. Bless them in their work and in their companionship; in their sleeping and in their waking; in their joys and in their sorrows; in their life and in their death. Finally, in your mercy, bring them to that table where your saints feast forever in your heavenly home; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

Or this,

O God, you have so consecrated the covenant of marriage that in it is represented the spiritual unity between Christ and his Church: Send therefore your blessing upon these your servants, that they may so love, honor, and cherish each other in faithfulness and patience, in wisdom and true godliness, that their home may be a haven of blessing and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

The husband and wife still kneeling, the Priest adds this blessing

God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit, bless, preserve, and keep you; the Lord mercifully with his favor look upon you, and fill you with all spiritual benediction and grace; that you may faithfully live together in this life, and in the age to come have life everlasting. Amen.

The Peace

The Celebrant may say to the people

The peace of the Lord be always with you.

People

And also with you.

The newly married couple then greet each other, after which greetings may be exchanged throughout the congregation.

When Communion is not to follow, the wedding party leaves the church. A hymn, psalm, or anthem may be sung, or instrumental music may be played.

The Book of Common Prayer

Roman Catholic

(This passage is omitted because of copyright protection. It is included in the book, For As Long As We Both Shall Live, available at your local bookstore or by calling 1-800-238-0658.)

The Rite of Marriage

Jewish

(This passage is omitted because of copyright protection. It is included in the book, For As Long As We Both Shall Live, available at your local bookstore or by calling 1-800-238-0658.)

Rabbi's Manual

Contemporary

Now you will feel no rain, for each of you will be shelter to the other.

Now you will feel no cold, for each of you will be warmth to the other.

Now you will feel no loneliness, for each of you will be a companion to the other.

Now you are two bodies, but there is only one life before you.

Go now to your dwelling place, to enter the days of your life together.

And may your days be good, and long upon the earth.

Adapted from an Apache Wedding Prayer

Now may you depart in peace,

May your love cast out small fears,

May your hope endure.

May your faith in each other

and in this radiant universe in

which the mystery of love happens

grow and flourish. Amen.

From To Love Honor and Shave Twice a Week

David Johnson

Out of this tangled world two souls have come together, drawn by mutual love and respect. May their days and years yet unborn deepen the joy of their choice and make it abidingly true.

From To Love Honor and Shave Twice a Week

David Johnson

By your free choice you have made a marriage.

No matter what the demands on your

lives and your time,

The meaning of your living is now

known through your love.

You must nurture each other to fullness

and wholeness, renew yourselves

in love and laughter, maintain the

capacity for wonder, spontaneity,

humor, sensitivity, and save time for

each other, to love each other more

deeply and learn to love more fully

the Creation in which the mystery of

love happens. Amen

From To Love Honor and Shave Twice a Week

David Johnson

You are now wed.

May you always remain sweethearts, helpmates and friends.

May your life together be full of kindness and understanding, thoughtfulness and rejoicing.

May the years bring you happiness and contentment.

May you enter into each other's sorrow by sympathy,

Into each other's joy with gladness,

Into each other's hope with faith and trust,

Into each other's need with the sure presence of love,

Into each other's lives with enthusiasm and embracing. Amen. From To Love Honor and Shave Twice a Week

David Johnson

May these two find happiness in their union. May they live faithfully together, performing the vow and covenant they have made between them; and may they ever remain in sympathy and understanding: that their years may be rich in the joys of life, and their days good, and long upon the earth.

Kenneth L. Patton

May this moment gleam eternally in your lives. May it add glory to every achievement and cast a blessed light over any ill fortune that may appear. May you give vitality to each other in all undertakings. May you care for each other in all sadness. May you give cheer to each other as you each care for the sacred passion of love. May all that is virtuous, beautiful and trustworthy, remain with you always. Amen.

Roger Fritts

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We welcome submissions of your original "closing words" for wedding services. For possible consideration for inclusion on this page, send your E-Mail to:rfritts@his.com

URL: http//www.his.com/~rfritts

Revised - June 3, 1996