A Catholic Wedding |
(From www.together.ie) (Gaeilge: Deasghnatha na Posta)
For Word-file click here.
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Introductory Rites
Entrance Hymn & Greeting -- Light Candles -- Penitential Rite -- Gloria -- Prayer for the Couple. -
Liturgy of the Word
Old Testament -- Psalm -- New Testament --.Alleluia -- Gospel -- Homily -
Marriage Vows
Address -- Vows Formula -- Blessing of the Rings -- Unity Candle -- Prayers of the Faithful -
Liturgy of the Eucharist
Offertory -- Preface -- Eucharistic Prayer -
Communion Rite
The Lord's Prayer -- The Nuptial Blessing -- The Sign of Peace -- Holy Communion -
Concluding Rite
Final Prayers -- Blessing -- Signing the Register
The Wedding of
(Bride's Name)
&
(Groom's Name)
in the church of ...
Date ...
Today I marry my best friend,
the one I laugh with, live for,
love and dream with,
whose dreams I'll share
for the rest of my life.
Wedding Party (inside cover)
(insert the names)
Introductory Rites
Music: . . . . .
Priest greets and welcomes the bride and bridegroom at the altar.
Priest: In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
All: Amen.
Priest: The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
All: And with your spirit.
Some words of welcome by the priest.
If using the candle ritual, you [or parents] light the two outside ones now.
Sometimes its done immediately when the bride and groom arrive at the altar.
GLORIA
Priest: Glory to God in the highest,
All: and on earth peace to people of good will.
We praise you,
we bless you,
we adore you,
we glorify you,
we give you thanks for your great glory,
Lord God, heavenly King,
O God, almighty Father.
Lord Jesus Christ, Only Begotten Son,
Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father,
you take away the sins of the world,
have mercy on us;
you take away the sins of the world,
receive our prayer;
you are seated at the right hand of the Father,
have mercy on us.
For you alone are the Holy One,
you alone are the Lord,
you alone are the Most High,
Jesus Christ,
with the Holy Spirit,
in the glory of God the Father.
Amen.
COLLECT
Priest: Let us pray.
And all pray in silence for a while.
Option 1.
Priest: 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,
one God, for ever and ever.
All: Amen.
Option 2
Priest: 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,
one God, for ever and ever.
All: Amen.
Option 3
Priest: Be attentive to our prayers, O Lord, and in your kindness
pour out your grace on these your servants (N. and N.),
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,
one God, for ever and ever.
All: Amen.
Option 4
Priest: 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,
one God, for ever and ever.
All: Amen.
Option 5
Priest: 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,
one God, for ever and ever.
All: Amen.
The Liturgy of the Word
First Reading
Text of the first reading
Reader: The word of the Lord.
All: Thanks be to God.
Responsorial Psalm
(usually sung)
Second Reading
Text of the second reading
Reader: The word of the Lord.
All: Thanks be to God.
Alleluia (usually sung)
Priest: The Lord be with you. All: And with your spirit.
Priest: A reading from the holy Gospel according to N..
All: Glory to you, O Lord.
Gospel
Text of the Gospel
Priest: The Gospel of the Lord.
All: Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
Homily
The Rite of Marriage
All stand, including the bride and bridegroom, whom the Priest now addresses:
ADDRESS
Option 1
Priest: Dear children of God, you have come to this church so that the Lord may seal your love in the presence of the priest and this community.
Christian marriage is a sacred union which enriches natural love. It binds those who enter it to be faithful to each other for ever; it creates between them a bond that endures for life and cannot be broken; it demands that they love and honour each other, that they accept from God the children he may give them, and bring them up in his love. To help them in their marriage the husband and wife receive the life-long grace of the sacrament.
Priest: Is this your understanding of marriage?
Both: It is.
Option 2
Priest: Dear children of God, you have come to this church so that the Lord may seal your love in the presence of the priest and this community. Christ blesses this love. He has already consecrated you in baptism; now, by a special sacrament, he strengthens you to fulfil the duties of your married live.
