Flynn and Paula Service Sheet Second Draft

A Celebration of the Marriage of

Flynn Gabriel Dennison and Paula Yasmine Bagley

The Parish Church of St. Mary the Virgin, Rolvenden Thursday 31st July 2025 12 noon

The Arrival of the Bride High School Lover

Air

Introduction Flynn and Paula have come together today, surrounded by those who care for them, to ask for God’s blessing upon the love they have for each other. We continue with a prayer.

God of love, we thank you for the gift of marriage and for the joys it brings. Bless us as we share in this wedding. We thank you for the love which has brought Flynn and Paula to each other and for their desire to share that love for the rest of their lives.

All: Amen.

Hymn Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart, be all else but naught to me, save that thou art; be thou my best thought in the day and the night, both waking and sleeping, thy presence my light.

Be thou my wisdom, be thou my true word, be thou ever with me, and I with thee, Lord; be thou my great Father, and I thy true son; be thou in me dwelling, and I with thee one.

Be thou my breastplate, my sword for the fight; be thou my whole armour, be thou my true might; be thou my soul's shelter, be thou my strong tower: O raise thou me heavenward, great Power of my power.

Riches I heed not, nor man's empty praise: be thou mine inheritance now and always; be thou and thou only the first in my heart; O Sovereign of heaven, my treasure thou art.

High King of heaven, thou heaven's bright Sun, O grant me its joys after victory is won; great Heart of my own heart, whatever befall, still be thou my vision, O Ruler of all. th Irish, 8 century Slane AM 595

Preface We have come together to witness the promises of Flynn and Paula in marriage; to share with them in their happiness and in their hopes for the future.

Marriage involves caring and giving. It involves learning to share one’s life with another person, forgiving as Christ forgives; enjoying the love and meaning which can be found together. It involves facing together whatever adversity may arise. Here before God, Flynn and Paula wish to pledge their love for each other and their desire to spend their lives together. Flynn and Paula, we rejoice with you; we are glad to join with you in the celebration of your marriage, to witness your vows, to pray with you and to wish you joy in your life together.

Declarations First, I am required to ask anyone present who knows a reason why Flynn and Paula may not lawfully marry, to declare it now.

Flynn and Paula, the vows you are about to take are to be made in the presence of God, who is judge of all and knows all the secrets of our hearts; therefore if either of you knows a reason why you may not lawfully marry, you must declare it now.

Flynn, will you take Paula to be your wife? Will you love her, comfort her, honour and protect her, and, forsaking all others, be faithful to her as long as you both shall live?

Flynn: I will.

Paula, will you take Flynn to be your husband? Will you love him, comfort him, honour and protect him, and, forsaking all others, be faithful to him as long as you both shall live?

Paula: I will.

The lighting of the Candles Two candles will now be lit by Germania and Flik. The candles will burn throughout the rest of our celebration today. They are symbols of the past, of all that has brought Flynn and Paula to this moment in their lives, of all the years that have shaped this day.

Two candles are now lit

The minister says Will you, the families and friends of Flynn and Paula, support and uphold them in their marriage now and in the years to come?

All: We will!

Collect God our Creator be with us now as we celebrate the marriage of Flynn and Paula. Give them your blessing. Grant them happiness and long life together and help us to support them with our love.

All: Amen.

Reading 1 Corinthians: 13 Read by Richard Coleman If I speak in the tongues of mortals and of angels, but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give away all my possessions, and if I hand over my body so that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.

Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Love never ends. But as for prophecies, they will come to an end; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will come to an end. For we know only in part, and we prophesy only in part; but when the complete comes, the partial will come to an end. When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child; when I became an adult, I put an end to childish ways. For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then we will see face to face. Now I know only in part; then I will know fully, even as I have been fully known. And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love.

Sermon

The Marriage Who gives Paula to be married to Flynn?

Flynn and Paula, I now invite you to join hands and make your vows, in the presence of God and his people.

I, Flynn, take you, Paula, to be my 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 us do part; according to God’s holy law. All this I vow before God. I, Paula, take you, Flynn, to be my husband, 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 us do part; according to God’s holy law. All this I vow before God.

The Rings Heavenly Father, by your blessing, let these rings be to Flynn and Paula a symbol of unending love and faithfulness, to remind them of the vow and covenant which they have made this day; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

All: Amen.

Paula, I give you this ring as a sign of our marriage. With my body I honour you, all that I am I give to you, and all that I have I share with you, within the love of God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Flynn, I give you this ring as a sign of our marriage. With my body I honour you, all that I am I give to you, and all that I have I share with you, within the love of God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

In the presence of God, and before this congregation, Flynn and Paula have given their consent and made their marriage vows to each other.

They have declared their marriage by the joining of hands and by the giving and receiving of rings. I therefore proclaim that they are husband and wife.

Those whom God has joined together let no one put asunder.

Blessing of the Marriage

Eternal God, you create us out of love that we should love you and one another. Bless Flynn and Paula, made in your image, who today become a sign of your faithful love to us in Christ our Lord.

All: Amen.

All praise and blessing to you, God of love, creator of the universe, maker of man and woman in your likeness, source of blessing for married life. All praise to you, for you have created courtship and marriage, joy and gladness, feasting and laughter, pleasure and delight. May your blessing come in full upon Flynn and Paula. May they know your presence in their joys and in their sorrows. May they travel through life in the company of friends and come at last to your eternal kingdom, through Jesus Christ our Lord.

All: Amen.

Lighting of the Marriage Candle Earlier, Germany and Flik lit two candles, symbols of the past. Flynn and Paula will now light their marriage candle. The marriage candle will burn alongside the others, as a symbol of hope and of the future. The candle will then be blessed and, at the end of the service, given to Flynn and Paula for them to keep safely and to light on the wedding anniversary each year.

Flynn and Paula, the flame of your love now burns as one. May it burn for ever, warming your hearts, lightening your path and leading you together towards the one Eternal Light.

God our Father, your Son Jesus Christ is the Light of the World. Bless this candle, that it may be to Flynn and Paula a sign of your love and presence, and a reminder of our love and prayers.

All: Amen.

Prayers During the prayers this response is used

All

Lord, hear us: Lord, graciously hear us.

The Lord’s Prayer We pray together Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name; thy kingdom come; thy will be done; on earth as it is in heaven. Give

us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.

Hymn I vow to thee, my country, all earthly things above, entire and whole and perfect, the service of my love: the love that asks no question, the love that stands the test, that lays upon the altar the dearest and the best; the love that never falters, the love that pays the price, the love that makes undaunted the final sacrifice.

And there's another country I've heard of long ago, most dear to them that love her, most great to them that know; we may not count her armies, we may not see her King; her fortress is a faithful heart, her pride is suffering; and soul by soul and silently her shining bounds increase, and her ways are ways of gentleness and all her paths are peace.

Blessing of the Congregation God the Holy Trinity make you strong in faith and love, defend you on every side, and guide you in truth and peace. And the blessing of God almighty, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, be among you and remain with you, now and always.

All: Amen.

The Signing of the Marriage Document During this part of the service, Blanca Mateo will play

The Exit of the Bride and Groom Wedding March Mendelsohn