A celebrant friend wrote the following to me about the tragedy of Civil Marriage Celebrant Program and the results of Bad Management

The so called training institutions are spewing out some terrible so called celebrants – we have a couple here who do not understand the regulations at all – one recently conducted a surprise wedding (supposed to be a housewarming and the couple were married, to the groom’s surprise) and another conducts weddings without the 31 mandatory waiting period.When I discussed it with one of them the reaction was – oh, don’t be like that – rules are meant to be broken!! If I don’t do it, someone else will!!
It is about money, not rules and ethics and codes of conduct.
A videographer recently dropped off 4 weddings conducted by celebrants both here and in (town mentioned) – I was horrified as I watched them and it would have been a comedy show akin to Fawlty Towers or Big Girls Blouse if it was not a couples most special day.
There were scenes in some of them that you would have thought had been based on Monty Python.
Scary.
“My town” is really beautiful, in spite of the 21 celebrants who roam around with their cars signwritten like a local plumber!!
Name and address Supplied!

I mentioned the report (with my friend’s permission) on Facebook. I received these comments:-

• Nicole – What about celebrants who can’t pronounce simple words, speak with a lisp or make jokes in bad taste?
  “You may now kiss the groom – I’m sure you’ve had plenty of practice with the best man.”

• Jan  – we could write a book of the stories we’ve heard (including funeral celebrants)

• Bill – This so frightfully common around Australia. What a disgrace, no amount of correspondence to the AG or registrar makes any difference. There are so many bad trainers in the system, in all MC training and even worse delivering opd, these trainers fail with one approved trainer and move to the next taking all of their inadequacies as trainers with them. Dally messenger lit a lamp with Lois D’Arcy and Lionel Murphy so let’s keep the lamp burning with honesty, justice and education integrity.

Australia’s First Same Sex marriages. All performed by Civil Celebrants.

One of the First Same-sex marriages in the ACT -7-12-2013 performed by Civil Celebrants. (Photo from The Age Gallery.)

One of the First Same-sex marriages in the ACT -7-12-2013 performed by Civil Celebrants. (Photo from The Age Gallery.)

The marriages were nullified by the High Court the following week.
Still, History has been made.
The Age put out this wonderful gallery of photographs
http://www.theage.com.au/photogallery/-2yxn8.html

Our Celebrant Diploma Courses communicate a great deal of Best Practice for Readers and Readings.

An essential element in this for a celebrant is to have a knowledge of resources regarding poetry and powerful quotations.

A reader at one of my weddings. Notice that the reader stands among the guests and, because of the nature of the poem, is reading directly to the bride and groom. Photo:Remi Messenger

A celebrant who does not rehearse readers – especially at the official rehearsal, is doomed for disappointment. My experience is that even the most educated persons “race” readings at a wedding. Sometimes I have to ask the reader to practice two or three times, so I can slow them down (to say nothing of developing inflexion and feeling – and how to use the microphone).
Ceremonial pace is a measured pace – and this so applies to Readers.

When couples ask me whom they need at the rehearsal, I always start off by saying  – “You – and the Readers”.

Another question I am asked is why, when I can, I position the readers in the midst of the guests looking at / addressing the bride and groom. The answer is simple – most readings are “advice” (self chosen) for the bride and groom e.g. “Love one another, but make not a bond of love …”

Such positioning always gives out the feeling that the readers are reading on behalf of the guests – which they are.

When a reading is obviously words that the bride is addressing to the groom and vice versa I consider it essential that an explanatory sentence or two is given by the Reader – “Mary and John, I will read these words as you would say them to each other ….”

Actually short introductions personalise almost every reading and should be created for every poem and prose quotation. And, needless to say, at these times the Reader is the centre of attention and the celebrant should get right out of the way. Readers should look up at the bride and groom who should rehearse giving the reader rapt attention.

A lot more could be said.

A BBC story about discovering readings from children’s books took me by surprise. We Australians (where Civil Marriage Celebrants were established in 1973) were reading these selections from children’s books over thirty years ago. I do not know how many times a reader or I have read to a bride and groom the Velveteen Rabbit, or quotes from the Little Prince, or the Princess Bride or The Owl and the Pussycat. It is a good discovery by the Brits but they have not discovered something bright and new !

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-24379830

RELATED ARTICLES

• Diploma Courses: Enrolment Form (pdf)
• Diploma Courses: Information Booklet (pdf)
• Examine this site for further information

If you are a celebrant anywhere in the Western World our Diploma courses are for you.If you wish to become a celebrant in any country, other than Australia, our Diploma Courses are for you.

If you wish to become a Celebrant in Australia we need to inform you that there is a necessary qualification the government currently requires – Certificate IV in Celebrancy –  We need to tell you that we do not esteem this course very highly as it is mainly written and controlled by non-celebrant government bureaucrats.

We teach this Certificate IV Course in two ways. You can study our Diploma of Marriage Celebrancy with extra prescribed work as required. Or we teach it only as required by the government (less expensive, less comprehensive) but, despite the difficulties, we still teach it better than anyone else through our partner Registered Training Organisation, Life Skills Training.
Download information booklet.