How to Remember a Loved One During your Wedding Ceremony

You wedding ceremony is all about love, family, and friends. Unfortunately, most brides and grooms all share the loss of a dear family member or friend. While the deceased obviously cannot be physically present at your special occasion, there are many ways to include them in your ceremony so they can be there in spirit and soul.

My brides and grooms often ask me if it’s appropriate to pay tribute to a parted loved one during a wedding ceremony. I say it’s perfectly suitable if that’s what’s in your heart and has special meaning for you.

I’ve included a number of different ways to remember the deceased in my ceremonies. The one I’ve done most often is the remembrance ritual. I usually include it right after the introduction. At my most recent ceremony, I included one that went something like this:

“It has been said that through others, we are somebody. Through marriage, we broaden our circle of family and friends and recall those who gave us life. It is in this spirit of remembrance that our honored couple would like to pay a special tribute to important people in their lives who have recently departed our world. [He/Groom] knows that [his mother], is with us in spirit today. [She] was [Groom’s] hero and he misses her deeply. Also recently passing was [Bride’s grandmother], whose support to [Bride] was never ending.”

Another time, a memorial candle was lit by the bride and groom. The candle was placed on a second table near the front side of the altar. A small rose was also placed on the table with a picture of the groom’s father. As the candle was lit, the groom’s sister offered a special reading on the meaning of fathers.

Another way I’ve honored a departed was to say a short prayer or ask for a short moment of silence in reverence of the departed.

However you choose to remember your special person, it’s a lovely way to pay tribute to those important people in your lives who are not longer with us.