Wedding Vows & Ceremony Discussions

This might be a stupid question, but..

First, a little background. I'm Catholic my fiance is not. We are not having a Catholic service. So, the officiant that we chose sent us a sample ceremony for us to make edits on and change the ceremony sounds the way that it want it to. 
I'm thinking about replacing the 1 Corinthians verse with a reading from the Book of Sirach. 
"A loving partner is a safe shelter. 
Whoever finds one has found a rare treasure.
A loving partner is something beyond price. 
There is no measureing their worth. 
A loving partner is a lifesaving remedy and those who love, for as a person is, so is their loved one. 
This is the word of the Lord. Thanks be to God. 

My question: Is it okay to use this in place of Corinthians even though we are not having a Catholic cermeony? 
THANK YOU!


Re: This might be a stupid question, but..

  • edited April 2013
    Just take out the last line about lord and god- that's what I would do. We are same boat as you- non-religious ceremony and any mentions of god or lord or anything like that we are just removing.

    BTW, the only stupid question is the one not asked. :)
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  • You can use any ceremony reading you want. I would just remove "This is the Word of The Lord. Thanks be to God" since that is the way Catholics end their Bible readings. I would find it very strange at a nonCatholic ceremony.
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  • Your officiant is the one you should be asking. But I'm sure he/she will be fine with that.
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  • Based on what pp said, the ending is what Catholics say. If your Fi isn't Catholic, then is he okay with that last ending part?
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  • In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_ceremony-ideas_this-might-be-a-stupid-question-but?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:10Discussion:e84eda75-27d4-4cda-8096-7c68c62b7b0aPost:316e032d-f3c6-4680-9850-366e080b43b4">Re:This might be a stupid question, but..</a>:
    [QUOTE]Based on what pp said, the ending is what Catholics say. If your Fi isn't Catholic, then is he okay with that last ending part?
    Posted by Simply Fated[/QUOTE]

    Is it just a Catholic thing?
    Is your fiance religious at all? If so, I think it applies too. Same Bible right?
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    You'll never be subject to a cash bar, gap, potluck wedding, or b-list if you marry a Muppet Overlord.

  • That is a nice reading! I would definitely ask your officiant...to confuse things more, my Protestant church ends its readings that way sometimes, but not every time. Specifics about the ending aside, I'm sure your officiant would be flexible about swapping the readings.
  • In Response to Re:This might be a stupid question, but..:[QUOTE]In Response to Re:This might be a stupid question, but..:Based on what pp said, the ending is what Catholics say. If your Fi isn't Catholic, then is he okay with that last ending part?Posted by Simply FatedIs it just a Catholic thing?Is your fiance religious at all? If so, I think it applies too. Same Bible right? Posted by MuppetFan[/QUOTE]
    I have no idea if it's just a Catholic thing. I was basing it off of what pp said lol.
    If Fi isn't religious at all I'd def skip the last line.
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  • As a Catholic attending your ceremony, I would probably call back the response out of habit, but think later that it was odd that it was done since the ceremony itself was not Catholic. 

    Also, is the Book where the reading comes from in the Bible?  If it is not, then I would shy away from using the call and response entirely since it's not the "Word of the Lord", since its not found in the Bible. 

    And think about how Catholic-y your ceremony is going to be.  Will you offend any Catholics attending your ceremony by adding in Catholic traditions or rituals?  It is fine to not be married in the Church if you are not practicing, but it can be seen as disrespectful to anyone who still practices when they see "Church" things done outside of the Church.

    Lastly, you say that you are Catholic, I just want to make sure you are aware that your marriage will not be considered valid in the eyes of the Church.  And with that, it means you are out of favor with the Church and are unable to receive Communion or Penance until your marriage becomes valid.  Many Catholics don't realize this, unfortunately.  If you have any questions about this, I would recommend going over to the Catholic board here on TK and ask those ladies.  They are very knowledgeable about the Church's doctrine.
  • Just to clarify, the book of Sirach IS in the Catholic canon.  So to Catholics, it is the word of the Lord.

    However, I don't know what you, your fiance, or your officiant believe.  You'll need to work that out.

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  • Thanks Monkey!  It wasn't a book I was familiar with!
  • In Response to This might be a stupid question, but..:
    I love that reading as well, but I am having so much trouble finding the exact chapter and verse numbers of it...do you happen to know them?  Thanks so much!
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