Humanist officiant

A Humanist officiant (or Humanist celebrant) is a person who performs secular humanist celebrancy services for weddings, funerals, child namings, coming of age ceremonies, and other rituals. Some Humanist officiants are ordained or accredited members of the Ontario Humanist Society (OHS), Humanist Association of Canada (HAC), the American Humanist Association (AHA), the British Humanist Association (BHA), the Humanist Society of Scotland (HSS), the Society for Humanistic Judaism (SHJ), the American Ethical Union (AEU), or the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA).

United States and Canada

Laws in each state of the United States vary about who has the right to perform wedding services, but Humanist Celebrants or Officiants are usually categorized as "clergy" and have the same rights and responsibilities as ordained clergy.[1] In Canada and in states that legally recognize same-sex unions within the US, Humanist officiants perform LGBT marriage ceremonies.[2][3] The Humanist Society, an adjunct of the American Humanist Association, maintains a list of Humanist Celebrants.[4]

United Kingdom

The British Humanist Association organises a network of celebrants or officiants across England, Wales and Northern Ireland.[5][6][7] A similar network exists in Scotland, where, following a June 2005 ruling by the Registrar General, officiants or celebrants of the Humanist Society of Scotland are permitted to conduct legal wedding ceremonies.[8] Scotland is one of only seven countries in the world where Humanist wedding ceremonies are legal, the others being Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Norway, Ireland and some parts of the USA.[8][9] In England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, the current legal position is that a Humanist wedding or partnership ceremony must be supplemented by a process of obtaining a civil marriage or partnership certificate through a Register Office.[10] In December 2014 it was reported that the Prime Minister's Office was blocking the implementation of a change to give legal force to Humanist weddings in England and Wales.[11]

Non-religious funerals are legal within the UK. Humanist officiants are familiar with the procedures of cremation and burial, and are trained and experienced in devising and conducting suitable ceremonies.[12] The British Humanist Association describes officiants as follows:[12]

Officiants are generally at least 35 years old, have experience of public speaking, and have probably had paid or voluntary experience in a caring/supporting profession – such as nursing, teaching, police or social work, for example. They must be able to cope with the emotional burden of regularly meeting and working with bereaved people - often in relation to particularly difficult or unexpected deaths, such as the death of a child in a road accident. Funeral directors are able to make arrangements with trained officiants in their local area.

Humanist funerals have reportedly been held in recent years for Claire Rayner,[13] Keith Floyd,[14][15] Linda Smith,[16] Ronnie Barker,[17] and Lynsey de Paul,[18] among others.

Celebrants also undertake humanist baby namings as a non-religious alternative to ceremonies such as christenings. The purpose is to recognise and celebrate the arrival of a child, and welcome him or her in the family and circle of friends.[19]

See also

References