8 Sample Wedding Ceremony Scripts

In the months leading up to your big day, you’ve likely spent hours each week planning every detail. Between your outfit, the venue décor, and the entertainment, there’s much to consider before you say “I do” to your partner. Yet in the midst of these reception-related preparations, it’s easy to forget about another key aspect of your nuptials: your wedding ceremony. Considering the significance of the event, it’s often surprising that many couples often leave such planning to the last minute, says Tanya Pushkine, a wedding officiant and professional vow writing. “It’s so rare that the wedding ceremony is thought of as a priority,” she says. “It’s almost like an afterthought.”

However, instead of waiting until the week before your celebration to consider the flow of your ceremony, Pushkine recommends starting this conversation early on in the process in order to voice your preferences to your planner and/or coordinator. For example, religious ceremonies are typically more fixed in terms of the service, language, and traditions, while secular/non-religious ceremonies give couples a lot more flexibility to personalize the ceremony to their unique tastes. While all weddings have a standard format (processional, readings, vows, exchange of rings, pronouncement, first kiss, and recessional), by changing up the readings, verbiage, and incorporating creative rituals into the service, you can make it completely your own. “[Today’s couples] are writing their own rules,” Pushkine says. “They’re looking to create an experience, which is different than before, where couples just did what their parents did.”

Below, we’ve outlined some tips for writing your wedding ceremony script—and even included a few samples one to inspire your own.

Wedding Ceremony Script Writing Tips

Regardless of whether you’re working with a professional officiant, a member of a religious house of worship, a justice of the peace, or a loved one, you and your partner may decide to customize your wedding ceremony script. Here, Pushkine breaks down key considerations to make before you start writing.

Start Early

Don’t leave this task until the last minute. Get ahead of it and start doing your research early on in the wedding-planning process so that you have plenty of time to find inspiration and craft a ceremony that reflects you as a couple. “It’s like a puzzle,” Pushkine says. “There are so many different variations and themes to choose from when it comes to planning a wedding ceremony, so try to find unique elements that fit your personal style.”

Work With Your Officiant

Your officiant is the most important person at your ceremony. As the leader of your service, they hold the power to actually marry you and your partner. If your officiant is a religious leader or experienced wedding officiant, they might already have a go-to outline for the ceremony that you can add to. If you’re having a friend step in as the officiant, they’ll need more direction from you on what to include.

Don’t Procrastinate on Writing Your Vows

If you decide to write your own vows, make sure you dedicate plenty of time to not only writing your vows but practicing your delivery as well. Your vows are a lifetime promise that you’re making to your partner, so they should be meaningful and personal—without being too revealing. Choose your words carefully, and rehearse them until you feel confident and comfortable saying them aloud. 

Keep It Short and Sweet

Unless your ceremony involves a religious service, try to keep it under 30 minutes. (Any longer and your guests might start looking at their watches.) And consider making it interactive. “The best thing you can do to make your ceremony unique is to get people laughing,” Pushkine says. “Wedding ceremonies can be a lot of fun without completely disregarding the serious element involved.” 

Consider Printing Programs for Your Guests

Personalized wedding ceremonies can be entertaining, but the further away you get from the traditional ceremony format, the more confused your guests might be. Wedding programs are a great addition to make everyone feel more involved and aware of where the service is going.

Get a Second Opinion

Make sure to have someone look over your wedding script before the big day to make sure it flows well. Remember: It never hurts to have a second pair of eyes to provide feedback and edit suggestions on what is likely the most important speech you’ll ever deliver.

Ready to start writing your own wedding ceremony script? Here are a few sample scripts to use as a jumping-off point, all prepared by American Marriage Ministries (AMM).

Traditional Wedding Ceremony Script

Processional

Beginning of the wedding ceremony. Guests are seated followed by the entrance of the bridal party.

Invocation

Welcome, loved ones. We are gathered here today to join [Name] and [Name] in holy matrimony.

Vow Exchange

[Name], I promise to cherish you always, to honor and sustain you, in sickness and in health, in poverty and in wealth, and to be true to you in all things until death alone shall part us.

[Name] I promise to cherish you always, to honor and sustain you, in sickness and in health, in poverty and in wealth, and to be true to you in all things until death alone shall part us.

