Michael W St Onge

Ceremony Script for Joshua Finck and Isabel Bowser

Josh to stand in front with me

Walking down to the front:

Ian and Natasha

Dario and Allie

Olivia

Ella and Emi and Jack

Please stand.

(processional music plays)

Mom Patte and Dad Ed walk Isabel to the front.

(Isabel will kiss her mother and father and Josh will kiss her mother and shake his Father in-law’s hand. Her mother and Father will be seated. Isabel, give flowers to Allie)

Joshua and Isabel stand by me, holding hands looking out at the crowd.

All remain standing

Dear Family and Friends, on behalf of Joshua and Isabel, thank you for being here today to recognize their love and celebrate their marriage. My name is Mike St. Onge, and I’m Josh’s Uncle. It is my honor to officiate at this wedding.

I have a lot of fond memories of Josh, especially camping and canoeing, but this isn’t the time to tell you about them.

The one thing I can say about this couple is that the moment I was introduced to Isa by Josh, I could tell it was a matter of time before they would be one. I just didn’t think it would be this long, better late than never.

The way they talked about different things and I was amazed at how much they have in common, artsy stuff.

Please be seated

We are gathered here today to witness and bless the joining together of Joshua James Finck and Isabel Rose Silvia Bowser in Holy matrimony. Marriage is not to be entered into lightly but thoughtfully and seriously, and with a deep realization of its obligations and responsibilities. Please remember that love, loyalty, understanding and COMMUNICATION are the foundations of a happy and enduring home.

 

Now I’d like Josh’s brother in-law Andrew to come forward to do a reading:

A Reading from Song of Solomon Chapter 8 verses 6-7

Place me like a seal over your heart,

like a seal on your arm;

for love is as strong as death . . .

It burns like blazing fire,

like a mighty flame.

Many waters cannot quench love;

rivers cannot sweep it away.

If one were to give

all the wealth of one’s house for love,

it would be utterly scorned.

Thank you Andrew, please be seated

Love is a force more formidable than any other.

It cannot be seen or measured, yet it is powerful enough to transform you in a moment, and offer you more joy than any material possession ever could.

But although this love joins you together as one, remember the gift of your individuality. Cherish and affirm your differences as you love each other.

Be supportive of your strengths, and tender towards your weaknesses.

Laugh together, cry together, be comforted by each other's presence, and secure in each other's absence.

Whatever changes time may bring, let this wedding ceremony remain as a treasured memory and a guide to life.

□

As we rejoice in Joshua and Isabel’s marriage today, let us each consecrate the relationships in our own lives and rededicate ourselves to these unions we share.

Let us each choose the path of loving and caring for one another and making these commitments a priority in our lives.

May God bless Joshua and Isabel’s parents, James and Theresa and Ed and Patte, whose love, support and nurturing are such an essential part of who they are today.

Thank you for being their first teachers of the powers and possibilities of love.

May you take great joy in the fact that the seeds of love you planted in Joshua and Isabel will flourish in the formation of this new family.

Let us remember, today and always, that there is nothing more important than loving one another.

□

And now Joshua and Isabel will say their vows

Jack, please walk around and give Natasha the rings.

□

Nathasha and Olivia, please come forward with the rings.

Please hold the rings as I bless them.

These rings are the outward and visible signs of the vows and promises you have willingly exchanged. They reflect the commitment of your words.

Bless, O Lord, the giving of these rings and those who wear them. May they live in your peace and continue in your favor, through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen

Natasha, Give Isabel’s ring to Joshua in his right hand.

Joshua, on this day, before God, your family, and friends do you take Isabel as your wife, promising to uphold the vows you have just spoken

Joshua: “I do” and places the ring on Isabel’s left hand ring finger

Olivia, Give Joshua’s ring to Isabel in her right hand.

Isabel, on this day before God, your family and friends do you take Joshua as your husband, promising to uphold the vows you have just spoken

Isabel: “I do” and places ring on Joshua’s left hand ring finger.

Thanks Natashia and Olivia

Let us pray.

We ask that the Holy Spirit of love may deepen the lives of Joshua and Isabel.

May this relationship, which today has been expressed, continue to grow in the years to come.

Whatever changes time may bring, let this wedding ceremony remain as a treasured memory and a guide to life.

May they always experience that breathless wonder that exclaims: "Out of all this world, YOU have chosen ME."

When life is done and the sun is setting, may they be found then as now, still hand in hand, still thanking you for each other.

Amen

And now according to the ordinances of God and in the name of the State of Michigan, I now pronounce them husband and wife.

Josh, you may kiss your bride.

Now, it is my honor to present to you for the first time, Mr. & Mrs. Joshua Finck and Isabel Bowser!!

(recessional music plays)

Sign marriage license?