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Justice of the Peace/Officiator
The
Officiator or Justice of the Peace will be the key selections contributing to
the success of your wedding day.
He or she may be a cleric from a specific church or a Justice of the
Peace.
In
Massachusetts, a Justice of the Peace is appointed by the governor and given
authorization to perform ceremonies only within the Commonwealth.
Your
JP or Officiate should be selected on the basis on you feeling comfortable
with him or her and that your conversations are mutually satisfactory.
Your Cleric or JP should provide you with a feeling of confidence, both
toward him or her, personally, as well as instilling the feeling that he or
she will make a good Wedding Guide and Leader.
Your
Justice of the Peace or Cleric should determine the flow of your ceremony and
should attend your rehearsal.
Any special music or readings, as well as the roles of the members of
your wedding party, should be discussed with him or her. You should discuss
with your JP or Officiates fees and weather he or she will require a deposit.
It is your
wedding day and the JP or Officiates responsibility is to provide you with a
ceremony in keeping with your wishes: the ceremony should be tailored to fit
the two of you as a couple.
Everything that is recommended should be in keeping with providing you
with something very special on your “Special Day.”
Choosing Your Wedding Vows
Thinking about writing your own wedding vows? If so, you’re not alone.
Millions of couples are bypassing traditional ceremonies in favor of
something that’s more personal – and that’s great! But problems arise when
couples aren’t clear with each other about the style of vows they want. What
mood do you want to convey? Light-hearted and cute? Short and sweet? Witty?
Sentimental? There are almost as many styles of vows as there are vows
themselves. Here’s a quick guide to a few of the more popular styles to help
you choose the one that best suits you and your spouse-to-be.
Traditional
Yes,
you can still be “traditional” even if you aren’t sticking to the prepared
wedding vow script. If you are aiming to be very traditional, all you need
to do to prepare is to look up a traditional wedding vow, such as those that
begin with phrases such as, “In the name of God,” or “From this moment, I
(name) promise to take you (name), to be my wife/husband…” and so on and so
forth. Once you find a traditional vow you like, rewrite it to fit your own
personal feelings towards your partner.
Sentimental
If
you wish to write a romantic wedding vow, and you are not endowed with the
gift of poetry, you can look into reading some famous love poetry – for
example, sonnets by Shakespeare -- and see if you can use one of their ideas
as a way to express your feelings about your partner. You may even wish to
quote the poet directly, by referring to lines in their poem. You can also
think about the love songs that you will be using during your special day,
and see if the lyrics of these songs can help you to express the way you
feel.
Lighthearted and cute
If
being lighthearted and cute sounds fitting, you can go about implementing
this style in your wedding vows by first thinking of all the fond memories
you shared with your partner that really made you smile and brought you
closer together. Write down each one of these memories and choose the one
that you believe to be the most suited and tasteful for your wedding. This
style is an excellent way of expressing how much you loved your partner
before, and how much more you love them now.
Witty
If
you have a sharp sense of wit, it could be one of the many characteristics
that your partner loves about you so much. Use your sense of wit to your
advantage by using tasteful humor to spice up a wedding vow by making it
romantically playful. However, as a strong word of caution, if you’ve
noticed no one seems to laugh at your jokes, or you can never seem to get
the punch-line of a joke, you may want to fess up to your lack of wit and
choose another style for your wedding vows. You may also want to take into
account that your sense of wit may be something your partner tolerates with
good humor, while others may not be so kind.
Simple
Sometimes having a simple style is the best way to go. A simple wedding vow
is composed of a few words that come straight from your heart. You don’t
need to serenade your partner with a self-composed sonnet. A simple “I love
you” and “I’m glad to be sharing my life with you,” along with a few extra
heart-felt words can be perfect.
Short and Sweet
Short
and sweet vows are very much like the simple wedding vow, except that a
short and sweet vow is limited in words, and the words used are often much
more concise and straight to the point. Poetry may help you to get an idea
of how to express your vows in this manner. However, be mindful of vows that
are too short and sweet. You may also discover that although your vow is
short, it might be lacking in the sweet department. The last thing you want
to do is prepare a short vow that sounds emotionless. Once you have
completed these seven steps, you will be ready to start writing your vows.
Remember, you don’t have to be Shakespeare to write a vow that will touch
the heart of your partner. A wedding vow comes from the heart. Regardless of
how long you decide to make it, it is a personal expression and promise that
accentuates the love you have
for your
spouse-to-be. |