Ring Exchange and Declaration of Intent

With this ring I, [Name], take you, [Name], to be no other than yourself. Loving what I know of you, and trusting what I do not yet know, I will respect your integrity and have faith in your abiding love for me, through all our years, and in all that life may bring us.

With this ring I, [Name], take you, [Name], to be no other than yourself. Loving what I know of you, and trusting what I do not yet know, I will respect your integrity and have faith in your abiding love for me, through all our years, and in all that life may bring us.

Pronouncement

By the power vested in me by the state of [State], I now pronounce you [husband and wife/husband and husband/wife and wife]!

Nonreligious Wedding Ceremony Script

Processional

Beginning of the wedding ceremony. Guests are seated.

Invocation

Family and friends, thank you all for coming today to share in this wonderful occasion. Today we are here together to unite [Name] and [Name] in marriage.

Declaration of Intent

Do you [Name], take this [woman/man/person] to be your lawfully wedded [husband/wife], to live together in matrimony, to love [her/him/them], comfort [her/him/them], honor and keep [her/him/them], in sickness and in health, in sorrow and in joy, to have and to hold, from this day forward, as long as you both shall live?

I do.

Do you [Name], take this [woman/man/person] to be your lawfully wedded [husband/wife], to live together in matrimony, to love [her/him/them], comfort [her/him/them], honor and keep [her/him/them], in sickness and in health, in sorrow and in joy, to have and to hold, from this day forward, as long as you both shall live?

I do.

Ring Exchange

[Name] and [Name] have chosen rings to exchange with each other as a symbol of their unending love. As you place this ring on [Name]’s finger, please repeat after me. With this ring, I thee wed and pledge you my love now and forever.

[Name], as you place this ring on [Name]’s finger, please repeat after me. With this ring, I thee wed and pledge you my love now and forever.

Pronouncement

By the authority vested in me by the State of [State], I now pronounce you [husband and wife/husband and husband/wife and wife]!

Recessional

End of the wedding ceremony.

Modern Wedding Ceremony Script

Invocation

Welcome family and friends. We are gathered here today to witness and celebrate the marriage of [Name] and [Name]. This is not the beginning of a new relationship but an acknowledgment of the next chapter in their lives together. [Name] and [Name] have spent years getting to know each other, and we now bear witness to what their relationship has become. Today, they will affirm this bond formally and publicly.

[Name] and [Name] will mark their transition as a couple not only by celebrating the love between themselves, but by also celebrating the love between all of us—including the love of their parents, siblings, extended family, and best friends. Without that love, today would be far less joyous.

Declaration of Intent

Do you [Name] take [Name] to be your lawfully wedded [husband/wife]? To have and to hold, in sickness and in health, in good times and not so good times, for richer or poorer, keeping yourself unto [him/her/them] for as long as you both shall live?

I do.

Do you [Name] take [Name] to be your lawfully wedded [husband/wife]? To have and to hold, in sickness and in health, in good times and not so good times, for richer or poorer, keeping yourself unto [him/her/them] for as long as you both shall live?

I do.

Ring Exchange

A ring is an unbroken circle, with ends that have been joined together, and it represents your union. It is a symbol of infinity, and of your infinite love. When you look at these rings on your hands, be reminded of this moment, your commitment, and the love you now feel for each other.

[Name], place the ring on [Name]’s finger and repeat after me:

[Name], I give you this ring as a symbol of my love with the pledge: to love you today, tomorrow, always, and forever.

And now…[Name], place the ring on [Name]’s finger and repeat after me:

[Name], I give you this ring as a symbol of my love with the pledge: to love you today, tomorrow, always, and forever.

Pronouncement

Before these witnesses, you have pledged to be joined in marriage. You have now sealed this pledge with your wedding rings. By the authority vested in me by the great State of [State], I now pronounce you married!

Christian Wedding Ceremony Script

Invocation

We are gathered here today in the sight of God and these witnesses to join together [Name] and [Name] in holy matrimony; which is an honorable estate, instituted of God, since the first man and the first woman walked on the earth. Therefore; it is not to be entered into unadvisedly or lightly, but reverently and soberly. Into this holy estate, these two persons present come now to be joined. Therefore, if anyone can show just cause why they may not be lawfully joined together, let them speak now or forever hold their peace.

