Your wedding day is one of the most important and memorable days in your life.  Each element of the day has been thoughtfully chosen to ensure your celebration is a reflection of you –  venue, colours, outfits, food, drinks, seating charts and of course, your significant other.

A Humanist Wedding ceremony, is a celebration of the two individuals being married.  The joining together of lives and the combined hopes for a future with each other.  It allows you to make the promises and vows to each other that you wish to make, without following a script or format filled with someone else’s words.  The ceremony can involve elements which shine a light on your personalities.  It can be short or it can be long.  A Humanist Wedding ceremony is unique and personal…exactly what you want!

 

Currently, a Humanist Wedding Ceremony is not legally recognised in England and Wales.  However, they are in Scotland and Northern Ireland.  You can read more about this by following this link: https://humanism.org.uk/campaigns/human-rights-and-equality/marriage-laws/

If you had a registry office wedding, are getting married abroad or have eloped and now wish to return and make some magical memories with your nearest and dearest, a Humanist Wedding ceremony is the perfect way to do so.

 

 

A Humanist Wedding ceremony is not restricted by location and can be conducted outside or inside, at any time of the day (provided your Celebrant and guests are able to attend) almost anywhere you would like it.  This further adds to the deeply personal nature of the day.

The ceremony can be as long or short as you wish. You could have a 5 minute ceremony – just cutting straight to the promises. Or, you could have a 40 minute ceremony – sharing readings or stories, you could even through in a musical interlude if you like.

 

The ceremony can also be arranged for a vow renewal or a special romantic gathering to celebrate your partner and your relationship.

A Humanist Wedding ceremony is unique and personal…exactly what you want!

 

What to expect       If you have never attended a Humanist Wedding Ceremony, you may not be entirely sure what is involved both before and during the ceremony. The usual procedure would be for me to visit you / have a Skype meeting if you are far, far away, discuss ideas, poems, readings, symbolic acts (such as exchange of rings, an oathing stone, jumping the broom, sharing a toast etc), promises (as many as you like) and any other requirements you have. I bring along lots of examples and ideas to help get your creative juices flowing.  You don’t need to incorporate all or any of these elements but it is good to know that the options are almost endless!

By the end of the meeting, you should have a clear idea of what is going to happen, and I will have a good understanding of what your personalities are like and what sort of ceremony you might like. In the weeks following this, I will write a bespoke script, especially for you. I email the script back and forth until you are completely happy with what you have. I then conduct the ceremony for you.

Bookings for weddings are snapped up quickly, so don’t delay in getting in touch and starting the ball rolling on your perfect ceremony!

 

More info:

Humanists UK webpage on Weddings: https://humanism.org.uk/ceremonies/non-religious-weddings/

Contained within in that is a short video which further shows what can be involved: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C_xSxRms1XY

And, my personal favourite, a video narrated by Stephen Fry: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=si0ZmNMMXuY

 

 

**Symbolic actions – these can be as big or as small as you like.  However, I do not conduct ceremonies where non-biodegradable balloons or living creatures are released due to the negative impact on surrounding wildlife**

** Please note that I do not read scripts prepared or written by other people.  Each script is designed for the family who request it and to ensure that delivery is in keeping with the standards and values of both Humanist Ceremonies and myself as the Celebrant.  The only exception to this being the need to cover for a fellow Humanist Celebrant who is unable to attend a ceremony**