What is a celebrant?

 The first puzzle for many people is what exactly is a celebrant?! The word cropped up recently at the funeral of Captain Tom Moore when he had a celebrant led funeral, fantastically realised by Lucy Silous.

Traditionally, a celebrant used to be the alternative to a religious ceremony and 30 years ago that tended to be a Humanist ceremony. The legacy of this remains and when I said I was training to be a celebrant, the word 'humanist' cropped up every time.

So let's clear this up. An independent celebrant is free from traditional religion, is not a Humanist and is not the same as a Registrar, which is the other confusion.


If a couple choose to marry with a celebrant present, they must understand that a celebrant can not yet legally marry a couple, so this has to be done through the registrar, maybe a day or two before the main day takes place. This can be literally the signing of the document and saying 'yes' to questions. The vows and the ring exchange are not legal requirements, so these can be undertaken at the other ceremony.

Unlike through a registrar's office, a celebrant wedding can take place in any venue (I have heard of old, disused chapels being used for example and this is not something we need to avoid) and include any poetry, music (you don't have to get rid of a hint of religious text) and readings. The timing can be longer than the 15 minutes allowed for registrars (although some try to be more generous) and it can take place at any time of day or evening.

When you ask for a celebrant, you are choosing to be the architect of your day, whether that is for the celebration of a wedding or the sad task of saying goodbye to a loved one.

A celebrant will listen to your ideas and wishes and seek to help you create something as unique as you are. Your thoughts, words, intentions can all be realised in this way and on the day, you are faced with somebody familiar who knows something about you and your family, not a stranger.

People like the flexibility of celebrant weddings and while the legalities are now being sought to enable us to actually legally marry couples in future, the choice of so many other elements is open. (Weddings | Law Commission)

Perhaps the most personal touch is that the celebrant has been trained to write ceremonies and order them to suit you, so your words can be heard, your story be told and the lives of loved ones revealed.

Many celebrants, like myself, hold diverse spiritual beliefs and respect other cultures. As we come out of this terrible time in our lives, with so many deaths due to the pandemic, I think we will be looking to reframe how we can have that extra personal touch in our celebrations moving forward. Perhaps there is no better time to be a celebrant. 


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