Bless You

As Civil Partnership is a non-religious concept, these blessings will have to take place after or before you have already had a ceremony in a venue registered for civil partnership registration.

If you have decided to have a blessing outside of the registration process, here are a few of the
the ways you can go about it.

LGCG

Christian

Whilst most sections of the Church are trying to distance themselves from civil partnership, two denominations are practically fighting over who is the first to hold official civil partnership blessings. During the summer, the Methodists proudly announced that they would allow same-sex blessings in their churches after the introduction of civil partnerships. Then the Quakers perked up and pointed out they had always allowed same-sex blessings and so they must be the first. The Metropolitan Church, founded on the idea of reaching out to gays and lesbians, also claim their place as the premier denomination for blessings. Whoever was the first is not important. The fact that there are now three definite denominations offering same-sex blessings is great. Moreover, if you contact the LGCM, the Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement, you can find other celebrants, vicars and churches around the UK that can help you with your blessing. Take a look at www.lgcm.org.uk The subject of blessings within the Church of England is still quite fraught subject. Recent advise from the House of Bishops states that no form of same-sex blessing should take place within a Church of England building. The document did, however, allow members of the clergy to enter a civil partnership...as long as they never consummate the relationship! However, Church insiders claim that many gay clergy members will continue to conduct their relationships how they wish.

JGLG

Jewish

Like gay friendly Christian vicars, there are more and more Rabbis in the UK who are starting to perform gay commitment ceremonies based on the usual Jewish wedding traditions. The Erusin is of course limited as there is no legal status to your blessing, however the Nissuin, Birkat Erusin and Mitzvah are a lot easier to modify for a same-sex ceremony. For more information, contact the Jewish Gay and Lesbian Group. www.jglg.org.uk

Budda

Buddhism

The Buddhist religion did not have marriage to begin with as the concept was a Western invention. However, in recent centuries many different forms of Buddhist commitment ceremonies have been developed. Like many other rituals from this ancient faith, flowers play a huge part. It is also traditional for a monk, who has taken all the sacred vows to officiate. In terms of the actual ceremony, the International Buddhist Institute in Hawaii has developed vows that are used internationally in most sects. To see them in their entirety, visit www.buddhanet.net

Pagan

Lesbian and gay handfastings are one of the first types of same-sex relationship blessings ever to take place. As there is no condemnation of homosexuality in Paganism, it is natural that this rite of passage has been available for so long. There are no set rules for the ceremony but ideally the priest should consecrate the area and mark out the ceremonial circle himself. As nature plays such a pivotal role in the Pagan religion, outdoor locations such as woodland is the ideal place to hold the ceremony. The vows are also an essential part of the ceremony and should be considered and written carefully.
Using an altar is a fun way to bring together many elements that express the various aspects of life, love, partnership that create marriage. For a smaller wedding; each guest can come to the altar and light incense, or if you have asked guests in advance to bring an small token for the altar they can come forward with it and offer a single word of blessing, or say what the item represents, and place in on the altar. For larger events guests can light incense or place items on the altar at their own leisure during the reception. The altar that Bride and Groom have created is filled with totems offer remembrances of blessings that they have received. These artifacts represent the many ways that Bride and Groom contemplate and witness the beauty of creation.

Humanist

Humanist

Humanists aim to draw positive moral values from life that are based on human experience, rather than God-given. They don't believe in an afterlife, but still think we should all be nice to each other and have good moral standards. As a movement, they have always been supportive of lesbian and gays. The Gay and Lesbian Humanist Association (GALHA) is extremely active and has a large membership. GALHA provides a voice for the many nonreligious in the lesbian and gay community in the United Kingdom and elsewhere and promotes a rational humanist approach to homosexuality and to lesbian, gay and bisexual rights as human rights. To find a celebrant in your area, check out either the GALHA website
(www.galha.org.uk) or the British Humanist Association (www.humanism.org.uk)