How to Craft the Perfect Christian Wedding Ceremony Script for Your Big Day

Planning a ceremony takes thoughtful care and craft to ensure the prayers, blessings and speeches accurately reflect your faith and relationship. While this can seem overwhelming, a solid Christian wedding ceremony script can serve as a special foundation, along with a Christian wedding ceremony outline.

As Rev. Orsella R. Hughes, an ordained officiant at Serenity Ceremonies and senior pastor at Saint Luke African Methodist Episcopal Church in New York City, explains, "A Christian wedding ceremony will include elements that reflect a couple's spiritual and religious life. When planning your ceremony, you will want to sit down with your officiant to determine if their beliefs are the same as yours so that your ceremony will reflect your vision for your big day."

With this in mind, it's important to remember that there is no one "right" way to officiate a Christian wedding ceremony. Some couples may prefer a modern Christian wedding ceremony script, while others lean toward a traditional Christian wedding ceremony script. Similarly, if it's an intimate wedding, a short Christian wedding ceremony script or a simple Christian wedding ceremony script may be best. Whatever option you choose, working closely with your officiant to ensure the ceremony aligns with your values and vision is essential. Moreover, South Florida-based Rev. Danny Prada explains, "Christianity is very diverse, and different traditions have different liturgies and prayers."

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Hughes says, "However you decide to add your Christian values to your ceremony, working with an ordained minister can guide you through the wording, placement, and the number of words of faith you want to be incorporated into your ceremony."

Need help finding a minister? Check out The Knot Vendor Marketplace, where you can search for officiants by location. After entering your parameters, you can filter results by "religious affiliations" and select "Christian."

Opening Prayer

Photo: Sera Petras Photography

As the title suggests, an opening prayer typically kicks off a Christian wedding ceremony. "I like to set a foundation for the principles of marriage and quote some portions from Genesis that talk about the creation of Heaven and the Earth, and then God [creating] man and later creating a partner that would be his equal and brought her to his side so he will have company and never be lonely," explains Frank Nuñez, a South Florida-based non-denominational minister. "Sometimes I quote the first miracle that Jesus performed at the wedding in Cana when he converted the water into wine." He then likes to include a prayer for the couple for "many years of peace, health, joy, happiness and prosperity."

Opening Prayer Wording Example

Gracious God, thank you for this day of love. We are gathered here under your mighty hand, which has guided our couple on their journey to marriage. Thank you for every guest that was picked by their hearts to witness their union. May this ceremony be a small reflection of the many blessings on the way for years to come, amen.

Prada, meanwhile, likes to read "a blessing from The Book of Numbers called the Aaronic blessing, which is a priestly blessing used to bless the people of ancient Israel and emphasizes God's favor, grace and peace." Taken from Numbers 6:24–26, it reads as such:

The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.

Scripture Readings

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"I love to include scriptures in the ceremony, and the bible is filled with inspiring words that are perfect for weddings," Hughes explains. "Sometimes," she says, "scriptures can be placed with another part of the ceremony, such as the exchange of rings or right before the vows." Alternatively, they can be used as a stand-alone part of the Christian wedding script.

Scripture Readings Wording Examples

According to Hughes, the most popular scripture is 1 Corinthians 13:4, a beautiful bible verse about love. "When we hear the words, 'love is patient, love is kind,' it reminds us how God is always patient and kind with us; therefore, our love in marriage should reflect how God treats us." The scripture reads:

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.

She is also quick to call out another favorite scripture, Ecclesiastes 4:9–12, which begins with "Two are better than one." Per the pro, this passage "talks about the strength and support that comes from a marriage." She adds, "When we believe that our spouse was connected to us by God, we believe that this is the person we are not only intended to be with but to overcome any obstacle in life." This scripture reads:

Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up. Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

Covenant Prayer

Hughes says a covenant prayer is a wedding blessing about a commitment or agreement between the couple and God. She goes on to explain that this is usually prayed after the couple has declared their promises to one another and has exchanged rings. (Speaking of the latter, we've got your ring exchange wording—which typically follows traditional wedding vows—covered.)

"This is usually prayed after the couple have declared their promises to one another and have exchanged their rings." She tells The Knot that her favorite placement for this prayer is "right before the pronouncement of the couple."

Covenant Prayer Wording Examples

Eternal God, creator and preserver of all people, giver of all spiritual grace, the author of everlasting life, send thy blessing upon this couple who we bless in thy name, that they may surely perform and keep the vow and covenant now between them made. Look graciously upon them that they may love, honor, and cherish each other, and so live together in faithfulness and patience, wisdom and true godliness, that their home may be a haven of blessing and a place of peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Holy Communion

Photo: Erin Wilson Photography and Films

Also known in the Catholic faith as the Eucharist, the holy communion should "only be conducted by an ordained minister from a denomination," Hughes says. In most cases, "both parties must have a connection to a church, and most times, the couple is typically required to have already been baptized." While the specific elements of this ceremony will ultimately depend on the couple's beliefs and traditions, bread and wine—which represent the body and blood of Jesus Christ—are central symbols.

Holy Communion Wording Examples

"The minister will use passages from the official liturgy to guide the ceremony's wording," Hughes explains. Couples can expect something along the following lines:

Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me – 1 Corinthians 11:24

Closing Prayer

While a closing prayer is not always necessary to include in a Christian marriage ceremony, it can absolutely be incorporated. The aptly named prayer is placed at the end of the ceremony and "can be a summary of the ceremony and include a charge to the couple to remember the promises they have made and to live out their marriage following the teachings of their faith," Hughes says.

Closing Prayer Wording Examples

Here is a closing prayer used by Hughes:

Gracious God, once again, we thank you for this couple, who have committed themselves to each other in holy matrimony. We ask for your blessings upon them as they embark on this new journey together. May they always remember the vows and covenant they have made before you and continue to love, honor, and cherish one another through all of life's ups and downs. May their home be filled with your love, peace and joy. Lord, we pray that you will guide them in their marriage, giving them wisdom [and] patience, in Jesus' name, amen.

Prada also shares an example of a final prayer, emphasizing blessings of peace, wisdom and divine guidance.

Heavenly Father, thank you for this beautiful couple. Grant them a life of peace, abundance and joy. Give them wisdom and guidance. Strengthen them in those moments when life gets tough. May they always remember that your presence is with them. May their love continue to flourish and grow. Protect these two and lead them according to your will. I bless them now in Jesus' name, amen.