Secular ceremony that's long than five minutes?

AlmostMrsStrong

FI and I are having a non-religious ceremony. We are getting 30 minutes for the ceremony, but I'm not sure what else to include in the wedding besides the vows and such. Every secular ceremony I've seen has been insanely short. Any recommendations on how to stretch it out a bit and make it more personal?

ginadog

Our judge officiant wrote up a 25 minute ceremony for us.  The vows aren't until the 2nd page.

Without pasting it all in here, it's possible!  Can the officiant talk about why you chose your place?  Ours will have a special meaning and he incorporated that.

Can your officiant help with the text?

Maybe google "wedding ceremony scripts?"

artbyallie

Have people do readings or sing/play a song. Plenty of secular choices for those. But don't pad your ceremony just because you want it to be longer. After all, the important part is the part that makes you married, right? Plus, most people appreciate shorter ceremonies.

tenofcups4me

My secular ceremony for my first wedding was extremely personal. It was officiated by my sister/MOH and the ex's best friend/best man. The beginning was personal words from them and then we wrote every word of the ceremony, specific to us. The whole thing was probably only about 10 minutes, but completely personalized.

Most weddings I attend are short (thankfully since I really despise long weddings), but the officiant always customizes it to the people getting married.

NOLAbridealmost

OP, I had a civil ceremony with Judge KK Norman (from the Algier's Courthouse--we got married at Audubon Park though).  Her standard civil ceremony is 20 minutes long and she's incredible. Everyone who watched our wedding loved her.  That's who I'd recommend.

shannonkish

If you email me, I can send you a secular wedding that I attended. shannonkish (at) gmail dot com

HeathenSwan

I've performed two so far (for my brother and his wife, and for my sister-in-law's sister), and will be performing another this October. I used readings, poems, and other different things for the ceremonies. I can also suggest song lyrics you like (in lieu of poetry, or along with it).

My brother and his wife already had children, so I focused on the continued commitment they are making with their family. If you'd like me to send you copies of the ceremonies, pm me and I'll dig them up for you.

naomikb

You can still use similar content to a religious ceremony.

Instead of biblical readings, you can have poems or other love/life-related stories.

Instead of hymns, you can have a family member (or professional) perform a song.

You would still have a welcome and introduction, and a thank-you/sending at the end.

The only thing I'm not sure how to replace/change up would be the prayers.

My cousin had a secular ceremony recently and they included a love letter & wine box ceremony, similar to the one described here: http://www.celebrateintimateweddings.com/lovebox.html 

aragx6

Our secular ceremony will be about 15 minutes and I'm almost unsure of how to make it shorter so I doubt you'd really end up with a 5-minute wedding. It'll take nearly that long to get everyone down the aisle if you're having a typically sized wedding party.

processional
welcome
2 readings
vows
rings
kiss
recessional

AlmostMrsStrong

Thank you so much, everyone! Shot you an e-mail, Shannon.

AlmostMrsStrong

Thanks everybody! Man, I severly underestimated how stressful wedding planning is. 

Shot you an email, shannon.

DanielleJustine26

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_ceremony-ideas_secular-ceremony-thats-long-five-minutes?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:10Discussion:e148bdb5-97e9-4de9-a014-29d0ce95e4f4Post:48144f11-638f-4413-966c-8b8c7a39efa6">Re: Secular ceremony that's long than five minutes?</a>:
[QUOTE]I've performed two so far (for my brother and his wife, and for my sister-in-law's sister), and will be performing another this October. I used readings, poems, and other different things for the ceremonies. I can also suggest song lyrics you like (in lieu of poetry, or along with it). My brother and his wife already had children, so I focused on the continued commitment they are making with their family. If you'd like me to send you copies of the ceremonies, pm me and I'll dig them up for you.
Posted by HeathenSwan[/QUOTE]<div>
</div><div>Can you suggest some song lyrics, poems, and other readings?  We are writing our ceremony text and I would love the input.  Thanks!

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