What is a wedding officiant?
A wedding officiant is someone who is authorized to perform or solemnize a legal wedding. These include Justices of the Peace, members of the clergy (including Life-Cycle Celebrants who are non-denominational ministers), and judges. Anyone can apply to be an officiant for the day (a one-day solemnized), and if their application is approved by the governor, they can marry one specific couple.
In Western Massachusetts, there are a small number of Justices of the Peace. Why?
The population of western Massachusetts is small, and since Justices are assigned based on town population, there are fewer JPs to perform weddings. That’s part of why I became a Life-Cycle Celebrant – to offer a service to my community! My town is small so there is only one JP. He is great, but shouldn’t everyone have options?
What’s the difference in training between a Life-Cycle Celebrant and a Justice of the Peace?
Life-Cycle Celebrants are trained in ceremony construction and ceremonial public speaking. We have taken the equivalent of two semesters of coursework to be certified, and the core of our practice is the creation of custom ceremonies. JPs are judicial officers who have been appointed by the governor. They are legally authorized to solemnize marriages, but are not necessarily trained in ceremony construction.
ASK YOUR OFFICIANT if they are trained in ceremony construction.
ASK YOUR OFFICIANT what elements of their ceremony are standard and which are customizable.
Why choose a Life-Cycle Celebrant instead of a JP?
If you would like a custom ceremony with personalized elements, seek out a Celebrant. Life-Cycle Celebrants always include a professionally-crafted telling of Your Love Story as part of the ceremony. Through interviews, we find out about your history together, and using our specialized skills, we tell that story as part of you custom, unique ceremony.
If you are looking for a standard ceremony or an elopement, you may find both Celebrants and JPs offer quality service. My elopement rates are the same as the state-mandated JP rates – $100 in my town of residence (Montague), $150 in all other towns.
In general, I do not schedule weekend elopement ceremonies; I reserve the weekends for my standard or custom wedding clients. Those rates begin at $250 for standard weekend dates, $500 for custom written weddings.
My brother would do a great job as a JP for the day. Why not choose him?
A close friend or family member may be the ideal person to solemnize your wedding. If so, go for it! Having a loved one pronounce you married is a wonderful moment to remember. However, if they are not skilled writers or familiar with ceremony construction (the order of the elements, readings, etc), you may want to consider working with a Life-Cycle Celebrant as a consultant only. If you don’t need me to perform the ceremony, but you would like me to write it, I’m happy to do that! Email me for more information
Heather G. Richard 