Humanist celebrant

Part of a Philosophy series on
Humanism
History
Renaissance humanism in Northern Europe in France Humanist Manifesto
Secular humanism
Center for Inquiry A Secular Humanist Declaration Amsterdam Declaration
Religious humanism
Christian Jewish Buddhist
Other forms
Cosmic Deistic Existential Integral Marxist Neo Personism Rationalist Trans
Organizations
International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU) American Humanist Association British Humanist Association Humanistischer Verband Deutschlands Humanist Society Scotland Human-Etisk Forbund
See also
Antihumanism Posthumanism Ethical movement
Outline List of secular humanists Philosophy portal

A humanist celebrant or humanist officiant is a person who performs secular humanist celebrancy services for weddings, funerals, child namings, coming of age ceremonies and other rituals. Some humanist celebrants are accredited by humanist organisations, such as Humanists UK, Humanist Society Scotland (HSS), and the Humanist Association of Canada (HAC).

Availability

Humanist ceremonies are conducted in every part of the world by humanist organisations, although the legal status of non-religious ceremonies of different kinds varies from place to place. In general, funeral ceremonies are not typically regulated by states, but many countries with a religious history have stricter guidelines on who can perform legal marriages. Naming ceremonies, similarly, can be held anywhere without legal implications. In countries where legal marriages can only be performed by religious institutions or the state (such as England), humanist weddings are often performed before or after a civil legal proceeding, but presented as the more meaningful or significant of the two events.

As of 2017, humanist celebrants can conduct legally binding marriage ceremonies in Scotland, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Norway, Ireland, and the United States.^[1] The law in Northern Ireland, a legal jurisdiction in the United Kingdom, is under consideration from the courts.

United Kingdom

The charity Humanists UK (formerly the British Humanist Association) pioneered the practice of offering humanist ceremonies, and today organises a network of celebrants or officiants across England, Wales and Northern Ireland.^[2][3][4] A similar network exists in Scotland, where, following a June 2005 ruling by the Registrar General, celebrants belonging to Humanist Society Scotland have been permitted to conduct legal wedding ceremonies.^[5] Humanists UK celebrants in Northern Ireland were given the same rights in 2017 following a court case supported by Humanists UK.^[6]

In England and Wales the current legal position is that a humanist wedding or partnership ceremony must be supplemented by obtaining a civil marriage or partnership certificate through a Register Office.^[7] 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.^[8] That same year in Scotland, when same-sex marriage was legalised, the First Minister of Scotland attended the legal humanist marriage of a same-sex couple.^[9] In 2015, humanist weddings became more popular in Scotland than Church of Scotland weddings, or those of any religious denomination.^[10][11] Humanist Society Scotland's status as a trusted provider of marriages was written into Scots law in February 2017.^[12]

Non-religious funerals are legal within the UK. Humanist celebrants are familiar with the procedures of cremation and burial, and are trained and experienced in devising and conducting suitable ceremonies.^[13] The British Humanist Association has in the past described officiants as follows:^[13]

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,^[14] Keith Floyd,^[15][16] Linda Smith,^[17] Ronnie Barker,^[18] and Lynsey de Paul,^[19] among others. The humanist funeral for former First Minister of Wales Rhodri Morgan in 2017 was the first national funeral in the United Kingdom to be led by a humanist celebrant, former AM Lorraine Barrett, as well as the first national funeral held in Wales.^[20][21]

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.^[22]

Ireland

In Ireland, the Humanist Association of Ireland manages its own network of humanist ceremonies. Since 2012, these have been legally recognised, as in Scotland.^[5][23] In 2015, humanist marriages accounted for 6% of all marriages in Ireland, making them six times more popular than the Church of Ireland's weddings.^[6]

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 are usually categorized as "clergy" and have the same rights and responsibilities as ordained clergy.^[24] Humanist celebrants will perform both opposite-sex and same-sex marriage ceremonies.^[25][26] The Humanist Society, an adjunct of the American Humanist Association, maintains a list of humanist celebrants.^[27]

See also

• Celebrant (Australia)
• Marriage officiant

References

External links

• The Humanist Society