A wedding vow renewal ceremony or wedding vow reaffirmation ceremony is a

ceremony A ceremony (, ) is a unified ritualistic event with a purpose, usually consisting of a number of artistic components, performed on a special occasion. The word may be of Etruscan origin, via the Latin '' caerimonia''. Church and civil (secular) ...

in which a married couple renew or reaffirm their

marriage vows Marriage vows are promises each partner in a couple makes to the other during a wedding ceremony based upon Western Christian norms. They are not universal to marriage and not necessary in most legal jurisdictions. They are not even universal w ...

. Most ceremonies take place in churches and are seen as a way for a

married couple Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between ...

to renew their commitment to each other and demonstrate that the vows they took are still considered sacred; most

Christian denominations Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

, such as the

Lutheran Church Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...

es,

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

Methodist Church Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related Christian denomination, denominations of Protestantism, Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John W ...

es, and

Anglican Church Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of the ...

es offer services for a reaffirmation of marriage.

Popularity

The ceremonies have been popular in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

for decades, and have existed in

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

since the 1950s, but only became popular there after the 1970s. To some couples the ceremony offers the chance to celebrate the wedding they never had. Renewal ceremonies often take on the characteristics of the Western " lavish wedding", with couples often setting out guest books, buying new weddings bands, and hiring photographers.Otnes, C. and Pleck, E. H., ''Cinderella Dreams: The Allure of the Lavish Wedding'', 2003,

University of California Press The University of California Press, otherwise known as UC Press, is a publishing house associated with the University of California that engages in academic publishing. It was founded in 1893 to publish scholarly and scientific works by faculty ...

, page 254 Some of the reasons couples mention for holding a vow renewal include having passed through a difficult time in their relationship, celebrating a significant

anniversary An anniversary is the date on which an event took place or an institution was founded in a previous year, and may also refer to the commemoration or celebration of that event. The word was first used for Catholic feasts to commemorate saints ...

, or in order to have a religious ceremony if their original wedding had not been one. In the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

, the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...

offers a service called "thanksgiving for marriage" for the renewal of vows.

Register office A register office or The General Register Office, much more commonly but erroneously registry office (except in official use), is a British government office where births, deaths, marriages, civil partnership, stillbirths and adoptions in England, ...

s also offer ceremonies, conducted by registrars but with no legal status, for the renewal of vows.

Humanist celebrant A humanist celebrant or humanist officiant is a person who performs humanist celebrancy services, such as non-religious weddings, funerals, child namings, coming of age ceremonies and other rituals. Some humanist celebrants are accredited by huma ...

s also conduct large numbers of non-religious vow renewal ceremonies. Humanist ceremonies reports that these are often popular with couples who did not have the humanist non-religious ceremony they wanted the first time around.

Annual renewal

Some churches hold an annual renewal of vows for married couples who are members of that church, for example, on

Saint Valentine's Day Valentine's Day, also called Saint Valentine's Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine, is celebrated annually on February 14. It originated as a Christian feast day honoring one or two early Christian martyrs named Saint Valentine and, throu ...

. In 2007, the American city of

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

, planned a wedding vow renewal ceremony for 1,000 couples as a part of its 250th city anniversary celebration. In 2009

Miami University Miami University (informally Miami of Ohio or simply Miami) is a public research university in Oxford, Ohio. The university was founded in 1809, making it the second-oldest university in Ohio (behind Ohio University, founded in 1804) and the 10 ...

held a renewal ceremony for 1,087 couples, all of whom are alumni of the university. In 2016

Western Michigan University Western Michigan University (Western Michigan, Western or WMU) is a public research university in Kalamazoo, Michigan. It was initially established as Western State Normal School in 1903 by Governor Aaron T. Bliss for the training of teachers ...

held a ceremony for 1,201 couples.

References

External links

An Order for the Renewal of Wedding VowsA Guide to a Wedding Vow Renewal CeremonyReaffirmation of marriage vows during Sunday worshipRenewal of Wedding Vows and Blessing of Married Couples - Catholic ChurchRenewal of Marriage Vows and Affirmation of a Marriage - Evangelical Lutheran WorshipRenewal of Marriage Vows or On the Anniversary of a Marriage - Anglican Church of Canada
Wedding Marriage in Christianity {{tradition-stub