What is Homily in a Wedding Ceremony?

The sermon delivered during a wedding ceremony plays a crucial role in the event. This is usually a discourse presented by the priest or the officiant overseeing the wedding to the couple who has just been married. For those curious about the wedding sermon and seeking to understand its significance in a wedding ceremony, continue reading this article.

In the below part of the article, we will discuss a bit more about what is it. Along with that, we will let you know how to prepare this. Moreover, we will discuss what you should consider while writing a wedding homily. To know about all these things, keep reading the article with proper attention.

What is Homily in a Wedding Ceremony?

The homily wedding is nothing but a speech given by the officiant of the wedding. Sometimes, it is also known as the ceremony sermons. Apart from the priest or the officiant, the wedding ceremony sermon or homily, whatever you can call this, can also be handled by the officiant of the marriage. Most of the time, the homily consists of religious and non-religious things.

The homily might include Jesus teaching for the wedding. Moreover, it can include the bible teaching on weddings. The main purpose of the wedding sermon or homily is to give an exhortation to the couple. This is to ask them to take the marriage seriously and be committed to each other for the rest of the life. Apart from the biblical reading, the homily might also include the personal experience and teaching of the priest or officiant.

The Usual Outline of the Wedding Homily

As we said above, the homily in a wedding ceremony usually consists of the religious and non-religious guide for the wedding. The interesting fact is there are no strict rules about the structure of the wedding ceremony homily. It can even don’t include any religious teaching or can be completely opposite. However, the widely practiced outline of the wedding homily is common most of the time.

Proceedings of Wedding Ceremony with Homily

Below, we will let you know about some common parts of the wedding homily outline.

  1. Usually the wedding ceremony homily begin with a welcome. The minister, priest, or the officiant wecomes the people who join the wedding. The welcome is usually small and it don’t include much words.
  2. Then the officiant / minister asks who gives the bride to be married with the groom. The person is usually the father of the bride. He responds when the officiant ask this question.
  3. After the above things, the wedding minister or officiant says some prayer. The prayers are mostly for the couple. However, they often also pray for the marriage ceremony as well as the other who joins the ceremony.
  4. Well, that is the main part of the wedding ceremony and it is known as the homily or the sermon. The sermon or homily, whatever you call it, will related to the religious verses from bible. They are usually related to marriage. Sometimes, they might aslo offer some talks or personal experience on marriage.
  5. The next thing that happens in the wedding ceremony is the exchange of the ring. It usually happens when the above part of the ceremony is complete. The couple will exchange the ring in this moment which was bought to them by the ring bearer.
  6. Then comes the pronouncement period. Once they exchange the ring, the officiant or minister of the marriage will pronunce that they are officially married. Sometimes, he will also reintroduce the couples to the guests who are present at the wedding.

How to Write the Wedding Sermon or Homily

There are several things you can include in the wedding sermon or homily which will be presented on the wedding day. Here are some things that you can consider adding to the homily while preparing it.

Couple’s Story

One thing you can consider adding to the sermon is the story of the couple. You might try to know the story of the couple and reflect it on the wedding sermon. Moreover, try to know whether it is their first marriage, or whether they have gone through divorce or widows or such other things in the past life. Adding these contexts in the wedding homily will help you to bring a meaningful message for the couple as well as for the guests.

Be Aware of the Message

One of the necessary things to consider while writing a wedding homily is the message in it. You will want to include a  specific message that the couple will need to make the wedding successful. Once you are sharing a specific message this will help the couple to remember it better. There are a lot of things out there which you can select for focusing on.

As an example, you can consider talking about the commitment between the couples. You can let them know what is the duty of the wife for his husband and what is the duty of the husband for his groom. Furthermore, you can discuss something like unconditional love, devotion, and related things.  

Tell a Love Story

It is easier to get the attention of more people when you share a story. In an event like a wedding, you can share a love story and then bring out a message from the story. This way you can provide the message you want to share more effectively with the bride, groom, and the guests.

As we said above, you can share your very own personal story. Moreover, you can also share the story of the new couple. Remember that the story is the not main focus here. We will need to share the message and insight through the story.

Conclusion

A wedding is one of the most important days of the bride and groom. As the officiant or the minister of the marriage ceremony, it is your duty to share something meaningful and insightful when it comes to sermons. We hope you will find the above information about the sermon or homily helpful.

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