“To have and to hold from this day forward.”
Just when did the wedding vows start and how have they changed through out the years?
Vows got an early start in history, dating all the way back to the Roman Empire (17BC-476AD). But these vows were as simple as they came. During this time, the lower class had “free marriages”. Two people wanted to get married, so the father of the bride would walk his daughter over to the grooms house, and in front of just a few people the two people would agree to be wed, and keep a vow of marriage by mutual consent, and that would be it. You were married.
Then you jump to medieval England to the Sarum ritual. This was a process followed for celebrating any kind of Christian public worship, including marriage. It was a manual written by the dioceses of Salsbury & York. This manual became the book of common prayer in 1549, the original wedding vows used in most Anglican church vows. However, back then it was only the bride that would say the vows to obey, the groom only stated that he would love and honor his wife. Fast forward to 1753, when the very first Marriage Act was written. This allowed each religious group to write their own vows pertaining to how they worshiped.
Nowadays we can write our own wedding vows, create our own wedding ceremony, complete with planting a tree or mixing sand in a jar or even come up with a marriage mission statement. The possibilities are endless when it comes to your wedding ceremony. If you choose the daunting task of writing your own vows, there are countless “how to” guides all across the internet. You can stick to sweet traditional vows (great ideas on The Knot) or you could go more unique and fun (check out Offbeat Bride) If this seems overwhelming to you and your partner, you could always pay someone else to write them for you. Again, there are many companies out there to assist you in this process. The price for someone else to write your vows can range from $150.00-2,000.00. Each company we researched offers a wide variety of options, and will personalize a package just for you.
In closing, if you want your vows to have a personal touch, but writing your own personal vows just isn’t something you can do, our advice is to sit and talk with your paster, officiant, minister or priest and ask them to help personalize the traditional vows available.
Check out Rev. Deborah at Goddess Wedding Ceremonies