What we believe is not nearly as important as what you believe. We are here to help you create a ceremony that is special to you and your partner. We will not judge you or impose a set of rules or dogma on you. With that in mind it is still important that you know how our faith informs us so you will know if we can create the kind of ceremony that is a good fit for you as a couple.
All Sacred Paths are valid, as they all lead to the Divine.
It is our heartfelt belief that no one person holds all the answers to what is true and right for everyone. With that said it is not our place to impose any dogma, creed or religious test on any couple that comes to us to be married. We will instead be concentrating on the couple’s spiritual journey and not our own. Love is the guiding force in our Wedding Ministry. It is the Love of and through the Sacred Divine, call that power God if you will, that not only guides us in regards to our business, but it is what guides us our everyday lives as well.
We will marry anyone who comes to us for marriage and has a valid license from the state in which the ceremony is to occur. Couples that cannot or will not, for whatever reason, join in legal wedlock will receive the same care and attention to detail for their Ceremony of Union as legal marriages. We will never discriminate on the basis of race, national origin, color, creed, religion, sex, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, or associational preference. The only exception to this is that both parties must be of legal age and entering into union as consenting adults.
While same sex marrage is not currently legal in North Carolina, we support the right of all people to live in a loving relationship. We will perform Holy Unions and Commitment Ceremonies for any couple of legal age.
There will be no barriers as to any religious or spiritual belief on your part. We will not second guess or judge your worthiness or fitness for marriage. (How could we know what is right for you?)
At the same time, we will strive to never condemn anyone for any beliefs or practices (e.g., living together, prior relationships or divorce). We will not require them to believe what we believe, and we will not tell them what they must do or not do in the future. However, we shall feel free to share our visions of life and the Sacred, as we would ask them theirs.
While we hope the couple is seeking a spiritual element to their wedding ceremony, we will assist you if you are seeking only a civil or non-spiritual ceremony.
While we do not require pre-marital counseling, instructions or tests, there may be times that we will recommend them as a useful tool in reducing stress or helping the couple in their relationship with each other. But our relationship with the couple will be in no way affected if they should choose not to participate in them. If the couple should request them, or any other form of pre-marital counseling, we may provide them ourselves or suggest another place to obtain them.
No Pressure, But Support.
The couple can, if they choose to and time allows, meet with us free of charge for an approximate 1-hour visit where we can answer any of your questions and tell you about ourselves. (This does not appy to a Simple Vows Only Ceremony.) We will not require you to make a decision then and there. Rather, we will hold your wedding date for seven calendar days to allow you time to decide.
We feel that the selection of a wedding Officiant is one of the most important that the couple make while planning their wedding ceremony. However, we also understand that there are MANY important decisions that the wedding couple is making during this time. (Many of them NOT related to the planning of their ceremony.) For that reason, we will not pressure any couple into make a decision that may be against their beliefs or ideals.
We will be encouraging and uplifting at all times. We will offer ideas and suggestions. We will encourage every couple to follow their own vision of what their ideal wedding ceremony should be, and assist them in making that ideal a reality.
When planning your ceremony, we will be open to the individual needs and spiritual beliefs of everyone involved. It is our intention to honor each and everyone’'s own private spiritual beliefs and practices.
Children, Animal and Photographer Friendly.
We will support and encourage our couples that wish to involve children in their wedding ceremonies, be they their own, or the children of a friend or relative. We understand however, and hope that everyone involved understands, that children sometimes do not comprehend all the emotions that adults can go through during a wedding or other type of ceremony, and therefore at times find it difficult to “behave” in a way that adults would like. If this should happen, we will do whatever is necessary to comfort or reassure the child involved, knowing that such can only help the child understand better, and in no way can detract from the service being performed.
We will also support and encourage couples that wish to involve their beloved pets in their ceremonies, be they dogs or cats, horses or pigs, birds or fish, reptiles or any other of God’'s creatures. We will remind the couple that any animal can become excited or distracted by groups of unfamiliar people and may react in an unpredictable way. However, we will always focus on the fact that, regardless of any outside interruption, the end result of the ceremony will always be that two people who are in love become married.
We are, and always will be, photographer friendly. While we would sometimes like to believe that the most important expense that the couple will have is for their wedding Officiant, the fact is the wedding pictures will be most important item couples will need to invest in, because it will be the pictures that the couple will have in the future to remind them of their special day. We will put no restrictions on photographers regarding the use of flash, and will at all times be aware of the importance of capturing certain moments of the ceremony in pictures. (i.e., rings placed on fingers, Unity Candles being lit, etc.) Our only request to photographers in general would be that they try not to block the view of others and be courteous to other people wishing to take pictures themselves.
Rehearsals are Important.
We feel that the rehearsal is an important part of the wedding ceremony and we will always treat them as such. However, because of time limitations, rehearsals are scheduled on a first come, first served basis. We will do everything in our power to accommodate each and every couple, and may at times suggest alternate times or days for rehearsals.
We also feel that rehearsals should be enjoyable events that should be relaxing as well as informative for everyone involved. We will always be open to the ideas and suggestions of others during the rehearsal, remembering, however, that the most important ideas and visions should be from the couple for which the ceremony is for.
