Monday, January 31, 2011

Marriage with an Overseas Partner

The legal requirements for marriage in Australia is exactly the same for a person from overseas, as it is for an Australian citizen. This means that a marriage celebrant will sight the same documents for both partners seeking to be married, irrespective of where they normally live.

One of the documents which is required by many countries is a Certificate of No Impediment to Marriage. Many overseas partners seeking to be married in Australia will ask whether this Certificate is required by Australian law. The answer is no.

However, Australian seeking to marry overseas, may find that that country may require them to produce a Certificate of No Impediment to Marriage before marriage can take place.

According to Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Certificates of No Impediment to Marriage are issued by the Department when a request is made to that effect.


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Thursday, January 27, 2011

To Marry or not to Marry - That is the Question

It's been suggested that those couples who live together beforehand are less satisfied with their  marriage when they eventually do get married than those who don't.

It seems a question of perception. Those couples who haven't lived together beforehand, see their marriage as freeing them to be more than they were before. Those couples who have lived together prior to the marriage, see their marriage as being exactly the opposite - a curtailing of their freedom.

As a marriage celebrant, I have had the odd couples who managed to live quite happily for anything from five to seven to nine years without getting married. Then no sooner did they come to see me and fill in the required legal documents, than they seem to experience some doubts. Some of them went on to cancel the wedding plans. Others broke off the relationship altogether.

I often wondered whether it was a case of a relationship that wasn't going anywhere, and the decision to get married the excuse for the break up.

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Saturday, January 22, 2011

When Exchanging Wedding Rings is not Acceptable

Exchanging wedding rings is so much part of the wedding ceremony tradition, many people don’t realise that that’s all they are. A tradition. A wedding would be no less legal and complete if no wedding rings were exchanged.

Some religious groups, such as the Mormons for example, not only do not believe in the exchanging of wedding rings, wedding rings, in fact, are not part of their wedding ceremony.

The wedding ceremony itself takes place in the temple attended only by members of that religion. Whatever vows are taken, they do not include the giving and receiving of rings.

After the wedding ceremony, when the couple leave the temple, they can, and often do, exchange wedding rings. Most often this is done before or during the reception which is attended by anyone the bride and groom choose to invite, including friends who are not members of the church.

The ceremony can be just a mini event of exchanging wedding rings. However, if they so choose, the couple can create a sort of traditional ceremony with songs and poems, personal vows, as opposed to formal religious and legal vows,  and, of course, exchange wedding rings.

My question is, where some religions accept that a man can have more than one wife, what happens if all the potential wives want to exchange a wedding ring with their husband?


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Friday, January 21, 2011

Ceremony of Planting a Tree

Trees are often planted as symbolic rituals within such ceremonies as wedding, renewal of vows, baby naming, house blessing, funeral and commitment.

As the fifth wedding anniversary gift is wood, planting a tree at a renewal of wedding vows ceremony might symbolise the growing strength of the marriage bond.

The choice of a tree can be based on a number of things, including the meaning attached to it. A tree chosen for its beauty could be
·         Camilla which means excellence
·         Maple which means expansion
·         Myrtle  which means unity
·         Wattle which means protection.

When choosing a fruit tree, it might be
·         Apple tree which symblises happiness
·         Citrus tree which means energy
·         Walnut tree which means confidence
·         Fig tree which means fertility and good fortune

When there’s no room for the larger tree, potted plants or vines could be an option. This includes
·         Rosemary for remembrance
·         Bonsai tree to symbolise harmony
·         Ivy which symbolises determination and patience


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