6 ‘Giving Away’
This traditional ceremony is optional. Immediately before the couple exchange vows (
here here), the minister may ask:
Who brings this woman to be married to this man?
The bride’s father (or mother, or another member of her family or a friend representing the family) gives the bride’s right hand to the minister who puts it in the bridegroom’s right hand. Alternatively, after the bride and bridegroom have made their Declarations, the minister may ask the parents of bride and bridegroom in these or similar words:
N and N have declared their intention towards each other.
As their parents,
will you now entrust your son and daughter to one another as they come to be married?
Both sets of parents respond:
We will.