What is a humanist wedding?
The short answer: the best way to get married, in my opinion.
The longer answer: We humans are social animals, and we have an innate desire to mark the important events in our lives with ritual.
Most engaged couples only hear about two types of ceremonies open to them: faith-based or civil. This means that non-religious couples often think they have to choose between saying and hearing words they don’t believe, or having a ceremony that is perfunctory, impersonal, and (let’s face it) pretty dull.
However, there is another way.
A humanist wedding ceremony is another kind of ceremony altogether – a non-religious ceremony which is chock-full of authenticity, truth and joy.
A ceremony script that is created for YOU, only YOU, to celebrate YOU and your own love story. Surely, on one of the most important days of your life, you want to sincerely believe in every single word you hear and say. And not only do you want to believe in the words, but you want to revel in the experience, bask in the glory of every last second, don’t you?
And that’s where I come in.
The Personal Touch
I will spend months getting to know you both, building a true trust and friendship.
This not only means that the script will be packed full to the brim with personal anecdotes, jokes, and sentimental touches, but also the ceremony will feel like it is being led by an old friend.
Each ceremony is written from top to toe to suit the couple in every way; every ceremony is unique.
The question I get asked most – by guests, even by venue owners! – after they attend one of my wedding ceremonies is “Why didn’t I know about humanist weddings before?” – usually followed up swiftly with “We would have had one if we had known!”
“Nat was absolutely amazing. Her ceremony was so personal, funny, heartwarming, loving and joyful… the way she spoke about us and about our love for one another, was overwhelming. Thank you so much Nat for marrying us as two queer women, you made us feel welcome and loved.”
– TASH & MARTHEHumanists believe that this life is the only one we have, and as such we have a duty to live that life in the most principled and respectful way possible, looking to our love for each other and our human communal experience for guidance.
I am not only trained and accredited by Humanists UK – the gold standard of celebrant training – I’m also a mentor for new humanist wedding celebrants, and lead professional development workshops for the HUK network.
Humanists UK accredited celebrants are regularly peer reviewed and engage in ongoing CPD to maintain their accreditation. Accredited celebrants also have full Professional Indemnity and Public Liability insurance via the network, and all couples married by a HUK celebrant can claim a year of free membership of Humanists UK as a wedding present. It’s the gift that keeps on giving…!
We wanted to send you a huge & heartfelt thank you for being our wedding celebrant. So many people said how wonderful you were, how perfectly you captured the two of us. So so happy it was you that led our ceremony!
– KATY & JESS