Many of the traditional wedding ceremony elements and phrases we are accustomed to date back to the sixteenth century.
The following marriage vows: "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, till death us do part”, are from the Book of Common Prayer, published in the year 1549.
These familiar vows are still relevant and often used in current-day wedding ceremonies over 400 years later!
In the original Book Of Common Prayer wedding ceremony there is the giving of just one ring; only the woman would receive a ring and pledge faithfulness. Another pledge that only the woman was expected to make, is the promise to obey. In western traditions this began to change in the twentieth century. Men receive a ring and promise faithfulness as do the women. The promise to obey is usually omitted nowadays.
Even in the most rigid and formal Book Of Common Prayer wedding ceremonies, such as Princess Diana and Prince Charles and more recently the Royal Wedding of William and Kate, they omitted the promise to obey. However Kate was the only one to receive the ring, Prince William did not. To view the full Book Of Common Prayer Ceremony used at the Royal Wedding, you can download it below.
| Royal Wedding Program for William and Kate |
Visit our Ceremonies section to see 2 different adaptations of the wedding ceremony from the Book Of Common Prayer. There is one with an emphasis on the Trinity as well as a version that is more Universal or Unitarian.
To learn more about the wedding ceremony from the Book Of Common Prayer, go to Wikipedia and the Anglican.org site. You can also visit the online Book Of Common Prayer.
To learn more about the wedding ceremony from the Book Of Common Prayer, go to Wikipedia and the Anglican.org site. You can also visit the online Book Of Common Prayer.
