[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"doc-seo-380509-105":3,"detail-sidebar-cat-1-en-105":80,"doc-detail-380509-en":126},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"ok",{"site_id":7,"language":8,"slug":9,"title":10,"keywords":11,"description":12,"schema_data":13,"social_meta":73,"head_meta":75,"extra_data":77,"updated_unix":79},105,"en","guidelines-for-proposing-lay-marriage-celebrants-guidelines-for-proposing-lay-marriage-celebrants","Guidelines for Proposing Lay Marriage Celebrants - Guidelines for Proposing Lay Marriage Celebrants","","Guidelines outline how the Uniting Church in Australia nominates and authorises suitably equipped laypeople to celebrate Christian marriages where an ordained Minister is not normally available. The rationale explains the pastoral character of marriage services, the absence of theological objection for Christians in good standing, and the legal context for registration. Procedures specify Presbytery checks, the nomination workflow to committees and the General Secretary, oversight and annual review. Celebrants are instructed to follow UCA marriage rites, include non-scriptural readings only with proper scripture precedence, and follow ethical rules when invited to officiate weddings elsewhere.",{"@graph":14,"@context":72},[15,34,55],{"@type":16,"itemListElement":17},"BreadcrumbList",[18,23,27,31],{"item":19,"name":20,"@type":21,"position":22},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",1,{"item":24,"name":25,"@type":21,"position":26},"https://docshare.wps.com/template/","Template",2,{"item":28,"name":29,"@type":21,"position":30},"https://docshare.wps.com/template/letters/","Letters",3,{"item":32,"name":10,"@type":21,"position":33},"https://docshare.wps.com/template/guidelines-for-proposing-lay-marriage-celebrants-guidelines-for-proposing-lay-marriage-celebrants/380509/",4,{"url":32,"name":10,"@type":35,"image":36,"author":41,"headline":10,"publisher":44,"fileFormat":47,"inLanguage":8,"description":12,"dateModified":48,"datePublished":49,"encodingFormat":47,"isAccessibleForFree":50,"interactionStatistic":51},"DigitalDocument",{"url":37,"@type":38,"width":39,"height":40},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/guidelines-for-proposing-lay-marriage-celebrants-guidelines-for-proposing-lay-marriage-celebrants/380509.png","ImageObject",442,249,{"name":42,"@type":43},"Jasmine","Person",{"url":19,"name":45,"@type":46},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-10-15","2026-09-24",true,{"@type":52,"interactionType":53,"userInteractionCount":33},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":54},"ViewAction",{"@type":56,"mainEntity":57},"FAQPage",[58,64,68],{"name":59,"@type":60,"acceptedAnswer":61},"What conditions must the Presbytery satisfy before requesting authorisation of a lay marriage celebrant?","Question",{"text":62,"@type":63},"The Presbytery must confirm a clear need in the local congregation, lack of an ordained Minister or a special case justifying an additional person, good standing of the nominee, acceptable respected Christian leadership, and satisfactory completion of the Synod of NSWACT training covering marriage preparation, legal requirements, and liturgy.","Answer",{"name":65,"@type":60,"acceptedAnswer":66},"How does the nomination process move from Presbytery to registration?",{"text":67,"@type":63},"After the Presbytery proposes the person to the Placements Committee, the committee decides whether to seek registration. The Placements Committee forwards the name to the General Secretary, who lodges the application. If accepted, the Presbytery ensures appropriate oversight and reviews annually whether authorisation remains required.",{"name":69,"@type":60,"acceptedAnswer":70},"What requirements govern the conduct of marriage services by UCA celebrants?",{"text":71,"@type":63},"Celebrants must follow the rites of the Uniting Church in Australia: the Declaration of Purpose, Vows, and Proclamation are integral and not to be altered, and Scripture reading and the Proclamation of the Word are not optional. Additional readings or poems may be included only if Scripture reading is given precedence.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":32,"og:type":74,"og:title":10,"og:site_name":45,"og:description":12},"article",{"robots":76,"canonical":32},"index,follow",{"doc_id":78,"site_id":7},380509,1791379771,{"code":4,"msg":81,"data":82},"success",[83,88,93,98,103,108,113,117,122],{"id":84,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":85,"show_sort_weight":86,"slug":87},11,"Presentations",90,"presentations",{"id":89,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":90,"show_sort_weight":91,"slug":92},12,"Resumes",80,"resumes",{"id":94,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":95,"show_sort_weight":96,"slug":97},14,"Invoices",70,"invoices",{"id":99,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":100,"show_sort_weight":101,"slug":102},15,"Posters",60,"posters",{"id":104,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":105,"show_sort_weight":106,"slug":107},16,"Social Media",50,"social-media",{"id":109,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":110,"show_sort_weight":111,"slug":112},17,"Forms",40,"forms",{"id":114,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":29,"show_sort_weight":115,"slug":116},18,30,"letters",{"id":118,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":119,"show_sort_weight":120,"slug":121},21,"Paper Templates",5,"papers-templates",{"id":123,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":124,"show_sort_weight":4,"slug":125},158,"General","general-158",{"code":4,"msg":81,"data":127},{"doc_id":78,"user_id":128,"nickname":42,"user_avatar":129,"doc_module":22,"category_id":114,"category_name":29,"doc_title":10,"doc_description":12,"doc_content":130,"file_id":131,"file_url":132,"file_type":133,"file_size":134,"view_count":33,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":22,"is_downloadable":22,"audit_status":22,"page_count":30,"language":135,"language_code":8,"site_id":7,"html_lang":8,"table_of_contents":136,"faqs":137,"seo_title":138,"seo_description":12,"update_tm":139,"read_time":22},2336478487870,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_085a072bc5b1113ac321206ff7593b45","Guidelines for Proposing Lay Marriage Celebrants  \n\n| Title | Guidelines for Proposing Lay Marriage Celebrants |\n| --- | --- |\n| Creation Date | 06/05/2016 |\n| Version | V. 1.0 |\n| Last Revised |  |\n| Approved by | General Secretary |\n| Approval date | 30 June 2016 |\n\nRATIONALE  \nThe Uniting Church in Australia needs to be able to propose the names of suitably equipped laypeople to be authorised to celebrate marriages according to the rites of the Uniting Church in communities where an ordained Minister is not normally available.  \nWhile it is normal for an ordained Minister to preside at marriage services, this is not part of the UCA’s understanding of ordination. There is no theological objection to any Christian of good standing in the church conducting a service of Christian marriage, in the same way that any Christian can conduct a Christian funeral. The conduct of marriages and funerals belongs to the pastoral ministry of the church and does not form part of the sacramental ministry of the church (unlike Lay Presidency) .  \nCommunities have always celebrated marriage, and will continue to do so with or without Church. A Christian marriage service is one in which the couple, with their families and their community, celebrate their marriage and make their marriage vows within the context of the Christian tradition.  \nLegal Context  \nThe Nominating Authority in each state (the General Secretary in the Synod of NSW and the ACT) proposes people to be registered as Lay Marriage Celebrants. There are no guarantees that the person proposed will be accepted by the Federal Attorney-General.  \nGUIDELINES FOR PRESBYTERY  \nThe Nomination Process  \nBefore requesting that the General Secretary propose a person to be authorised as a Lay Marriage Celebrant, the Presbytery needs to satisfy itself that:  \n1. There is a clear need for the UCA to authorise someone to celebrate marriages in the local congregation or setting;  \n2. There is no ordained Minister readily available to provide this ministry in that community, or there is a special case to justify the nomination of an additional person;  \n3. The person proposed is a member in good standing in the UCA;  \n4. The person proposed offers respected Christian leadership in that congregation and community which is acceptable to the congregation and the presbytery; and  \n5. The person has satisfactorily completed the Synod of NSWACT training for Lay Marriage Celebrants which includes consideration of marriage preparation, legal requirements and the meaning and conduct of the liturgy.  \nThe Presbytery then proposes the person to the Placements Committee which determines whether to seek registration as a Lay Marriage Celebrant. The Placements Committee forwards the name to the General Secretary who lodges the application.  \nIf accepted, the Presbytery ensures that processes are in place to ensure that intentional and appropriate oversight is provided for the exercise of this ministry.  \nThe Presbytery will review annually whether this authorisation is still required and inform the Secretariat that the requirement is still current.  \nGUIDELINES FOR CELEBRANTS  \nThe Rites of the Uniting Church in Australia  \nThe conduct of marriage services in the UCA is made explicit in the Notes to The Marriage Service in Uniting in Worship II (pp. 352) and all UCA celebrants should familiarise themselves with those requirements. In particular,  \n􀁸 The Declaration of Purpose, the Vows, and the Proclamation of the Marriage are integral to ‘the rites of the UCA’ and should not be altered or amended. In some cases, alternative wordings are offered in Uniting in Worship II; and  \n􀁸 The reading of Scripture and the Proclamation of the Word are not optional.  \nCouples may wish to include a meaningful poem or reading in the service. In such cases care should be taken to ensure that the Scripture reading has precedence.  \nWeddings in Other Places  \nWhile the person is proposed for this ministry because of the needs of","cbCaiacoTR0KXRzr","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaiacoTR0KXRzr","pdf",320294,"English","# RATIONALE\n# Legal Context\n# GUIDELINES FOR PRESBYTERY\n## The Nomination Process\n# GUIDELINES FOR CELEBRANTS\n## The Rites of the Uniting Church in Australia\n## Weddings in Other Places","[{\"question\":\"What conditions must the Presbytery satisfy before requesting authorisation of a lay marriage celebrant?\",\"answer\":\"The Presbytery must confirm a clear need in the local congregation, lack of an ordained Minister or a special case justifying an additional person, good standing of the nominee, acceptable respected Christian leadership, and satisfactory completion of the Synod of NSWACT training covering marriage preparation, legal requirements, and liturgy.\"},{\"question\":\"How does the nomination process move from Presbytery to registration?\",\"answer\":\"After the Presbytery proposes the person to the Placements Committee, the committee decides whether to seek registration. The Placements Committee forwards the name to the General Secretary, who lodges the application. If accepted, the Presbytery ensures appropriate oversight and reviews annually whether authorisation remains required.\"},{\"question\":\"What requirements govern the conduct of marriage services by UCA celebrants?\",\"answer\":\"Celebrants must follow the rites of the Uniting Church in Australia: the Declaration of Purpose, Vows, and Proclamation are integral and not to be altered, and Scripture reading and the Proclamation of the Word are not optional. Additional readings or poems may be included only if Scripture reading is given precedence.\"}]","Guidelines for Proposing Lay Marriage Celebrants - Guidelines for Proposing Lay Marriage Celebrants | PDF",1790240478]