Humanist/Civil Joint Ceremony

This is exactly what we want to do, did you ever find out the answer??

We aren't doing it this way, we are going to the registry office the day before, but I imagine the registrar would not be happy to oversee the humanist ceremony and declare it legal, you still aren't allowed anything remotely religiously or spiritually symbolic, even lighting candles would be seen as a ritual. So ask your registrar but I imagine they will want a completely separate ceremony to be recognised as legal, then the humanist and (in my opinion) more meaningful part would come after and be treated as completely separate. It will also make your ceremony hugely expensive to do it this way, as you would have to pay the £400 or so for the registrar to come out for their bit and then the £400 or so for the celebrant to perform their bit. This is another reason we are doing our legal bit the day before in the registry office, it's only £80.

Sorry I don't feel like my last comment was hugely helpful, I'm basically telling you it can't be done, or it if can it would cost a bomb, but I'm just guessing! If you do have to compromise, I blame the government completely. I mean what century do we live in when priests can double up as a registrar but Humanist celebrant can't?! There is a growing demand for secular yet meaningful wedding ceremonies and due to archaic laws it's just not possible!

I did find my civil ceremony meaningful, but thanks for the suggestion that it wasn't.

It can be done but not in tandem. You could ask the registrars to leave after you have signed the register and received the certificate. When they have left the room you could commence your Humanist ceremony.

It wouldn't be meaningful FOR US. I wasn't passing judgements on others. Also, your sarcasm is unhelpful.

That's ok - I'm not trying to be helpful.

"There is a growing demand for secular yet meaningful wedding ceremonies" clearly implies that the secular wedding currently available is not meaningful.

I looked into this and was told that if we did, we would not be able to insinuate during the non legal ceremony that it was a 'real' ceremony in any way. Also we would have to pay the full registrar fee and the celebrant fee. It would probably be worth speaking to a local registrar as I was given the impression that it was often a personal decision on their part.

Yes, that's exactly what I meant. Which is why we are having a humanist ceremony.

So you DO mean that the secular wedding currently available is not meaningful?

I don't understand why you find this confusing. Let me try again. We are having a humanist ceremony because FOR US civil ceremonies are too restrictive and don't allow us to do what we want, and are therefore not meaningful enough FOR US. For example I would like a Florence and the machine song played because it is meaningful for us. But our registrar would not allow it due to the word 'lord' in it. We would also like the wording of our ceremony to be decided by us and to reflect our humanist values. Civil ceremonies don't allow that.

If you still don't understand, imagine what a religious person might say about a civil ceremony. They might say that it is meaningless for them because to them getting married involves God and is not just a legal procedure. That is not to say they would frown upon someone else's civil ceremony. Indeed, that is not what I am doing, you have taken my comment completely the wrong way. I am not criticising your wedding!

You should be more careful about how you word things in future.

Well, Foo, perhaps it is time for you to let this one go, because clearly none of my explanations have been good enough for you. I was simply trying to help the OP with some advice, you have managed to make this thread about you.