The Southern Baptist Convention voted this week to expel Saddleback megachurch and Fern Creek Baptist because they have women pastors, and introduced an amendment to the church’s constitution that would explicitly restrict a woman from becoming ordained or holding a leadership position within the denomination.

How much does it cost to become an ordained minister online in California? Get ordained online free with AMM and learn how to officiate a wedding in California!

Six suggestions from professional wedding officiants to help you create a picture-perfect wedding ring exchange! Advice for officiants on how to choose creative wording, help the photographer get a great ring shot, save the day with a few fake rings in your emergency kit, what to do during a handfasting or marriage vow renewal ceremony, and more. Plan a fun and stress-free exchange of rings!

Celebrate the meaning and symbolism of the Christian feet washing wedding tradition, and learn how to include it in your marriage ceremony. A sample script with examples of what to say is provided for the wedding officiant. The ritual of washing feet at a wedding originates with a story in The Holy Bible, John 13:12-18, when Jesus washes the Disciples' feet as a sign of selfless love, humility, and forgiveness. A foot washing unity ceremony can be added to any Christian denomination wedding, along with biblical scripture reading and prayer.

A simple step-by-step guide to help you plan a wedding and get married in New York - including how to find a wedding officiant to officiate, choose the best wedding venue, plan your ceremony, and how to apply for and return your New York marriage license.

Which is a better choice for wedding officiants in New York - the new One Day Marriage Officiant License or Online Ordination through American Marriage Ministries? This side by side comparison makes it easier to weigh the pros and cons of each option for a first-time officiant, including cost, wait time, requirements to apply, secular vs spiritual considerations, and more.

Everything you need to know to add a handfasting ceremony to your wedding or vow renewal, including the symbolism and meaning of the handfast ritual, how to tie a handfasting cord into a beautiful knot, when to include the handfasting in the ceremony (what order), and how to perform a handfasting as an officiant -- with examples of what to say and do and links to a sample script!

Looking for the perfect wedding ring exchange script for the officiant? Maybe something offbeat? Funny? Classic and traditional? Modern? Whatever tone you’re looking for, these popular examples are sure to be a perfect fit! Use as is, or personalize a sample script below to suit your ceremony.

The Anonymous Officiant #8: A special guest dropped in on this Australian couple's gravity-defying Grand Canyon wedding in Arizona -- a rare, endangered California Condor! Read about the dizzying heights, incredible views, and unexpected excitement of these national park nuptials, in this installment of American Marriage Ministries’ new candid column about real weddings and real officiants.

Legislation to raise Connecticut’s legal marriage age to 18 years old has passed the House and Senate, and is on its way to Gov. Ned Lamont’s desk for final approval. Learn more about this ban on child marriage in CT, and what wedding officiants in the state should know about the changing law. (House Bill 6569 / HB06569 2023)

The AMM Wedding Ceremony Script Library contains more than 100 sample wedding scripts to choose from. Every template is written by a real wedding officiant, making it a creative and authentic alternative to an generic online wedding script generator. You'll find a variety of themes, styles, and tones to choose from -- including religious and nonreligious wedding scripts, themed weddings, funny and lighthearted scripts, romantic scripts, LGBTQ+ inclusive ceremony scripts, and more.

Curious what to expect when asked to attend or officiate a Satanic wedding ceremony? Learn what happens at a Satanic wedding, where Satanic weddings are held, who officiates, how to find an officiant, and what wedding traditions and rituals you might see -- including handfasting, candle lighting, sword exchanges. Plus, details about what The Satanic Temple and its members believe, and the common values of modern Satanism.

Award-winning filmmaker and one-of-a-kind wedding officiant Nico Raineau is in the business of telling love stories. His officiant business RomCom Weddings takes center stage this year, as he performs stunning, cinematic-style custom weddings. Read his take on theme weddings, the Writers Guild of America strike, his upcoming romantic comedy film about professional wedding officiants, and more!  

This marriage advice from 1880 offers an interesting glimpse into the past! The wedding reading, titled 'How to Perpetuate the Honeymoon,' has been reprinted and read at weddings by wedding officiants for decades, and was re-discovered over the weekend on Reddit, when a poster found it attached to a vintage marriage license from 1946.

Good news! Ex-county clerk Kim Davis has been ordered to pay $100,000 in damages for refusing to issue a marriage license to same-sex partners David Ermold and David Moore in Kentucky in 2015. Davis was previously found guilty of violating the couple's constitutional right to marry, following the Supreme Court's 2015 ruling in Obergefell v Hodges.

Learn how to officiate a Christmas wedding ceremony for the first time, including where to get ordained online, what questions to ask the couple, how to write a custom wedding ceremony script, how to complete the marriage license, and more!

Want to get married at a funeral home? 5 great reasons to have your wedding at a funeral home, mortuary, or cemetery, and why more couples are choosing this unusual and surprising wedding trend. Funeral homes can make easy, affordable, elegant, and accessible wedding venues!

Newly sober and going to a wedding? Here are 7 tips to help you have a wonderful time (and stay sane and safe), whether you're a sober wedding guest, wedding officiant, or wedding vendor. Advice on staying happily alcohol-free while officiating, attending, or working during a marriage ceremony.

See recent updates and new California Marriage Laws for wedding officiants and couples, and visit American Marriage Ministries marriage laws library to learn who can perform marriage in each state, officiant registration requirements, and more.

Introducing our newest ceremony planning guide! A creative ‘how-to’ book that explores ancient Pagan traditions, the marriage rite, and how to add the magic of handfasting into modern wedding and commitment ceremonies. Rooted in history and accompanied by colorful illustrations, detailed instructions, sample wedding ceremony scripts, Pagan holidays to help you choose a date, a lucky lunar guide, the meaning of colors, tips for writing your own vows, and much more!

There's a new product in the AMM store! These sleek, high-quality custom wood frames protect and display your ordination certificate and minister credentials, or showcase a commemorative wedding certificate, handfasting, or commitment ceremony certificate to create a thoughtful gift!