Here is a list of some of our favorite ceremony readings, some traditional and some not-so-much.

• 1 Corinthians 13
  If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing.
  Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
• Traditional Irish Blessing
  May the raindrops fall lightly on your brow
  May the soft winds freshen your spirit
  May the sunshine brighten your heart
  May the burdens of the day rest lightly upon you
  And may God enfold you in the mantle of His love.
  May the road rise to meet you
  May the wind be always at your back
  May the sun shine warm upon your face
  and the rain fall soft upon your fields
  And until we meet again my friend
  May God hold you in the palm of his hand
  May God be with you and bless you
  May you see your children’s children
  May you be poor in misfortunes and rich in Blessings
  May you know nothing but happiness from this day forward
  May green be the grass you walk on
  May blue be the skies above you,
  And from this day forward.
  May the joys of today
  Be those of tomorrow.
• From “Union” by Robert Fulghum
  “You have known each other from the first glance of acquaintance to this point of commitment. At some point, you decided to marry. From that moment of yes to this moment of yes, indeed, you have been making promises and agreements in an informal way. All those conversations that were held riding in a car or over a meal or during long walks – all those sentences that began with “When we’re married” and continued with “I will and you will and we will”- those late night talks that included “someday” and “somehow” and “maybe”- and all those promises that are unspoken matters of the heart. All these common things, and more, are the real process of a wedding. The symbolic vows that you are about to make are a way of saying to one another, “ You know all those things we’ve promised and hoped and dreamed- well, I meant it all, every word.” Look at one another and remember this moment in time. Before this moment you have been many things to one another- acquaintance, friend, companion, lover, dancing partner, and even teacher, for you have learned much from one another in these last few years. Now you shall say a few words that take you across a threshold of life, and things will never quite be the same between you. For after these vows, you shall say to the world, this- is my husband, this- is my wife ”
• 1 John 4
  How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! Love one another. This is the message you heard from the beginning: We should love one another. This is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us. Those who obey his commands live in him, and he in them. And this is how we know that he lives in us: We know it by the Spirit he gave us.Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love, does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.

  God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. In this way, love is made complete among us. We love because he first loved us.

• A lovely Love Story by Edward Monkton
  The fierce Dinosaur was trapped inside his cage of ice. Although it was cold he was happy in there. It was, after all, his cage.Then along came the Lovely Other Dinosaur.
  The Lovely Other Dinosaur melted the Dinosaur’s cage with kind words and loving thoughts.

  I like this Dinosaur thought the Lovely Other Dinosaur.
  Although he is fierce he is also tender and he is funny.
  He is also quite clever though I will not tell him this for now.

  I like this Lovely Other Dinosaur, thought the Dinosaur. She is beautiful and she is different and she smells so nice.
  She is also a free spirit which is a quality I much admire in a dinosaur.

  But he can be so distant and so peculiar at times, thought the Lovely Other Dinosaur.
  He is also overly fond of things.
  Are all Dinosaurs so overly fond of things?

  But her mind skips from here to there so quickly thought the Dinosaur. She is also uncommonly keen on shopping.
  Are all Lovely Other Dinosaurs so uncommonly keen on shopping?

  I will forgive his peculiarity and his concern for things, thought the Lovely Other Dinosaur. For they are part of what makes him a richly charactered individual.

  I will forgive her skipping mind and her fondness for shopping, thought the Dinosaur. For she fills our life with beautiful thoughts and wonderful surprises. Besides, I am not unkeen on shopping either.

  Now the Dinosaur and the Lovely Other Dinosaur are old.
  Look at them.
  Together they stand on the hill telling each other stories and feeling the warmth of the sun on their backs.

  And that, my friends, is how it is with love.
  Let us all be Dinosaurs and Lovely Other Dinosaurs together.
  For the sun is warm.
  And the world is a beautiful place.

• What is Love by Unkown
  Sooner or later we begin to understand that love is more than verses on valentines and romance in the movies. We begin to know that love is here and now, real and true, the most important thing in our lives. For love is the creator of our favorite memories and the foundation of our fondest dreams. Love is a promise that is always kept, a fortune that can never be spent, a seed that can flourish in even the most unlikely of places. And this radiance that never fades, this mysterious and magical joy, is the greatest treasure of all – one known only by those who love.
• Ecclesiastes: 4:9-12
  Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow; but woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up. Again, if two lie together, they are warm; but how can one be warm alone? And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him.