N. and N., you are about to celebrate this sacrament. Have you come here of your own free will and choice and without compulsion to marry each other?
Both: We have.
Priest: Will you love and honour each other in marriage all the days of your life?
Both: We will.
Priest: Are you willing to accept with love the children God may send you and bring them up in accordance with the law of Christ and his Church?
Both: We are.
Option 3
Priest: Dear children of God, you have come today to pledge your love before God
and before the Church here present in the person of the priest, your families and friends.
In becoming husband and wife you give yourselves to each other for life.
You promise to be true and faithful, to support and cherish each other until death,
so that your years together will be the living out in love of the pledge you now make.
May your love for each other reflect the enduring love of Christ for his Church.
As you face the future together, keep in mind that the Sacrament of
Marriage unites you with Christ, and brings you, through the years, the
grace and blessing of God our Father. Marriage is from God: he alone can
give you the happiness which goes beyond human expectation, and which
grows deeper through the difficulties and struggles of life. Put your trust
in God as you set out together in life. Make your home a centre of
Christian family life. In this you will bequeath to your children a heritage
more lasting than temporal wealth. The Christian home makes Christ and
his Church present in the world of everyday things. May all who enter
your home find there the presence of the Lord; for he has said: 'Where
two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.'
Now, as you are about to exchange your marriage vows, the Church
wishes to be assured that you appreciate the meaning of what you do, and
so I ask you:
Have you come here of your own free will and choice to marry each other?
Both: We have.
Priest: Will you love and honour each other in marriage all the days of your life?
Both: We will.
Priest: Are you willing to accept with love the children God may send you, and bring them up in accordance with the law of Christ, and his Church?
Both: We are.
DECLARATION OF CONSENT
Priest invites the couple to declare their consent. You may choose between:
Option 1
Priest: I invite you then to declare before God and his Church your consent to become husband and wife.
Groom: N., do you consent to be my wife?
Bride: I do. Do you, N., consent to be my husband?
Groom: I do. I take you as my wife and I give myself to you as your husband.
Bride: I take you as my husband and I give myself to you as your wife.
They then join hands and say together:
Both: to love each other truly
for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer,
in sickness and in health,
till death do us part, (or all the days of your life?)
Priest: What God joins together man must not separate. May the Lord confirm the consent that you have given and enrich you with his blessings.
Option 2
Priest: I invite you then to declare before God and his Church your consent to become husband and wife.
They join hands:
Groom: I, N., take you, N., as my wife,
for better, for worse,
for richer, for poorer,
in sickness and in health,
till death do us part. (or all the days of your life?)
Bride: I, N., take you, N., as my husband,
for better, for worse,
for richer, for poorer,
in sickness and in health,
till death do us part, (or all the days of your life?)
Priest: What God joins together man must not separate. May the Lord confirm the consent that you have given and enrich you with his blessings.
Or:
Option 3
Priest: I invite you then to declare before God and his Church your consent to become husband and wife.
They join hands. The Priest then asks the bridegroom:
Priest: N. , do you take N. , as your wife,
for better, for worse,
for richer, for poorer,
in sickness and in health,
till death do you part? (or all the days of your life?)
Bridegroom: I do.
The Priest then asks the bride:
Priest: N., do you take N., as your husband,
for better, for worse,
for richer, for poorer,
in sickness and in health,
till death do you part? (or all the days your life?)
Bride: I do.
Priest: What God joins together man must not separate. May the Lord confirm the consent that you have given and enrich you with his blessings.
Or:
Option 4
Priest : I invite you then to declare before God and his Church your consent to become husband and wife.
Groom: N., do you consent to be my wife?
Bride: I do N., Do you consent to be my husband?
Groom: I do.
They join hands and say together:
Both: We take each other as husband and wife
and promise to love each other truly for better, for worse,
for richer, for poorer,
in sickness and in health,
till death do us part ( or all the days of our life.)
Priest: The Lord has joined you together. May he fulfil his blessing in you; may he keep you in his love.
