Blessing of Hands
These hands you hold on your wedding day are the hands of your best
friend, tender and sincere and vibrant with love.
These are the hands that will work along side yours, as together
you build your future, as together you laugh and cry, and together you
share your innermost secrets and dreams.
These are the hands that will countless times wipe the tears from
your eyes: tears of sorrow and tears of laughter and joy.
These are the hands that will comfort you in illness, and hold you
when you are grieving.
These are that hands that will passionately love you and cherish
you through the years, for a lifetime of happiness, as you promise your
love and commitment to one another, all the days of your lives.
Nuptial Blessing
My dear friends, let us ask God
For his continued blessing upon Groom and Bride.
(silent prayer)
Holy Father, creator of the universe,
Maker of man and woman in your own likeness,
Source of blessing for married life
We pray for this couple united in this sacrament of marriage.
May they both praise you when they are happy
And turn to you in their sorrows
May they be glad that you help them in their work
And know that you are with them in their need
May they pray to you in the community of the church
And be your witnesses in the world.
May they reach old age in the company of their family and friends
And come at last to the kingdom of heaven
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
The Prayer
St Francis of Assisi
Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.
O, Divine Master,
grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love;
for it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
The Traditional Irish Blessing
May the road rise to meet you,
And the wind be always at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
And the rains fall soft upon your fields.
May green be the grass you walk upon,
And blue be the skies above you.
May pure be the joys that surround you,
And true be the hearts that love you.
May the warm rays of the sun fall upon your home
And may the hand of a friend always be near.
May God be with you, guide you, and bless you;
So that you see your children's children.
May you be poor in misfortune,
And rich in blessings.
May you know mainly happiness,
From this day forward.
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of his hand.
Apache Wedding Blessing
Now you will feel no rain,
for each of you will be shelter for the other.
Now you will feel no cold,
for each of you will be warmth for the other.
Now there is no more loneliness.
Now you are two persons,
but there is only one life before you.
May your days together be good and long
upon the earth.
St. Teresa's Prayer
May today there be peace within.
May you trust God
that you are exactly where you are meant to be.
May you not forget the infinite possibilities
that are born of faith.
May you use those gifts that you have received,
and pass on the love that has been given to you...
May you be content knowing you are a child of God...
Let this presence settle into your bones,
and allow your soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise and love.
It is there for each and every one of us.
Ceremonial Joinings
1) What God has joined together, let no man put asunder.
2) Let not man attempt to make undone what God has here today made
one.
3) God has joined you in your love. Let nothing come between
that bond.
4) As these two become one in love, so let it be forever.
5) Your love has led you to this place where God has joined you together.
May your journey ever knit you closer.
6) This day you have become one, never again to be divided.
7) Perfected by one another, let your bonds be strengthened in God's
love for all time.
