Drawing on the author's experience designing and performing wedding celebrations, "I Do" is a creative, accessible guide that helps couples devise a ritual that is as unique as they are.

The first comprehensive wedding guide specifically for the Jewish/Christian couple who wants to honor both religious traditions in their service, vows, and readings. Saying "I do" is one of the happiest moments in a couple's life together--but planning that trip to the altar can be a stressful ordeal. The minute an engagement is announced two full clans want to celebrate the union their way! When one of those families is Jewish (50 percent of whom now marry outside their faith) and the other is Christian, the religious details can increase the pressure on the bride- and groom-to-be. Celebrating Interfaith Marriages provides all of the expert advice on how to combine elements of the two faiths so everyone can rejoice with the bride and groom on their wedding day. Devon Lerner draws from her twenty years of officiating interfaith weddings as she discusses the significance of vows and traditions unique to both faiths and suggests how to incorporate them into a service that is balanced and beautiful. She provides Christian and Jewish services readers can mix and match, as well as custom-bled ceremonies contributed by couples who have worked with her over the years. There's a chapter on how to avoid crashes on issues like location, when the ceremony takes place, and whether the bride and groom should see each other before meeting at the altar. A full section of readings, both biblical and secular, are here too, as well as anecdotes that will reassure and amuse. No interfaith couple will want to be without this essential handbook when they plan their special day.

Steven Farmer is a best selling author, teacher, shamanic practitioner, and Soul Healer. Sacred Ceremony gives you clear and simple guidelines for designing and performing ceremonies for any purpose—from healing emotional or physical wounds to honoring important life passages and celebrating seasonal cycles. Whatever your spiritual background or experience with ceremonies, this is a book you’ll want to refer to again and again! "Sacred Ceremony is the most through, thoughtful, and accesible book on ritual ceremony that exists today. It is a treaure that can help you connect to the Source of Life, renew in times of transition, find healing and guidance, celebrate the cycles of life, and maintain a vibrant cnnection to the Sacred every day. Thank you, Steven, for compiling such a meaningful and practical guide." - Joan Borysenko, PhD.

Gravitas and fun get married within these pages, and we're all invited Certified lifecycle celebrant Christopher Shelley is on a mission to revolutionize the wedding ceremony—or at least to make it as enjoyable as the reception. In Best. Ceremony. Ever., he will forever alter the way couples and wedding pros think about tying the knot. Shelley, who has officiated hundreds of weddings, walks couples and officiants through working together, from setting the atmosphere to telling an unforgettable love story. He shares questions for the couple to ask themselves before meeting with their officiant, and offers a wedding vow workshop and complete sample ceremonies. Shelley cares about the guests as much as the couple getting married, and his friendly, entertaining guide is a treasure chest of ideas to make guests laugh, cry, and then laugh at how much they’re crying. From announcing the wedding (insert cliff-hanger) to selecting venues (consider breweries!) to choreographing processionals (dance party!) to explosive recessionals (balloon drop!), opportunities to surprise guests abound.

Sandra Ingerman We perform ceremonies to mark important events and celebrate holidays—yet our modern approach to ceremony only scratches the surface of its true potential. With The Book of Ceremony, shamanic teacher Sandra Ingerman presents a rich and practical resource for creating ceremonies filled with joy, purpose, and magic. “We are hungry to connect with more than what we experience with our ordinary senses in the material world,” writes Sandra. “By performing ceremonies, you will find yourself stepping into a beautiful and creative power you might never have imagined.” Weaving shamanic teachings together with stories, examples, and guiding insights, The Book of Ceremony explores: • The elements of a powerful ceremony—including setting strong intentions, choosing your space, preparing ceremonial items, and dealing gracefully with the unexpected • Stepping into the sacred—key practices for leaving behind your everyday concerns and creating a space where magic can happen • Guidance for working alone, in community, and across distances with virtual ceremonies • Invoking spiritual allies—the power of working with the elements, the natural world, ancestor spirits, and the creative energy of the divine • Sacred transitions—including ceremonies for weddings, births, rites of passage to adulthood, funerals, honorable closure, and new beginnings • Ceremonies for energetic balance—healing and blessing, resolving sacred contracts, getting rid of limiting beliefs, creating Prayer Trees, and more • Life as a ceremony—how to infuse your entire life with ceremonial practice, from planting a garden or to revitalizing your home or office to helping heal our planet The Book of Ceremony is more than a “how-to” guide—it will inspire you to create original ceremonies tailored to your own needs and the needs of your community. When you invoke the sacred power of ceremony, you tap into one of the oldest and most effective tools for transforming both yourself and the world. As Sandra writes, “If you perform one powerful and successful ceremony for yourself, the principle of oneness ensures that all of life heals and evolves.”

When planning an outdoor wedding, rehearsal dinner or reception, you want the garden that surrounds this important occasion to be absolutely beautiful. No matter what the lead-time or budget, A Garden Wedding explains how to create a festive and flower-filled landscape that is the perfect setting for your special day. From advise about practicalities such as assessing the site and dealing with mosquitoes to suggestions about filling empty beds or hiding eyesores, this book is useful for plant lovers and non-gardeners alike. This black and white illustrated book is filled with creative ideas, practical advice and helpful checklists. C.L. Fornari has written a guide that is a must-read for anyone who is considering a garden wedding.