Is it possible for me to perform a marriage ceremony?

May 6, 2007 6:36 PM

You know how on 'Friends', Joey performed the marriage ceremony for Chandler and Monica? Can I do that for my friends in Toronto (ON, Canada)? ...

The only information I can find on the Government of Ontario website:

"A religious marriage is performed by a member of a recognized religious organization authorized to perform marriages in Ontario under the Marriage Act. The marriage can be solemnized under the authority of a marriage licence or the publication of banns, depending on the denomination."

"A judge, justice of the peace or municipal clerk may perform a marriage under the authority of a marriage licence."

Can I do a religious marriage? Don't I still need a licence to perform marriages? How do I get that, and what do I need (credential wise) to be allowed to get it? What does "...marriage licence or the publication of banns, depending on the denomination" mean?

Please help me understand...

Thank you!

posted by omair to law & government (8 comments total)

The Universal Life Church says maybe.
posted by sanko at 6:59 PM on May 6, 2007

A cursory glance of the Marriage Act and the associated Regulations says no.

However, there is nothing stopping you from having any sort of ceremony you like with you performing any role you want during it and then having the couple the next day popping down to the town hall to have their marriage registered by the clerk under the regulations. Would the fact that your officiating would not, in fact, be official, really matter?
posted by modernnomad at 7:23 PM on May 6, 2007

Sorry, I may not have been entirely clear. To perform a religious ceremony, you would need to be recognised within your religious organization as someone who officiates at marriages in your "church", or wherever. If you are someone like that, you can apply to be recognised by the Ministry. However, it sounds like you are not, so my above answer stands -- run the ceremony as you like, and then let the couple work out the actual legal marriage separately.... legal and religious views of marriage have long been quite separate...
posted by modernnomad at 7:26 PM on May 6, 2007

A marriage license is the license the engaged couple obtains in order to get married, not a license clergy get to perform marriages.

The publication of banns is the announcement of a forthcoming marriage in a parish church. The idea is that instead of a marriage license, it is sufficient for your upcoming marriage to be announced in the church you attend regularly and will get married in.

But your engaged friends will want a marriage license to satisfy various agencies anyhow, so the option of the publication of banns is pretty much anachronistic these days.

I second the plan for them to get the official part out of the way with a pair of witnesses at City Hall, and then have the ceremony however they want. You won't be able to do the signing of the marriage license and register at the ceremony, though you can sign some things that look like but aren't those documents.
posted by mendel at 8:05 PM on May 6, 2007

Banns are anachronistic -- for heterosexual couples. I seem to recall that before the law change, a number of churches in Toronto were marrying same-sex couples by publishing banns.
posted by docgonzo at 10:45 PM on May 6, 2007

Friends of mine had a marriage celebrant there to witness the marriage and sort out the paperwork, but had somebody else actually perform the ceremony. Perhaps that kind of arrangement will work for you?
posted by robcorr at 11:07 PM on May 6, 2007

I had a friend who did this. He basically became the pastor for some Christian church and could legally perform marriages. It was great for the wedding! Not sure where he got the forms, etc. though, just know you CAN do it.
posted by xammerboy at 11:19 PM on May 6, 2007

Go to town or county, and ask if you can get a one-day Justice of the Peace license. I've done it in MA, and it is designed to allow one to legally perform a marriage.
posted by Gungho at 4:17 AM on May 7, 2007