So is anyone else having a "Quaker wedding?" Also known as a self-unified marriage, Quaker weddings are only legal in a few states, including PA. Quaker weddings were initally started because Quakers did not want legal oversite into their marriages, so the states allowed the Quakers to marry themselves by both the bride and the groom signing a form, with two witnesses also signing, no justice of the peace or legal officiant was necessary.
In 2007 a judge in PA ruled that if the courts were going to honor this form of marriage for Quakers, then they would have to honor it for all couples, regardless of background or faith. While not all states perform Quaker marriages, all states are required to honor Quaker marriages that have occured in other states. Thus when we come back to Virginia after the wedding our marriage will be honored.
When my partner first read about self-uified marriages we both knew it was for us. Neither of us wanted a religious person to oversee, and we wanted something more non-traditional. Self-unified wedding sounds perfect for us. We are having a friend that is not ordained serving as an "MP" of our ceremony, during which we are planning on signing our self unifying form.