Humanist Wedding

[Onelife]

I had the pleasure of being invited to my first ever humanist wedding at the weekend and came away thinking it was the most meaningful, beautiful wedding service that l have ever attended.

What l didn't realise was that humanist weddings in England and Wales unlike Scotland are not legaly binding.

I don't have any figures to back this up but l wouldn't mind betting a large proportion of those choosing a traditional wedding rarely go to church which begs the question why get married in a church anyway. At least with a humanist wedding the couple have made a conscience decision to follow their own beliefs and in doing so have every right imo to have their humanist wedding recognised in law without them having to go through a civil marriage first or indeed after to make their marriage legal in the eyes of the law.

Any opinions on this?... should the law change to allow humanist celebants the authority to conduct legally binding humanist weddings in England and Wales....as is the case in Scotland?

Regards

OL

[GillD46]

I have been to a Humanist funeral, and while it was a very nice service, JUST having contemporary music wasn't enough for me - I really missed the hymns.

[Manoverboard]

I met my very first humanist in the late 60s, in Northampton I recall, he was a warm and friendly feller from Northern Ireland ... have yet to meet a second humanist.

For me people can marry who they like and where they like and regardless of their religious alliances, although I do confess to having a problem with same sex marriages.

[Ray Scully]

We are to host our first Humanist wedding at our Village Hall in September.
As it will not be legally binding we don't have to hold any special licenses etc.

[Silver_Shiney]

While I strongly believe that marriage is an institution created by God between a man and woman for life, I would rather couples had a "humanist" ceremony than go to church to take vows that many are happy to break in front of a God most don't believe in.

[Ray Scully]

While I strongly believe that marriage is an institution created by God between a man and woman for life, I would rather couples had a "humanist" ceremony than go to church to take vows that many are happy to break in front of a God most don't believe in.

I think this commitment is better than "living over the brush" as many do these days

[Onelife]

Thanks for your responses

I'm presuming from the responses that none of you would object to the law being changed which would allow a humanist wedding to be legally binding?

My personal opinion is that celebrants should be allowed to conduct legal weddings without couples having to attend a registry office to get a licence first. As long as the celebrant is trained and accredited to perform this duty then I can't see any reason why the law shouldn't be changed.

I actually think a lot more thought goes into preparing for humanist weddings...especially so when it comes to the couples personal vows to each other.

Regards

Keith