paying the minister... how much?

vexie

hi ladies,

so tonight we met with the minister to plan our the ceremony. When we asked him what his fee is he replied "whatever you feel it is worth".   Ummm... I have no idea what that service is worth.    I'm curious to know what other knotties will be paying their officiant?  We're having a non-catholic christian ceremony.. should be approx 30 minutes in length.  

Thanks!

naomikb

The fee for the minister for our non-Catholic Christian ceremony is $200.  There is no set church fee so we are also making a $500 donation to the church.

IDoVenues

The fee for a minister largely depends on where you are getting married.  Many ministers charge any where from $200- $900- depending on how mcuh guidence they are giving you along the way.

If the minister comes from any particular church- feel free to aks the secretary- they are alwsys happyt to chat. 

If you need more ceremony advice- check out the blog http://www.idovenues.com/search on ceremony advice - here is a gorgeous ceremony @ Hans Fadhen winery photographed by Adi Nevo
www.idovenues.com/" title="Click to view a larger photo">

LoveMuffins

We're paying ours $500

vexie

Wow.. ok.  Maybe I'll call the minister's wife and see what people normally tend to give him.  We're not getting married in a church and are not getting any pre-marital counselling from him... just the meeting last night, some email/phone calls to confirm order of things and then the ceremony.  They will be attending the reception as guests.

He told us that he used to ask for a set fee until he learned that one couple went without grocery money for a month so they could pay him.. now he just allows folks to give what they want however I want to give what is appropriate.

thanks for the insight ladies!

Sarahkayfa

A lot of my Dad's congregation is very poor, and he doesn't charge people to perform weddings. But normally most pastors are given a gift of between $50-$200. 

cmk46202

Did you ask on your local board? I had planned to use my former pastor but he is moving to the Bay area soon, so his travel expenses would cost us around $1000. Some of the ministers that were recommended to me by my local board had flat fees listed on their websites along with what those fees entailed. 

vexie

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_ceremony-ideas_paying-minister-much?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:10Discussion:80dc8310-a70f-4d43-8780-238b79a2ab82Post:2cd843b9-6413-4392-8c39-01b204fa892e">Re: paying the minister... how much?</a>:
[QUOTE]My husband is a minister. He considers $50 generous. Be sure to invite the minister and spouse to the rehearsal dinner and reception.  We usually decline, but it's a nice gesture. Please give cash or a gift card. Officiants have a closetful of devotional books and religious-themed items from other couples.
Posted by RetreadBride[/QUOTE]

We did invite them to the reception and the rehearsal dinner.. seemed like the proper thing to do and they happily accepted.  :)

Lol...I'm sure you get all kinds of gifts!  Thankfully one of those gifts will come in handy for us... the minister mentioned that one couple had given him the unity candle holder and offered to let us borrow it.   Yay!! 

Lisa50

I sounds like we're having similar ceremonies.  Our minister usually charges $500 - $600, but we're getting a reduced "friends and family" fee, so we're paying $250 - $300, I think.  Shoot!  I can't remember, but that's close.

almost-a-bride

We didn't pay a fee, but we make a generous donation.

Jesskavipp

QUestion for you ladies- what do you do if you've asked a very close friend to be your officiant for your ceremony?  do you make a donation to them?  or offer to pay for them to be ordained online?  we are so grateful that one of my oldest friends has agreed to do this for us, how do we show that gratitude?