Reading

A reading from the Apostle Paul, The first letter to the Corinthians, Chapter 13, verses 4 through 7: Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Father, as [Name] and [Name] pledge themselves to each other, help them and bless them that their love may be pure, and their vows may be true. Through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen.

Declaration of Intent

[Name] and [Name], you have come together this day so that the Lord may seal and strengthen your love in the presence of this minister of His word and this community of family and friends and so, in the presence of this gathering, I ask you to state your intentions: Have you both come here freely and without reservation to give yourselves to each other in marriage? If so, answer by saying ‘I have.’

I have.

Ring Exchange

[Name], please take the ring you have selected for [Name]. As you place it on [his/her] finger, repeat after me: With this ring, I thee wed.

[Name], please take the ring you have selected for [Name]. As you place it on [his/her] finger, repeat after me: With this ring, I thee wed.

Prayer

May Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Savior, always be at the center of the new lives you are now starting to build together, that you may know the ways of true love and kindness. May the Lord bless you both all the days of your lives and fill you with His joy. Amen.

Pronouncement

Those whom God has joined together, let no man put asunder. In so much as [Name] and [Name] have consented together in holy wedlock, and have witnessed the same before God and this company, having given and pledged their faith, each to the other, and having declared same by the giving and receiving of rings, I pronounce that you are husband and wife. I ask you now to seal the promises you have made with each other this day with a kiss.

Recessional

End of the wedding ceremony.

Jewish Wedding Ceremony Script

Signing of the Ketubah

The Ketubah is an ancient document and is a marriage contract that lays out the commitment that the couple has to each other. It is signed by two Jewish witnesses, neither of whom can be blood-related family members to the couple.

Bedeken

After the Ketubah signing, there is a short but meaningful ritual where the groom covers the bride’s face with her veil. The veiling itself is a symbol of modesty, based upon the biblical account of Rebecca meeting Isaac. Some couples put a modern spin on the tradition by having the bride place a yarmulke on the groom.

Invocation

We are gathered here today to celebrate the union of [Name] and [Name]. A special thanks to all of you that traveled from far and wide to witness the promise these two are about to make to one another. We are here to offer our love and support, and to stand with [Name] and [Name] as they begin this new chapter of their lives.

Ring Exchange

The couple will now exchange rings. These rings symbolize the never-ending love you feel for each other. The ring has neither a beginning nor an end, just as there is no beginning or end to what the partners give and receive. These rings will be a reminder of the vows you have taken today. By this ring, you are consecrated to me according to the law of Moses and Israel.

Blessing of the Hands

[Name] and [Name], please join hands. Looks at these hands for they are of your closest friend. They are strong and full of love. As you join hands today, you make the promise to love each other today, tomorrow, and forever.

The Seven Blessings

The Seven Blessings are now recited.

Breaking the Glass

The ceremony is concluded by the groom stamping on a glass and smashing it. This is the signal for the gathered people to cheer, dance, and shout “Mazal Tov!” Some couples choose to update this tradition by breaking the glass together with one swift smash in unison.

Baptist Wedding Ceremony Script

Processional

Beginning of the wedding ceremony. Guests are seated followed by the entrance of the bridal party.

Invocation

Dearly beloved, we are gathered here in the presence of God, family, and friends to witness a joyous occasion—the union of [Name] and [Name] in holy matrimony.

Presentation of the Bride

Who gives [Name] to be married to [Name]?

[Bride’s father or parent] I do.

Declaration of Intent

[Name] and [Name], as you stand here before friends, family, and God, I ask you to declare your intentions to join in the sacred covenant of marriage.

Do you take [Name] to be your husband, to love him, comfort him, honor and keep him, in sickness and in health, and forsaking all others, be faithful to him, as long as you both shall live?

I do

[Name], have you come here freely and without reservation to marry?

I have

[Name], do you take [Name] to be your wife, to love her, comfort her, honor and keep her, in sickness and in health, and forsaking all others, be faithful to her, as long as you both shall live?

I do

Exchange of Vows and Rings

[Name] and [Name] will now exchange rings as a symbol of their commitment and endless devotion.

 [Name], you may place the ring you’ve chosen on [Name]’s hand.

