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Photo of Marine praying with bride-to-be goes viral

A photo of Caleb and Maggie Earwood praying together before their wedding has gone viral. Source: Dwayne Schmidt Photography

A photo of a US Marine praying with his bride-to-be just before their wedding has gone viral after the lovely image was posted on Facebook.

Marine Corporal Caleb Earwood decided he wanted to pray with his bride Maggie before their ceremony in Asheville, North Carolina, on Saturday.

To avoid breaking the tradition of seeing each other before they reached the altar, the couple joined hand around the corner of the cabin where Maggie was getting ready.

"They hid me in a room and he stepped up on the stairwell and he stuck his hand out and I grabbed his hand," Mrs Earwood told ABC News today.

The couple prayed for their marriage and asked that their union would be strong enough to serve as an example for all young couples.


“It broke me down,” Mrs Earwood said, “to know that we felt the same way about God. It just made me happy."

Photographer Dwayne Schmidt said it was an emotional moment for the couple and all others who were present.

"The whole room was full of emotion," Schmidt said. "I tried not to cry and focus on what I was doing."

The photograph captured by Schmidt shows the couple turned away from each other, while holding in hands. Caleb can be seen praying out loud, while Maggie does her best to hold back her tears.

The photo, which Schmidt posted on his Facebook page on Saturday night, has since received more than 48,000 likes and has been shared more than 7,000 times.

Facebook users have thanked Schmidt for sharing their beautiful images and have given their best wishes to the newlyweds.

“This is absolutely breathtaking,” wrote Sandi Russell.

“Beautiful picture. It brought tears to my eyes,” added Rebecca Helms.

Schmidt said many people has sent him emails to thank him for sharing the photo of the couple’s special moment.

The couple is currently enjoying their honeymoon and will soon return to Camp Lejeune in Jacksonville, North Carolina, where Caleb is based.

Morning news break - May 27