BLESSING OF RINGS
Priest says a prayer of blessing:
Priest: Lord, bless N. and N. and consecrate their married life. May these rings be a symbol of their faith in each other, and a reminder of their love.
Through Christ our Lord.
All: Amen.
Exchange of Rings
The bridegroom may place a ring on the bride's finger.
Groom: N., wear this ring as a sign of our faithful love.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
The bride may place a ring on the bridegroom's finger.
Bride: N., wear this ring as a sign of our faithful love.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Optional Extras
GOLD AND SILVER
The bridegroom may give gold and silver (coins) to the bride saying;
I give you this gold and silver, tokens of all I possess.
Or, the bride and bridegroom may exchange small symbolic gifts saying:
N., I give you this gift, a token of all I possess.
THE UNITY CANDLE RITUAL
[Optional]
If you are doing the candle ritual, each lights a taper from an Altar-candle,
and together they light the Unity Candle.
PRAYER OF THE NEWLY MARRIED COUPLE
[Optional]
We thank you, Lord, and we praise you
for bringing us to this happy day.
You have given us to each other.
Now, together, we give ourselves to you.
We ask you, Lord:
make us one in your love;
keep us one in your peace.
Protect our marriage.
Bless our home.
Make us gentle.
Keep us faithful.
And when life is over unite us again
where parting is no more
in the kingdom of your love.
There we will praise you
in the happiness and peace of our eternal home. Amen.
PRAYER OF THE FAITHFUL
About 4 or 5 of the following intercessions or others may be used.
1. For N. and N., that the Lord, who has brought them to this happy day will keep them forever in fidelity and love. Lord, hear us.
All: Lord, graciously hear us.
2. For the parents of N. and N., for their friends and all who have helped them to become husband and wife. Lord, hear us.
All: Lord, graciously hear us.
3. That the Lord may bless the world with his peace and the protection of his love. Lord, hear us.
All: Lord, graciously hear us.
4. For our community and our families, who welcome Christ into their lives; that they learn to receive him in the poor and suffering people of this world. Lord, hear us.
All: Lord, graciously hear us.
5. For God's Church, the Bride of Christ, that it may be united in faith and love. Lord, hear us.
All: Lord, graciously hear us.
6. For all who are victims of injustice, and for those deprived of love and affection. Lord, hear us.
All: Lord, graciously hear us.
7. For married couples everywhere, that their lives will be an example to the world of unity, fidelity and love. Lord, hear us.
All: Lord, graciously hear us.
8. For those who mourn, while we are rejoicing, that in their suffering and loneliness they may experience the strength of God's support. Lord, hear us.
All: Lord, graciously hear us.
9. For the faithful departed and especially for those whom we, ourselves, have loved, that God will one day unite us again in the joys of our eternal home. Lord, hear us.
All: Lord, graciously hear us.
THE LITURGY OF THE EUCHARIST
Offertory hymn: [ hymn title]
The bride and bridegroom or parents may bring the bread and wine to the altar.
Priest: Blessed are you, Lord God of all creation, for through your goodness we have received the bread we offer you: fruit of the earth and work of human hands, it will become for us the bread of life
People: Blessed be God forever
Priest: Blessed are you, Lord God of all creation, for through your goodness we have received the wine we offer you: fruit of the vine and work of human hands, it will become our spiritual drink.
People: Blessed be God forever
Priest: Pray, brethren (brothers and sisters), that my sacrifice and yours may be acceptable to God, the almighty Father.
All: May the Lord accept the sacrifice at your hands for the praise and glory of his name, for our good and the good of all his holy Church.
Prayer over the offerings
Option 1
Priest: 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.
All: Amen.
Option 2
Priest: 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.
All: Amen.
All: Amen.
Option 3
Priest: Show favour 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.
All: Amen.
Priest: The Lord be with you.
All: And with your spirit.
Priest: Lift up your hearts.
All: We lift them up to the Lord.
Priest: Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
All: It is right and just.
