Getty Meghan Markle and Prince Harry attend the Women's Empowerment reception hosted by Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson during the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting at the Royal Aeronautical Society on April 19, 2018 in London, England.
When Harry and Meghan say their wedding vows to each other, one word will be absent: Obey. By jettisoning the troubling pledge, Meghan Markle is ensuring that she has a modern wedding.
That revelation emerged as the Royal Family released the Order of Service for the Royal Wedding a few hours before it was to take place. The Royal Wedding order of service provides every detail about the service, from the vows that will be read to the musical selections that will be sung to the order in which attendees will enter St. George’s Chapel.
You can read the Order of Service here:
Kensington Palace announced, “The Official Order of Service for the Wedding of Prince Harry and Ms. Meghan Markle has been made available for the public to download for free from 0001hrs Saturday 19th May. The Order of Service includes full details about the processions, music, hymns, prayers and readings. The Service is from Common Worship.” The order of service still lists Meghan’s dad, Tom Markle, as walking her down the aisle, even though he backed out after a photo staging scandal and heart surgery. Prince Charles will now take his place.
Now, back to those vows.
Meghan Will Not Promise to ‘Obey’ Prince Harry
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The Order of Service reveals that Meghan will not be asked whether she promises to obey Prince Harry, removing that word from the wedding vows. “MEGHAN, will you take HARRY 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?” she will be asked. Daily Mail reported, “The Duchess of Cambridge did not promise to ‘obey’ Prince William in 2011, and neither did Harry’s mother the Princess of Wales in 1981 when she married the Prince of Wales.”
Harry will be asked: “HARRY, will you take MEGHAN 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?”
Harry will also say: “I, HARRY, take you, MEGHAN, 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. In the presence of God I make this vow.”
Meghan will also say: “I MEGHAN, take you, HARRY, 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. In the presence of God I make this vow.”
They will hold hands and face each other as they say this.
When Harry gives Meghan the ring, he will say, “MEGHAN, 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.”
When Meghan gives Harry the ring, she will say, “HARRY, 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.”
A Choir Will Sing ‘Stand By Me’
One moving moment at the Royal Wedding is sure to be when a choir sings the son, Stand By Me. These are the words of Stand By Me:
“WHEN the night has come,
And the land is dark,
And the moon is the only light we see.
No, I won’t be afraid.
Oh, I won’t be afraid,
Just as long as you stand, stand by me.
So darling, darling, stand by me,
Oh, stand by me.
Oh stand, stand by me. Stand by me.
If the sky that we look upon,
Should tumble and fall,
Or the mountain should crumble to the sea.
I won’t cry, I won’t cry.
No, I won’t shed a tear.
Just as long as you stand, stand by me,
Darling, darling, stand by me…
Whenever you’re in trouble,
Won’t you stand by me, oh stand by me.
Oh stand, stand by me. Stand by me.”