Celebrating weddings that are to come
A couple of years ago I was with a church who had built up a very significant wedding ministry. Once a year, they invited all the couples who had booked to be married in that year or the next to come to a special service. Many were already attending regularly to make a connection through attendance, whilst others were locally based. On the day, there were 31 couples, together with their children, some of their parents, all welcomed by the 17 regular worshippers in this small rural church. It was an ordinary parish Eucharist, but there were some special moments that enabled the couples and the regular worshippers to feel connected to the place, to each other and to the importance of weddings ministry. These ideas are shared here, so that any parish can use them in a service to celebrate their wedding ministry, whether with three couples or 30! FAMILY-FRIENDLY PRAYERSThe prayers were written to focus on family life and relationships. A simple way to do this is to invite everyone to imagine – or draw on their hand – a series of circles. Then use the following as a suggestion for themes in each section:
COMMUNIONInvite everyone to come forward, and during communion, offer a blessing to each couple planning a wedding. DISMISSALWe know from being at national wedding fairs that couples really appreciate the prayers of their church and especially this prayer candle giveaway is received with heartfelt thanks. Consider buying a few of these, or make your own, for the following:-
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