Your wedding ceremony is where you and your fiancé will exchange vows and make your promises to each other in front of all your family and friends. It is the part of your wedding day that will count most as it will include the moment at which you will officially become husband and wife.
Religious or Civic?
Planning your wedding ceremony should be done with care. If you both choose a religious ceremony then it is vital to find out if there are
any pre-nuptial obligations that must first be fulfilled. For instance: Do either one of you have to convert to the other’s faith? Are there
marriage courses that need to be completed? Knowing what is expected and completing it as required is crucial to having your ceremony go
smoothly. Should you prefer to go the civic route, make sure that you have filled out the necessary paperwork with your local justice of the
peace required for tying the knot.
Remember, that regardless of whether you choose a religious or civic ceremony, it is important to find out if you need to first apply for a
marriage license in your area. Some places require a licence and others don’t.
The right kind of ceremony
Find out if the kind of wedding ceremony you are planning is permitted in your faith. For instance, many Catholic churches will not perform
marriage ceremonies anywhere but in a church. So, if you are Catholic and planning to have a garden wedding, you might first want to find out
from your priest if he will perform the ceremony in your garden. Should he refuse, then you will have to find a Christian celebrant who is
comfortable officiating at an outdoor ceremony.
Some faiths have ceremonies that last several days. Hindu ceremonies can often last for a week. Unless you have plenty of time off from work,
you will have to find out if your temple will shorten the ceremony for your purposes. In most instances, religious celebrants are aware of the
limitations placed on their congregation by modern life and changing traditions to accommodate today’s tighter schedules is not a problem.
However, these things should be discussed early on with your celebrant to avoid hiccups later on.
Your vows
The other big question when it comes to wedding ceremonies, are the vows that are exchanged. Many couples like to write their own wedding vows, however, most traditional faiths do not permit personal vows and couples are forced to recite the vows that are used by that faith. If you were planning to write your own wedding vows, then make sure you clear it with your celebrant first.
Timing is everything!
The proper time of day to plan a wedding ceremony is a very personal thing. Mornings are the most conventional time chosen for a wedding with
the reception following shortly afterwards. However, many couples are now choosing to get married later in the day. Some couples even choose
evening wedding times so that they have a magnificent sunset as a background to their special ceremony. Whatever time of day you choose, just
remember that the groom is not allowed to see the bride before the wedding!
As long as you and your fiancé are on the same page where the ceremony is concerned, the rest is simply choosing a date, consulting with the
celebrant and ensuring that you have done everything you must in order to exchange vows as planned.
