AN OVERVIEW OF YOUR CEREMONY

Your wedding ceremony will kick-start your Big Day in Portugal. And in many ways, it will be just what you’d expect a wedding to be (it’s where you walk down the aisle, exchange rings, commit your Vows and you’re pronounced “man and wife”).

 

But the beauty of a celebrancy wedding is that it’s much more flexible and open to personal input. Of course we can do the “Classic” wedding, but we can always add other elements to put your stamp on it; your music, your choice of words, your stories, your chosen Unity Ceremony.

 

In the months running up to your wedding, we’ll be in touch via Skype/FaceTime/face-to-face. It’s during this time that I find out more about your lives and we build a structure to your ceremony. I then sit down to write, based on what we’ve discussed and I’ll send you the script for you to ponder until we have it exactly as you want it. The one bit I get you to write yourselves are your Vows – these have to come straight from your own hearts.

 

It’s important for you to realise that Celebrants are not Registrars so we can’t conduct the legalities on the day; you can invite a Portuguese Registrar to your wedding to do this alongside the Celebrant, but if you don’t speak Portuguese, you will also need a translator (a Wedding Planner can arrange this all for you).

 

So to keep things simple, most people coming to Portugal to get married go through the legalities beforehand in their home country. This obviously ensures they’re married under the laws of their country and it keeps things far more simple on the day.  In terms of the UK, the legalities involve making an appointment 28 days earlier at a Register Office, then attending with two witnesses. The exchanging of rings, Vows, music, Readings and symbolic rituals can all wait for your Portugal wedding…

 

 

THE STRUCTURE OF YOUR CEREMONY

Your wedding can be exactly as you want it (we can discuss this in more detail). But this is the traditional structure of one of my ceremonies:

Lucy welcomes guests and Groom

Bridal Entrance

This is where the Bride is walked down the aisle to music, traditionally accompanied by her father or someone significant in her life

The Giving Away

This is where I ask “Who gives this woman to be married to this man?”.  The person giving her away says “I do”

Introduction & Address

I introduce myself, tell a few stories about the Bride and Groom. This is a good place for a Reading from me, a guest or the couple.

The Asking

There are various ways to introduce The Asking; it is essentially where I ask the Bride and Groom a few questions individually about their commitment to their unity.  Their responses will usually be “I will” or “I do” (depending on phrasing of the question)

More Stories (plus Reading or singer?)

The Vows

This is the moment you make your promises to each other – and it’s the bit I encourage you to write yourselves.  Your Vows can be funny, sentimental, long or short…

There are 3 types of Vows:

1. Echo – I say “Please repeat after me”, then read the Vows one line at a time, with the Bride or Groom repeating until the vow is complete.
2. “I Do” – I begin with “Do you promise…?”, then read the entire vow, followed by the participant’s response of “I do”
3. Recital – a more personal vow, spoken from memory or from a print-out of that I can pass you. Or they can be spoken spontaneously, depending on how the mood takes you…

The Ring Ceremony

Some couples both chose to wear a ring; sometimes just one person (usually the Bride) opts for a ring.  There are different options for the words used and whether you’d like a prompt from me, repeating the words after me or speaking your own words.

Here are some examples:

“I ask everyone here to witness that I (name)/ take you (name)/ to be my lawful wedded husband./ I give you this ring / as a symbol of my unending love/ and of the promises I have made to you today”

OR

“(Name), as I give you this ring, I commit my heart and soul to you. I ask you to wear it always to remind you of the love which brought us together and the love which keeps us together. Just as this ring enfolds your finger, so my love will enfold you always” 

OR

“(Name) I give you this ring, a symbol of my never-ending love, devotion and trust, and pride that you are my husband”

The Kissing

At this point, I declare you “husband and wife” – and you can have that first kiss as a married couple!

Unity Ceremonies

This is the moment where you might want to introduce a symbolic Unity Ceremony (such as a sand ceremony, the lighting of a candle, the signing of a Memories Book).  There’s more information on the Unity Ceremonies page. 

After the Unity ceremony, the Bride and Groom return to the stand in front of me.

The Declaration of Marriage

I offer you my congratulations and wish you farewell as you walk back down the aisle together as Husband and Wife…!