Performing a Legal Wedding Ceremony

Are you planning on performing a wedding ceremony? Intimidated? Confused? Don't be! The Universal Life Church Monastery is the most prominent and respected ecumenical church on the web and we are proud to allow you the ability to bring loved ones together in holy matrimony. Many ministers become ordained through our Church for this very reason. We make the process as simple as possible for you, and the couples you plan to wed. Our church staff fields questions relating to marriage law on a daily basis and understands the frustration for the couple as well as any first time minister. We have anticipated your concerns and compiled a three-step set of instructions for performing a wedding ceremony while ensuring that it is legally binding. Remember, marriages are celebrations of love and as such they should be fun!

1. Get Ordained

The first step is to get ordained. We have made this the easiest step for you and future Universal Life Church Monastery ministers. Simply navigate your browser to our Free Online Ordinations page. Be sure to read all of the instructions and make sure you are connected to a printer so you may print your receipt of ordination.

2. Contact your local county clerk

Marriage laws vary from state to state, even county to county, and it is important for you to familiarize yourself with the requirements set forth by your local government. Contact the government agency issuing the marriage license to the couple you intend to marry and ask them what is required of the minister performing the ceremony and signing the license.

Some Counties require basic documentation such as an ordination credential, a letter from our Church, and/or signed statements of ministry, all of which can be procured from the Ministry Products section of our website. Other locations require nothing at all, and simply being ordained is enough to perform a legally binding ceremony.

Once you have completed this process you only have one thing left to do, perform the wedding ceremony!

3. Performing the Wedding Ceremony

In order for the marriage to be legal, your ceremony must include the Declaration of Intent, you may recognize it as the "Do you take... I do" exchange. The rest of the ceremony is up to you and the couple you are bringing together; this is where you are free to let your personality shine!

People come to us from a variety of backgrounds: Christian denominations, Pagan belief structures, Eastern Religions (Buddhist, Shinto, etc) and every thing in between. We receive questions about performing ceremonies on a daily basis, and although we do provide a variety of Wedding Ceremony literature, we highly urge you to look within yourself and to consult with the couple for guidance.

If you are officiating at the ceremony of a close friend or family member, chances are that you are already prepared to execute the ceremony. You have a personal knowledge of the couple and after all, that is probably why they asked you to officiate their wedding!

After the wedding, you must complete the marriage license, (which usually requires the signatures of two witnesses and the couple in addition to your own), and mail it to the state or county clerk's office. Each agency has different requirements for the amount of time you have to file the license, so make sure you do your homework. Once the paperwork has been submitted you have officially completed the wedding ceremony.

Congratulations!