A Humanist Wedding

It’s been my plan for a long time to open the blog to other quality Wedding Suppliers, this blog receives an average of 3000 unique visits per month and most of them are looking for information on Weddings, but not necessarily photography. So, in an attempt to widen the scope I am inviting other guest writers to submit their own thoughts / views / hints & tips or general information. I cant ask for a better first guest than Mary Wallace who is a Humanist Celebrant from Alloa, I met Mary last year in the grounds of Cortachy Castle when we both had the privilege of working with Stephan and Sheena on a glorious hot day in stunning surroundings.

I still say that Marys Service was the very best and most personal service I have ever heard so I am delighted that she agreed to be the first guest writer.

Look out for more guest writers in the coming months including Wedding Planners, hotel managers and florists. In the meantime, enjoy:

I’ve been a Celebrant of the Humanist Society since 1999 and I can safely say that it’s the most rewarding and enjoyable work I’ve ever done! In fact, I have to admit that I enjoy it so much that most of the time, it doesn’t really feel like work at all! Although I occasionally conduct funerals and baby naming ceremonies, I mainly concentrate on weddings. The joy of the job for me is the opportunity to work with couples to develop uniquely special ways for them to celebrate their marriage. Every wedding is different because every couple is different – some people want to celebrate in quite a formal, traditional way, but many want their ceremony to be quite relaxed and informal, with elements of fun and laughter. My job is to help them to create that special mood and to develop a ceremony that is truly reflective of them as a couple. And as far as the content and structure of the ceremony goes, I always say that anything goes – well, almost! Humanism is an ethical but non-religious life stance of course, so hymns, prayers and bible readings aren’t appropriate, but there’s never a shortage of lovely things to include. I spend a lot of time with each couple, helping them to decide on their vows, readings, music and any symbolic gestures they might want to incorporate, such as candle lighting, drinking from a quaich or hand fasting. I then draft the ceremony for them so that they can make amendments to it and add things in or take things out. I quite often include a small element of surprise on the day too by asking the couple to tell me what they love about each other, but to keep their answers a secret from one another – and I then include their words in the ceremony. It can be really romantic and very moving, but also hilariously funny at times – you wouldn’t believe the cheeky things that people say about each other! People are often nervous on their wedding day and laughter definitely helps! I see my role on the day as guiding the couple through the ceremony and helping them to relax and enjoy every moment! And not only do most couples do exactly that, but I do too! I often tell people that I have the best job in the world - it’s a real pleasure and huge honour to play a small part in what is the happiest day of most people’s lives…

Mary Wallace

Registered Celebrant, Humanist Society of Scotland
12 Fir Road, Doune, Perthshire, FK16 6HU. Tel: 01786 842239 Mobile: 07968 666432
Blog: http://humanistweddingsbymary.blogspot.com
Website and web profile: http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk
The Humanist Society of Scotland is Scottish Charity Number SC 026570