Priest continues with the:
PREFACE
Option 1
Priest:
It is truly right and just, our duty and our salvation,
always and everywhere to give you thanks, Lord, holy Father,
almighty and eternal God.
For you have forged the covenant of marriage
as a sweet yoke of harmony
and an unbreakable bond of peace,
so that the chaste and fruitful love of holy Matrimony
By your providence and grace, O Lord,
you accomplish the wonder of this twofold design:
that, while the birth of children brings beauty to the world,
their rebirth in Baptism gives increase to the Church,
through Christ our Lord.
Through him, with the Angels and all the Saints,
we sing the hymn of your praise, as without end we acclaim:
Option 2
Priest: It is truly right and just, our duty and our salvation,
always and everywhere to give you thanks,
Lord, holy Father, almighty and eternal God, through Christ our Lord.
For in him you have made a new covenant with your people,
so that, as you have redeemed man and woman
by the mystery of Christ's Death and Resurrection,
so in Christ you might make them partakers of divine nature
and joint heirs with him of heavenly glory.
In the union of husband and wife
you give a sign of Christ's loving gift of grace,
so that the Sacrament we celebrate
might draw us back more deeply
into the wondrous design of your love.
And so, with the Angels and all the Saints, we praise you,
and without end we acclaim:
All: Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God of hosts.
Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest.
Eucharistic Prayer
(Priest reads whichever Eucharistic Prayer he chooses)
Communion Rite
Priest introduces the Lord's Prayer:
Priest: At the Saviour's command and formed by divine teaching, we dare to say:
All: Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy 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.
NUPTIAL BLESSING
(If you print it in your booklet, the people can recite it with the celebrant.)
Priest: Let us humbly invoke by our prayers, dear brothers and sisters,
God's blessing upon this bride and groom, that in his kindness he may
favour with his help those on whom he has bestowed the Sacrament of
Matrimony.
All pray in silence for a while.
Then the Priest, with hands extended over the bride and bridegroom, continues:
Option 1
O God, who by your mighty power
created all things out of nothing,
and, when you had set in place
the beginnings of the universe,
formed man and woman in your own image,
making the woman an inseparable helpmate to the man,
that they might no longer be two, but one flesh,
and taught that what you were pleased to make one must never be
divided;
O God, who consecrated the bond of Marriage by so great a mystery
that in the wedding covenant you foreshadowed
the Sacrament of Christ and his Church;
O God, by whom woman is joined to man
and the companionship they had in the beginning
is endowed with the one blessing
not forfeited by original sin
nor washed away by the flood.
Look now with favour on these your servants,
joined together in Marriage,
who ask to be strengthened by your blessing.
Send down on them the grace of the Holy Spirit
and pour your love into their hearts,
that they may remain faithful in the Marriage covenant.
May the grace of love and peace
abide in your daughter N.,
and let her always follow the example of those holy women
whose praises are sung in the Scriptures.
May her husband entrust his heart to her,
so that, acknowledging her as his equal
and his joint heir to the life of grace,
he may show her due honour
and cherish her always
with the love that Christ has for his Church.
And now, Lord, we implore you:
may these your servants
hold fast to the faith and keep your commandments;
made one in the flesh,
may they be blameless in all they do;
and with the strength that comes from the Gospel,
may they bear true witness to Christ before all;
may they be blessed with children,
and prove themselves virtuous parents,
who live to see their children's children.
And grant that,
reaching at last together the fullness of years
for which they hope,
they may come to the life of the blessed
in the Kingdom of Heaven.
Through Christ our Lord.
All: Amen
Option 2
Priest: Holy Father,
who formed man in your own image,
male and female you created them,
so that as husband and wife, united in body and heart,
they might fulfil their calling in the world;
O God, who, to reveal the great design you formed in your love,
willed that the love of spouses for each other
should foreshadow the covenant you graciously made with your people,
so that, by fulfilment of the sacramental sign,
the mystical marriage of Christ with his Church
might become manifest
in the union of husband and wife among your faithful;
Graciously stretch out your right hand
over these your servants (N. and N.), we pray,
and pour into their hearts the power of the Holy Spirit.
