ABOUT
HUMANISM
​
Humanism is a life stance, not a religion, and like a lot of people, I hadn’t even heard of it until my 30s. That’s because you’d never find a humanist shouting outside
a train station or knocking on your door, trying to get
you interested in an organised religion.
​
Humanist celebrants began their existence (in the 1800s)
in order to marry people who wouldn’t otherwise have
been given a wedding by the church (e.g. because they’d been married before and divorced, or they were same sex). The group of free-thinkers who founded “The Union of Ethical Societies” (the prelude to the British Humanists Association) included the father of the famous writer,
Virginia Woolf, Leslie Stephen.
​
Later, Humanists supported the Women’s Suffrage movement in the early 20th century, and the right to
gay marriage in the latter half of the century. And today, Humanists UK continues to campaign for the legal recognition of humanist marriage.
In fact, Humanists have been supporting the rights
of non-religious people for longer than any of us
have been alive.
This is why I am happy to hang my hat on humanism.
Good honest moral values - JUST BE NICE
​
Humanism is the belief or philosophy that we have one life to live, that we can live ethical and fulfilling lives without religion, and based on reason and humanity. You don’t need to be ‘god-fearing’ to be a good person.
8 top reasons to choose
humanist wedding
Your wedding ceremony can be BRIGHT, BOLD, BEAUTIFUL, BESPOKE & BLAZING with YOUR LOVE!
YOU ARE UNIQUE
Your wedding will be a ‘once in a lifetime’ experience: there won’t be another wedding like it because yours will be bespoke, and so clearly created just for you two. You have the freedom to be creative - and there are no strict rules to get it right. Your songs, your style, your stories.
PURE EMOTION
Your wedding ceremony should probably make people cry (tears of joy) and laugh (with you) - and that’s my job to get it right (100% success rate so far)
YOUR LOVE STORY
Your wedding gives you a chance to have the love stories of your life together, told in a way that appeals to you (perhaps how you met, maybe life experiences together perhaps some of the best or most memorable moments). I love writing people’s love stories in a way that’s heart-warming and captivating
SET THE TONE
Your wedding ceremony sets the tone for the rest of your wedding day. This is the chance to make it memorable, meaningful and amazing! (And get everyone giving you kudos for the rest of the day for choosing a one-of-a-kind ceremony)
ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE
With your bespoke wedding, you can show respect and care for your cultural roots, your heritages, or simply to have a very inclusive celebration that the people you love can enjoy. From handfastings, to dogs as ring bearers, to favourite film quotes or lyrics as readings, and many other ideas - it’s all possible.
YOU ARE EVERYTHING
Your bespoke wedding has the great capacity to bring together your families and friends from different backgrounds and focus on what’s important: that’s YOU and the milestone you’re making in your lives.
YOUR WEDDING. YOUR WAY
Your wedding doesn't have to include any outdated traditions that do not reflect your own values today.
CREATE SOMETHING
TRULY SPECIAL
Your wedding will be one of only a limited number I do each year so I can give you and your wedding ceremony the time and focus that’s needed to create something truly special.
destination weddings
If you’ve got a destination wedding in mind, consider asking a celebrant (pick me!)
to travel to it.
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Wouldn’t you rather have someone you’ve got to know and trust to do a great job, than someone you might only meet moments before?
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Don’t assume it’ll be more expensive! One of my couples found it was the same cost to fly me to the South of France (with flights and airbnb) as it was to employ the wedding venue’s local celebrant.
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You can have much more confidence and clarity in the service that I’ll provide as your celebrant. (Being accredited with Humanists UK means there are standards to keep up - and a robust complaints procedure which I hope would never to be necessary)
