Handfasting 2003 CO1

Handfasting 2003

Perfect Love and Perfect Trust

HPS:    We have come together here in celebration of the joining together of ... and ... . Marriage is a bond to be entered into only after considerable thought and reflection. It is at once the most fragile of relationships and the strongest. Fragile because it requires exactly the right mix of freedom and interdependence, of caring and of sharing, of being together and of being alone. As with any aspect of life it has its cycles, its ups and downs, its trials and triumphs. With full understanding of this, ... and ... have come here today to be joined as one in marriage. Remember that this wedding is only a symbol, a celebration, and a public recognition of what already exists in the silent places in your hearts. It is your marriage and not something created by the state or the church - it is yours to define, yours to make real, yours to live. Nothing I can say can make it anything more than what already exists in your hearts. Others would ask at this time who gives the bride in marriage, but, as a woman is not property to be bought and sold, given and taken, I ask simply if she comes of her own will and if she has her family’s blessing. 

... is it true that you come of your own free will and accord and your family has given their blessing?

RESPONSE:    Yes, it is true. 

HPS:    Please join hands with your betrothed and listen to that which I am about to say.  Above you are the stars, below you are the stones, as time passes, Remember... 

Like a stone should your love be firm, like a star should your love be constant. Let the powers of the mind and of the intellect guide you in your marriage. Let the strength of your wills bind you together. Let the power of love and desire make you happy, and the strength of your dedication make you inseparable. Be close, but not too close. Possess one another, yet be understanding. Have patience with one another, for storms will come, but they will pass quickly. Be free in giving affection and warmth. Have no fear and let not the ways of the unenlightened give you unease, for the light is with you always. As the sun’s warmth and the earth’s magic bring forth life, so shall you two create something new by the blending of your energies.

 

Blessing & Exchange of Rings

HPS:    These rings represent a journey without beginning or end, they are a symbol of the circle of life. In the presence of the Lord and Lady, we ask that they bless these rings so that your journey of love never ends.  

The Hand Fasting

 
HP:    The threads of this cord intertwine to form one. Up until this moment you have been separate in thought, word, and action. As these threads have been bound together so too are your lives intertwined.

(Bride and groom hold hands while the HP and HPS tie their wrists)  

HP & HPS:    As the right hand is to the left hand, may you be forever one, sharing in all things, at home and abroad, in love and in loyalty, for all time to come. 

HPS:    (To Groom) Repeat after me:  I, ..., in the name of the Light that resides within us all, by the life that courses within my blood and the love that resides within my heart. Take You ... to my hand, my heart, and my spirit, to be my chosen one. I promise to love you wholly and completely without restraint in sickness and in health, in plenty and in poverty, in life and beyond. Where we shall meet, remember, and love again. I shall respect you, your beliefs, your family, and your ways, as I respect myself. 

HP:    (To Bride) Repeat after me: I, ..., in the name of the light that resides within us all, by the life that courses within my blood and the love that resides within my heart. Take You ... to my hand, my heart, and my spirit, to be my chosen one. I promise to love you wholly and completely without restraint in sickness and in health, in plenty and in poverty, in life and beyond. Where we shall meet, remember, and love again. I shall respect you, your beliefs, your family, and your ways, as I respect myself. 

Groom & Bride:    Heart to thee, body to thee, soul mates forever, so mote it be.

(Hands remain tied while cakes and ale are prepared at the altar. Cakes and Ale will be given to HP and HPS and Bride and Groom Only)

HP & HPS:    (untie hands and give cord to bride) May you be forever one.  

HPS:    By the power vested in my by the Lord and Lady I now pronounce you husband and wife. Now you will feel no cold, for each of you will be warmth to the other. May your love so endure that its flame remains a guiding light unto you. I bid you to exchange a Kiss. 

(Broom is placed on the ground where Bride & Groom will exit by jumping it. Everyone else will be invited to jump the broom on their way out to renew their own vows and to wish the bride and groom many years of love and happiness.)

Feasting / Reception to follow