Ceremony programs have many uses. They are an outline of your wedding ceremony so your guests can follow along, but you can also inform your guests of the names of your bridal party, musicians, officiant and so forth. Wedding traditions can be explained, or you can have a special prayer or song lyrics printed so your guests can take part in your ceremony.
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Ceremony programs are used during a wedding ceremony to show the sequence of events, and let your guests know the names of your attendants, the officiant, the musicians, etc. Sometimes they also explain a tradition or give information about some aspect of your ceremony.
The program sheets can be ordered to match your wedding stationary, but many churches supply them as part of the cost of renting the ceremony site. Some houses of worship have requirements as to the design of the program—wanting something that reflects the beliefs of the religious organization. Be sure to ask at your officiant if there are any requirements before you order your ceremony programs.
No matter what style of blank program you order, your house of worship will most likely have the means to print them for you. If not, once you have your ceremony program typed out, you just need to photocopy it onto the blank side of the program paper you are using.
The groomsmen or ushers at your wedding ceremony usually hand out ceremony programs, as the guests are being seated.
We will get into the details of the program in the Ceremony and Vows module, which is coming up soon.