Memorial ceremony

Usually reserved for the premium level wedding, this ceremony is a brief, yet meaningful, recognition that there are some people who would have been present and perhaps involved in the ceremony if they were still alive. A picture of the loved one is usually on a table off to one side, frequently with a candle in front of it. The words that I frequently use to bring this part of the ceremony into focus are along the order of, "There are some very special people who are not able to be with us today because they have already passed into eternity. They are (and then I name them, if appropriate). We light a candle in their honor and observe a moment of silence in their memory."

This part of the ceremony helps us to remember that each person has a family, as well as a personal, history, and has loved ones who would wish to be invited, if still alive. It also mystically welcomes them into the ceremony in a meaningful and sensitive way.