Hey,
I am wondering about the current credential documentation etc..included in the Ministry Start up package.

Performing a Legal Wedding Ceremony:
A Three-Step Guide to Performing a 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 marriage process as simple as possible for you and the couple you plan to wed. Our church staff fields questions relating to marriage law on a daily basis and we understand the frustrations the both couples and ministers go through. We have anticipated your concerns and compiled a three-step set of instructions for performing a wedding ceremony and 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, and we have made this the easiest step for you. Just navigate your browser to our Free Online Ordinations page – Make sure you are connected to a printer so that you may print out your receipt of ordination – Read all of the instructions, submit your request for ordination, and within an instant you will be an ordained minister.

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 your local government agency that issues marriage licenses and ask them what is required of the minister who will perform the ceremony.

Some counties require basic documentation such as an ordination credential, a letter from our Church, and/or signed statements of ministry, all of which are available 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!

3. Performing the Wedding Ceremony

In order for a marriage to be legal, the ceremony must include the Declaration of Intent; you may recognize this 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.), Secularists and every thing in between. We receive questions about performing ceremonies on a daily basis, and although we provide a variety of Wedding Ceremony literature, we highly urge you to look within yourself and consult with the couple for guidance.

If you are officiating at a ceremony for a close friend or family member, chances are that you are already prepared to perform 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!