Answer
Being a FuturFaith Minister
Humanist celebrants and FuturFaith celebrants both create personal ceremonies for weddings, funerals, naming ceremonies and other important life events.
The main difference is the type of ceremony each approach is designed to support.
Humanist ceremonies are rooted in a non-religious, humanist worldview. FuturFaith takes a broader approach, allowing celebrants to work with clients of any belief, including religious, spiritual, mixed-faith and non-religious people.
Humanist ceremonies are personal and highly tailored, but they are non-religious by nature.
They usually focus on the people involved, their story, relationships, values and life experiences, without including religious prayers, worship or references to a deity.
Humanism itself is a non-religious philosophy that focuses on reason, human welfare and human responsibility rather than religious authority or supernatural belief.
FuturFaith celebrants are trained to work with people across a much wider range of beliefs and backgrounds.
That could mean creating a fully non-religious ceremony for a couple who do not identify with any faith. It could also mean including a prayer, blessing, cultural tradition, spiritual reading or symbolic ritual where that is meaningful to the people involved.
The point is not to force religion or spirituality into a ceremony. It is to give clients the freedom to include what feels right for them.
A FuturFaith ceremony can be:
FuturFaith Ministers are not required to follow one set religious doctrine. Instead, they are trained to understand and respectfully work with a wide range of beliefs, traditions and client preferences.
A Humanist celebrant is focused on offering only non-religious ceremonies.
A FuturFaith celebrant can offer non-religious ceremonies too, while also being able to work with clients who would like religious, spiritual, cultural or mixed-belief elements included.
That can give you more flexibility when building your celebrant business. You are not limited to working only with one type of client or ceremony style.
For example, one couple may want a completely secular wedding with readings and a Handfasting. Another may want a modern ceremony that includes a family blessing or a meaningful religious reading. As a FuturFaith celebrant, you can work with both.
Legal marriage authority is separate from whether someone is Humanist or FuturFaith.
In the Republic of Ireland, a person must be listed on the Register of Solemnisers to legally solemnise a marriage. Humanist Association of Ireland celebrants can conduct legal weddings, and eligible FuturFaith graduates can follow the relevant pathway towards registration too.
Training, graduation and legal registration are separate things. Anyone considering either route should check the current eligibility requirements for the jurisdiction where they plan to work.
Humanism may suit you best if you specifically want to offer non-religious ceremonies only.
FuturFaith may suit you better if you want the freedom to work with people of all beliefs and none, while creating ceremonies that are personal, modern and shaped around each client.
Neither approach is about delivering generic ceremonies. Both can be warm, personal and meaningful. The difference is how much room you have to include or exclude religious and spiritual elements based on what each client wants.
© 2024 FuturFaith Ministry®.