Grant, O Lord, that, as they enter upon this sacramental union,
they may share with one another the gifts of your love
and, by being for each other a sign of your presence,
become one heart and one mind.
May they also sustain, O Lord, by their deeds the home they are forming
and prepare their children
to become members of your heavenly household
by raising them in the way of the Gospel.
Graciously crown with your blessings your daughter N,
so that, by being a good wife (and mother),
she may bring warmth to her home with a love that is pure
and adorn it with welcoming graciousness.
Bestow a heavenly blessing also, O Lord, on N., your servant,
that he may be a worthy, good and faithful husband
and a provident father).
Grant, holy Father,
that, desiring to approach your table
as a couple joined in Marriage in your presence,
they may one day have the joy
of taking part in your great banquet in heaven.
Through Christ our Lord.
All: Amen.
Option 3
Holy Father, maker of the whole world,
who created man and woman in your own image
and willed that their union be crowned with your blessing,
we humbly beseech you for these your servants,
who are joined today in the Sacrament of Matrimony.
May your abundant blessing, Lord,
come down upon this bride, N.,
and upon N. , her companion for life,
and may the power of your Holy Spirit
set their hearts aflame from on high,
so that, living out together the gift of Matrimony,
they may adorn their family with children
and enrich the Church.
In happiness may they praise you, O Lord,
in sorrow may they seek you out;
may they have the joy of your presence
to assist them in their toil,
and know that you are near
to comfort them in their need;
let them pray to you in the holy assembly
and bear witness to you in the world,
and after a happy old age,
together with the circle of friends that surrounds them,
may they come to the Kingdom of Heaven.
Through Christ our Lord.
The Sign of Peace
Priest: The peace of the Lord be with you always.
All: And with your spirit.
Priest: Let us offer each other the sign of peace.
Then the bride and bridegroom and all present offer one another a sign expressing peace, communion and charity.
Priest: May this mingling of the Body and Blood
of our Lord Jesus Christ
bring eternal life to us who receive it.
All: Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world,
have mercy on us.
Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world,
have mercy on us.
Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world,
grant us peace.
Priest: Behold the Lamb of God,
behold him who takes away the sins of the world.
Blessed are those called to the supper of the Lamb.
All: Lord, I am not worthy
that you should enter under my roof,
but only say the word
and my soul shall be healed.
Communion hymns: Hymn title(s)
POST COMMUNION REFLECTION
(OPTIONAL: POEM OR REFLECTIVE PIECE)
PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION
Priest: Let us pray.
All pray silently for a while.
Then the Priest says the Prayer after Communion:
Priest: Let us pray.
All pray silently for a while.
Choose one of the 3 options below
Option 1
Priest: By the power of this sacrifice, O Lord,
accompany with your loving favour
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.
All: Amen.
Option 2
Priest: Having been made 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.
All: Amen.
Or:
Option 3
Priest: 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.
All: Amen.
THE CONCLUDING RITES
Priest: The Lord be with you.
All: And with your spirit.
SOLEMN BLESSING
Before blessing the people at the end of Mass, the Priest gives the bride and bridegroom a special blessing. Priest, with hands extended over the bride and bridegroom, says:
Priest: May God the eternal Father
keep you of one heart in love for one another,
that the peace of Christ may dwell in you
and abide always in your home.
All: Amen.
Priest: May you be blessed in your children,
have solace in your friends
and enjoy true peace with everyone.
All: Amen.
Priest: May you be witnesses in the world to God's charity,
so that the afflicted and needy who have known your kindness
may one day receive you thankfully
into the eternal dwelling of God.
All: Amen.
And he blesses all the people, adding:
Priest: And may almighty God bless all of you, who are gathered here,
the Father, and the Son, + and the Holy Spirit.
All: Amen.
Music
The couple sign the marriage registration form.
Recessional