WEDDING CEREMONIES
Bilingual: English and Spanish

Since everyone has different religious beliefs and cultural backgrounds, it is impractical to use the same type of ceremony for everyone. Another issue that often complicates matters is that the bride and groom often have their own beliefs and customs, making it difficult to find a minister who will provide a ceremony to meet their different, individual needs.

I will not complicate things further by forcing my personal beliefs into your wedding. I can help you design a ceremony that reflects your individual backgrounds and your common interests into a symbolic ceremony that represents who you are as a couple. Some issues we'll consider besides your religious preferences or cultural backgrounds are if you would like to include a symbolic ceremony, if you wish to have other family members participate (such as children from bride or groom), or if you wish to honor the memory of loved ones in the ceremony. We can either combine selections from my catalog of sample ceremonies, or I can write a custom ceremony just for you. I can also perform the ceremony in English, Spanish, or a combination of both to accommodate the needs of your guests.

Some of the more common ceremony categories are:
Civil Ceremonies
Religious Ceremonies
Nondenominational Ceremonies
Multifaith Ceremonies
Same-sex commitment ceremonies

 
However, remember that we are not limited to the list from above. We can mix and match, or even borrow elements from other cultures that you may like. We are celebrating one of the most important days of your lives, so I will work with you in creating a memorable ceremony that will reflects the different elements of who you are as a couple.

It helps to begin by considering the following elements of a traditional ceremony.
01. Prelude
02. Processional
03. Reading
04. Message
05. Exchange of Vows
06. Exchange of Rings
07. Symbolic ceremony*
08. Solo
09. Declaration of Marriage
10. Recessional

It's up to you to decide if you wish to follow this pattern, move things around, add or delete some elements, or ignore it all together and create something completely unique. You may wish to write your own vows, or you may wish to use pre-written vows. I can provide some guidance if you wish to write your own.

* If you wish to include some symbolism in your ceremony, you may consider some of the following:

Unity Candle ceremony - symbolizes walking life's paths together as one
Rose ceremony - symbolizes love as the couple gives each other a rose
Blending of the Sands ceremony - pouring two different colored sands to symbolize the joining of the families
Lasso ceremony - symbolizes the everlasting union
White Doves Release ceremony - since white doves mate for life, this symbolizes true love
Jumping the Broom ceremony - symbolically sweep away your single lives as you enter a new life as a couple
Handfasting ceremony - symbolizes a couples desire for commitment to each other
Blended Family ceremony - a ceremony to include children from the bride or groom
More symbolic ceremonies available

Once all the different elements of the wedding have been decided, I will put them all together and give it to you for approval. On the day of the rehearsal, I will give you a professional copy to keep for yourselves.