NAMING, MARRIAGE, FUNERAL AND MEMORIAL CEREMONIES

Most Spiritualist organizations have a minister or lay person who is available to officiate at a naming service for infant children or adults. Those individuals may also assist with organizing a funeral or memorial service for a departed loved one or friend. Please contact your local church to inquire about arrangements.

Naming and funeral services do not require the same legal documentation as a ceremony that unites two individuals in marriage. To perform a legal marriage, as opposed to blessing the union of two individuals, a church’s minister must be registered with the appropriate provincial jurisdiction.

The requirements that a church must fulfill to obtain rights for its ministers to perform marriages differ within each province. For churches that are able to solemnize a legal marriage, we have attempted to indicate the names of the registered ministers.

Since July 2005, marriage between two individuals of the same sex has been legal in all provinces and territories across Canada. Many Spiritualist ministers will be perfectly comfortable conducting a same-sex marriage.

As in other religious denominations, there may be ministers in some churches that are not comfortable with same-sex marriage. If you are considering having your same-sex union recognized legally within the Spiritualist church in Canada, be sure to attend church services and get to know the minister and members of the congregation. Enquire about same-sex marriage and if a response is awkward or lacking in sincerity, it might be advisable to try another Spiritualist church in your area.