 And [Name], you may place the ring you’ve chosen on [Name]’s hand.

 [Couple exchanges rings.]

This marriage unites not just [Name] and [Name], but all of the families sitting here today. They ask now for your blessing. Do you promise to support [Name] and [Name] in their marriage, to keep them in your prayers, to hold them up with love, and to rejoice in companionship in Jesus as they walk this path together?

[Audience] We do.

Closing prayers.

Pronouncement

[Name] and [Name], having witnessed your marriage vows in the eyes of God and before all who are assembled here, by the authority invested in me by the State of [State], I pronounce you husband and wife. 

You may kiss the bride!

Protestant Wedding Ceremony Script

Procession

Beginning of the wedding ceremony. Guests are seated followed by the entrance of the bridal party. 

Invocation

Dearly beloved, we’re gathered here today in the presence of God to witness and bless this union as [Name] and [Name] join together in holy matrimony. 

This holy bond is not to be entered into unadvisedly or lightly, but reverently, deliberately, thoughtfully, and in accordance with those purposes for which God created it. 

Interrogation and Charge to the Couple

If anyone present knows of any reason why this couple should not be joined in holy matrimony, speak now or forever hold your peace. 

[Name] and [Name], here in the presence of God, family, and friends, if either of you know any reason why you should not marry, do now confess it. 

Presentation of the Bride

Who presents [Name] to be married to [Name]?

[Bride’s father or parent] I do.

Declaration of Intent

Please face each other and join hands.

[Name] if it’s in your heart, please repeat after me. 

In the name of God, 
I, [Name], take you, [Name], 
to be my (wife/husband/spouse), 
to have and to hold from this day forward,
for better for worse, 
for richer for poorer, 
in sickness and in health, 
to love and to cherish, 
until we are parted by death.
This is my solemn vow.

[Partner repeats this vow.]

Exchange of Rings

Lord, bless these rings as you bless this union, in your infinite wisdom, today, tomorrow and always. Amen

[Partner] I give you this ring as a symbol of my love and devotion. With all that I am, and all that I have, I promise to honor and cherish you, in God’s name. 

[Partner repeats.]

Pronouncement

[Name] and [Name], remember to love each other faithfully, just as Christ loved the church, for marriage is a lasting promise of kindness, patience, forgiveness, and love. Trust in God with all your heart, and your path forward will be filled with joy and light for all the years to come. 

By the power vested in me by the beautiful state of [State], in the presence of God and the witness of friends and family, it is my great privilege to pronounce you husband and wife!

You may kiss the bride!

Catholic Wedding Ceremony Script

Procession

Beginning of the wedding ceremony. Guests are seated followed by the entrance of the bridal party. 

Invocation

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.  Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Opening prayer and readings.

Celebration of Matrimony

All stand, and the couple comes to the altar flanked by their witnesses. The priest will address the couple with a celebration of matrimony:

Dearly beloved, you have come together into the house of the church so that in the presence of the church’s minister and the community, your intention to enter into marriage may be strengthened by the Lord with a sacred seal.

Address and Statement of Intentions

[Name] and [Name], have you come here to enter into marriage without coercion, freely and wholeheartedly?

 [Couple] I have

Are you prepared, as you follow the path of marriage, to love and honor each other for as long as you both shall live?

[Couple] I am

Exchange of Consent

I, [NAME], take you, [NAME], to be my [wife/husband]. I promise to be faithful to you, in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health, to love you and to honor you all the days of my life.

[Partner two repeats this vow.]

Blessing and Giving of Rings

Bless, O Lord, these rings which we bless in your name. So that those who wear them may remain entirely faithful to each other, abide in peace and in your will, and live always in mutual charity. Through Christ our Lord.

[Priest sprinkles wedding rings with holy water, then hands them to each partner.]

[Name], receive this ring as a sign of my love and fidelity. In the name of the father, and the son, and the holy spirit.  

[Places ring on partner’s finger]

[Partner two repeats this vow and places ring on partner’s finger.]

Prayer

Priest leads congregation with the Lord’s Prayer.

Communion

Priest performs communion, starting with the married couple. 

Pronouncement

By the power vested in me by the state of [State], I now pronounce you husband and wife.

You may kiss the bride!