Prayers for your wedding
How do we find suitable prayers and readings for our wedding? Usually the minister who is marrying you will know of sources of prayers or readings. There are also anthologies of readings for non-religious ceremonies. Here are some ideas that you may find helpful.
The various Church of England prayer books have additional prayers for use at weddings. From January 2001, a new "prayer book" called Common Worship is being introduced into the Church of England. On pages 156-168 of the Pastoral Services Book (not the black main book) there are 27 additional prayers, grouped under themes like "sharing of love, home, marriage as a sign to the world" etc. Your local Anglican minister should be able to show you these.
There are various prayers for personal relationships, including a section for marriage in section 5 of Angela Ashwin (ed) The Book of a Thousand Prayers.
Another good resource book for church weddings is Michael Perry & Rowena Edlin-White, Design your own Wedding Ceremony, pp 54-72. This also includes material for civil ceremonies and special ideas for including children and family in the service.
There is also a book by Best and Hunt called Weddings, a Guide, which contains prayers, hymns and readings from a range of cultural backgrounds.
You might even like to write your own prayers to put into words your longings for your marriage, or invite family and friends to do so.
Tip by Kate