Each religious faith has wedding traditions and practices, including standard wedding vows, that have been passed down through generations. Whether or not you’re going to stick with tradition, the meaning behind these classic religious vows are romantic and a great starting point for writing your own or altering them to suit you. Look to these traditional wedding vows for inspiration as you craft your own.
1. Basic Protestant Vows
“I, ____ take ____ , to be my wedded husband/wife, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do us part, according to God’s holy ordinance; and thereto I pledge thee my faith [or] pledge myself to you.
2. Methodist Wedding Vows
These vows are a call and response. The only words a bride and groom have to remember to be wedded: “I do.”
Officiant: “Will you have this (woman/man) to be your (wife/husband), to live together in holy marriage? Will you love (her/him), comfort (her/him), honor, and keep (her/him) in sickness and in health, and forsaking all others, be faithful to (her/him) as long as you both shall live?”
Bride/Groom: “I do.”
3. Catholic Wedding Vows
“I, ____ , take you, ____ , for my lawful wife/husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and health, until death do us part.”
“I, ____ , take you, ____ , to be my husband/wife. I promise to be true to you in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health. I will love and honor you all the days of my life.”
4. Episcopal
“____, wilt thou have this woman/man to be thy wedded wife/husband to live together after God’s ordinance in the Holy Estate of matrimony? Wilt thou love her/him? Comfort her/him, honor and keep her/him, in sickness and in health, and forsaking all others keep thee only unto her/him as long as you both shall live?”
“In the name of God, I, ____ , take you, , to be my wife/husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and health, to love and to cherish, until we are parted by death. This is my solemn vow.”
5. Muslim Wedding Vows
Most Muslim couples do not recite vows, but rather heed the words of the imam (cleric), who speaks about the meaning of marriage and the couple’s responsibilities to each other and to Allah during the nikah, or marriage contract. At the end of this ritual, the couple consents to become husband and wife, and they are blessed by the congregation. However, some Muslim brides and grooms do recite vows — here is a common recitation:
Bride: “I, ____, offer you myself in marriage in accordance with the instructions of the Holy Quran and the Holy Prophet, peace and blessing be upon him. I pledge, in honesty and with sincerity, to be for you an obedient and faithful wife.”Groom: “I pledge, in honesty and sincerity, to be for you a faithful and helpful husband.”
6. Baptist Wedding Vows
There are two options for traditional Baptist vows. The first is a call and response from your officiant:
Officiant: “Will you, have ___ to be your (wife/husband)? Will you love (her/him), comfort and keep (her/him), and forsaking all others remain true to (her/him), as long as you both shall live?”
Bride/Groom: “I will.”
Your other option is a shorter version of vows—one line said by both partners:
I, ___, take thee, to be my (wife/husband), and before God and these witnesses I promise to be a faithful and true (husband/wife)
7. Buddhist Wedding Vows
In the Tibetan Buddhist tradition, the couple answers the first set of vows read by the officiant together. The vows are longer than in many other religions, but create a sense of companionship as the two respond in unison. Here’s an excerpt:
Officiant: ___ and ___ do you pledge to help each other to develop your hearts and minds, cultivating compassion, generosity, ethics, patience, enthusiasm, concentration, and wisdom as you age and undergo the various ups and downs of life and to transform them into the path of love, compassion, joy, and equanimity?
Bride/Groom: “We do.”
Officiant: Recognizing that the external conditions in life will not always be smooth and that internally your own minds and emotions will sometimes get stuck in negativity, do you pledge to see all these circumstances as a challenge to help you grow, to open your hearts, to accept yourselves, and each other; and to generate compassion for others who are suffering?
Bride/Groom: “We do.”
Officiant: Understanding that just as we are a mystery to ourselves, each other person is also a mystery to us, do you pledge to seek to understand yourselves, each other, and all living beings, to examine your own minds continually and to regard all the mysteries of life with curiosity and joy?
Bride/Groom: “We do.”
Officiant: Do you pledge to preserve and enrich your affection for each other, and to share it with all beings? To take the loving feelings you have for one another and your vision of each other’s potential and inner beauty as an example and rather than spiraling inwards and becoming self-absorbed, to radiate this love outwards to all beings?
Bride/Groom: “We do.”
8. Quaker
“In the presence of God and these our friends I take thee, __, to be my husband/wife, promising with Divine assistance to be unto thee a loving and faithful husband/wife so long as we both shall live.”
9. Native American Marriage Vows (Apache)
“Now you will feel no rain, for you will be shelter to each other. Now you will feel no cold, for each of you will be warmth to the other. Now there is no more loneliness, for each of you will be companion to the other. Now you are two bodies, but there is only one life before you. Soon you will go to your resting place, to enter into the days of your togetherness. May your days be good and long upon the earth.”
10. Non-Denominational Wedding Vows
In this beautiful set of wedding vows from a non-denominational ceremony, the couple conducts a knot tying unity ceremony (wherein they make a fishermen’s knot—the kind that grows stronger with pressure). Then, they vow to one another:
I, ____ , commit myself to you, , as (wife/husband) to learn and grow with, to explore and adventure with, to respect you in everything as an equal partner, in the foreknowledge of joy and pain, strength and weariness, direction and doubt, for all the risings and settings of the sun. We tie these knots to symbolize our connection to one another. They represent our trust in each other and our combined strength together.
Personal Wedding vows samples
Nowadays, many couples have chosen their personal vows instead of traditional vows. It would be funny stories between you both, or either emotional vows, etc. We are sharing some of the amazing personal vows, that our clients have done through out the years.
